City profile · Minnesota · Census ACS 2023

Nowthen, MN

Nowthen's Census ACS profile: residents, income, housing, and the joined public-record layers available for this place.

4,539
Residents
$134,491
Median income
$440,200
Median home
$1,125
Median rent (state)
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State rank, size-class rank, and four peer cities for Nowthen.

Place dossier plate

Sheet MN-NOWTHEN-MN · Nowthen, MN 4,539 pop · income 91st pct

POP-VILLAGE · INC-TOP · COL-PAR · SAFE-UNK · RANK-TOP · PHOTO-FINISH · HOME-HIGH · BOOK-UNK

  • POP-VILLAGE 4,539
  • INC-TOP $134,491
  • COL-PAR 98.6
  • SAFE-UNK Safety pending
  • RANK-TOP 91st
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Fruit Heights
  • HOME-HIGH $440,200
  • BOOK-UNK Tracts pending

Nearest income peer: Fruit Heights, UT (+ $9 income $)

Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.

Income neighbourhood around Nowthen

Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Nowthen on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.

median HH income

What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-08

Compare beyond this state

Nationwide peers by population, income

Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Nowthen on ACS population and median household income . Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.

Similar population

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 4,539.

4 peers

Similar household income

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS median household income. This city: $134,491. Population peers are excluded.

4 peers

Nowthen - the verdict

Nowthen ranks in the 91st percentile for household income nationally, out of every US city with at least 1,000 residents. Source: Census ACS.

91st
percentile, household income
81st
percentile, home value
36th
percentile, median rent
📝 How we sourced this

Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.

Data Snapshot: Nowthen, MN

4,539 people live in Nowthen, Minnesota - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Median household income here is $134,491 per year, placing it in the top quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 3.4%. Typical homes in Nowthen are valued around $440,200, and the median resident age is 40.5 years. 40.3% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 68.5% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

In 2024, 17 residential building permits were authorized in Nowthen (Low Activity), per Census BPS data.

Minnesota tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts Minnesota at 98.6 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Near Average). Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,125 monthly. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Minnesota's average monthly utility costs around $225 (state average). On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 42.4 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Low).

A decision-led reading path

Useful questions to ask of Nowthen's data

How this reading path is ordered

This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from work and mobility to comparison shortlist to population change to housing and income; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.

For Nowthen, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, local building permits, commute-mode shares. No matched row is reported here for matched public-school count, within-city Census tract profiles, FBI reported-crime rates; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.

Question 1

What does the journey to work look like in Nowthen?

Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 66.2%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.

Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.

Compare commute patterns →

2. Comparison shortlist

Which cities make useful reference points for Nowthen?

Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching.

Within Minnesota, the closest population matches are Rockford (4,521 residents, $82,228 income); Sauk Centre (4,589 residents, $65,763 income); Newport (4,460 residents, $63,365 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Chester, MD (4,539 residents); Thiells, NY (4,539 residents); West Reading, PA (4,537 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.

Open a side-by-side comparison →

Question 3

Is Nowthen growing, shrinking, or holding steady?

Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +102 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +2.3% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 17 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.

Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.

See the national growth ranking →

4. Housing and income

How far does income reach against housing in Nowthen?

This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.

The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.3 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 3.4%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.

Compare the housing trade-off →

Population

4,539 residents

Micro place (under 10k)

Median Household Income

$134,491 /yr

Top-decile income · poverty 3.4% (Low poverty)

Cost of Living Index (state)

98.6 (US=100)

Above-average cost · BEA RPP 2024, Minnesota average

City profile score · Nowthen, MN

73/100

4 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023

Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians (income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.

Household income A+
$134,491

Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.

Poverty rate B+
3.4%

Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.

Bachelor's+ share B+
40.3%

Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.

Cost of living D
98.6 index

BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.

Violent crime N/A
N/A

No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).

Nowthen profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions) 4-axis radar comparing 1 series across Household income, Poverty rate, Bachelor's+ share, Cost of living. Household incomePoverty rateBachelor's+ shareCost of living 73 B
Nowthen profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)
Read the chart values
  • Household income: 92/100 (A+) · $134,491
  • Poverty rate: 76/100 (B+) · 3.4%
  • Bachelor's+ share: 75/100 (B+) · 40.3%
  • Cost of living: 46/100 (D) · 98.6 index

How does Nowthen compare to other US cities?

Here's how Nowthen stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.

Household income 91% higher than other cities
Home value 81% pricier than other cities
Median rent 36% pricier than other cities

"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.

How we calculate these percentiles & ranks

Each percentile compares Nowthen against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Minnesota only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.

Minnesota-relative analysis

Median Gross Rent places Nowthen near the bottom of Minnesota's cities

Among the 785 Minnesota cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Nowthen ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Nowthen only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.

Median Household Income
#36 of 775
95th percentile in Minnesota
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 785
0th percentile in Minnesota
Median Home Value
#45 of 774
94th percentile in Minnesota
Poverty Rate
#509 of 785
34th percentile in Minnesota
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#107 of 784
86th percentile in Minnesota
How in-state ranks are ordered

Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Minnesota only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.

91stIncome percentile
Gauge source note

91st percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.

