Population
166 residents
Census ACS 2023 - North Dakota
City profile · North Dakota · Census ACS 2023
Spiritwood Lake, ND
Population, income, housing, safety, climate and schools for Spiritwood Lake - drawn straight from Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA, NCES, HUD and FEMA, refreshed on the 2024–2025 release cycle.
- 166
- Residents
- $873
- Median rent (state)
Spiritwood Lake - the verdict
North Dakota's Spiritwood Lake counts 166 residents. Source: Census ACS.
- 2nd
- 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: Spiritwood Lake, ND
166 people live in Spiritwood Lake, North Dakota - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. The median resident age is 61.0 years. About 41.0% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 66.0% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 3 