How Nowthen's home value compares nationally

Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)

$440,200 19th percentile more affordable than 19% of 15,600 US cities

Show national distribution $0–$25,000: 5 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $25,000–$50,000: 54 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $50,000–$75,000: 352 US cities (2%). Below this entry. $75,000–$100,000: 1,086 US cities (7%). Below this entry. $100,000–$125,000: 1,516 US cities (10%). Below this entry. $125,000–$150,000: 1,170 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $150,000–$175,000: 1,278 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $175,000–$200,000: 1,229 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $200,000–$225,000: 1,035 US cities (7%). Below this entry. $225,000–$250,000: 976 US cities (6%). Below this entry. $250,000–$275,000: 754 US cities (5%). Below this entry. $275,000–$300,000: 712 US cities (5%). Below this entry. $300,000–$325,000: 521 US cities (3%). Below this entry. $325,000–$350,000: 526 US cities (3%). Below this entry. $350,000–$375,000: 465 US cities (3%). Below this entry. $375,000–$400,000: 393 US cities (3%). Below this entry. $400,000–$425,000: 317 US cities (2%). Below this entry. $425,000–$450,000: 300 US cities (2%). This entry sits in this band. $450,000–$475,000: 307 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $475,000–$500,000: 250 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $500,000–$525,000: 160 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $525,000–$550,000: 156 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $550,000–$575,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $575,000–$600,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $600,000–$625,000: 163 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $625,000–$650,000: 167 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $650,000–$675,000: 135 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $675,000–$700,000: 101 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $700,000–$725,000: 95 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $725,000–$750,000: 71 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $750,000–$775,000: 65 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $775,000–$800,000: 70 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $800,000–$825,000: 57 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $825,000–$850,000: 67 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $850,000–$875,000: 60 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $875,000–$900,000: 58 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $900,000–$925,000: 47 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $925,000–$950,000: 37 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $950,000–$975,000: 31 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $975,000–$1,000,000: 470 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $1,000,000–$1,025,000: 0 US cities (0%). Above this entry. Nowthen $0 $1,025,000 every US city, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023

Nowthen's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.3×

ACS median home value divided by median household income.

Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#7,995 of 15,516
More affordable than 48% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#6,555 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)

At 3.3×, Nowthen sits in the moderate band: national rank #7,995 of 15,516 and #6,555 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000). Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.

How this ratio is calculated

Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000. Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0). This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.

Income distribution context

$134,491 Nowthen, MN median household income (Census ACS)

Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Household income distribution - Nowthen, MN Nowthen, MN's median household income ($134,491) against the U.S. national quintile-share pattern. The Lorenz curve and quintile bars are national context, not Nowthen, MN-specific shares. $ Household Income Distribution Nowthen, MN median $134,491/yr, vs. U.S. national quintile pattern QUINTILE SHARE OF AGGREGATE INCOME Lowest 20% 3.4% Second 20% 9.2% Middle 20% 15.1% Fourth 20% 23.2% Top 20% 49.1% LORENZ CURVE cumulative income vs. population 100% 0% 100% pop. 0%
Nowthen, MN median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Nowthen, MN.

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 40.3%

Census ACS S1501, educational attainment

Poverty rate (households below FPL) 3.4%

Census ACS S1701, poverty status

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 68.5%

Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
4,539
Median Income
$134,491
Median Home Value
$440,200
Median Age
40.5
Poverty Rate
3.4%
Labor force participation
68.5%
Bachelor's Degree+
40.3%

Population Change

PEP vintage

Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025

See the fastest-growing cities →
4,500 residents4,550 residents4,600 residents4,650 residents 202020212022202320242025 4,528 residents 4,630 residents ▲ +2.3%
Nowthen's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.
Read the chart as text
Period Population
2020 4,528 residents
2021 4,540 residents
2022 4,512 residents
2023 4,525 residents
2024 4,573 residents
2025 4,630 residents

Housing Supply

BPS source

Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized

🏗️ Low Activity
Total Permits (2024)
17
housing units authorized
Single-Family
17
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
3.7
permits per 1,000 residents

5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)

Year Total
2019 0
2020 8
2021 10
2022 10
2023 9
2024 17

Commute Patterns

Commute source

How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023

Drive Alone
66.2%
Carpool
3.3%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
12.8%
Work from Home
16.3%
Other
1.4%

Based on 2,368 workers 16 and over.

Monthly Utility Costs

Minnesota statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $225

EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Minnesota at $225 (electricity about $95 , water and sewer about $45 ).

These are Minnesota statewide averages, not a meter reading for Nowthen. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.

Living Costs & Risk

Minnesota's BEA cost-of-living index is 98.6 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Nowthen is $1,125/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Minnesota statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 42.4 / 100 (Low).

Cost/risk geography note

Cost of living is a Minnesota statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Nowthen sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.

How Nowthen compares to similar-size Minnesota cities

Same-state peer method

Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.

City Population Median Household Income
Nowthen (this city) 4,539 $134,491
Rockford 4,521 $82,228
Sauk Centre 4,589 $65,763
Newport 4,460 $63,365
Census BPS 2024
Primary sources on this page

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Citation & verification links Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities

Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES. Joins use OMB Bulletin 23-01 / FIPS keys.

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Estimate caveats

ACS and UCR figures are citywide estimates with vintage lags; they do not replace a local visit, school visit, or insurance quote.

Editorial standards, provenance, and how to cite this page

Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

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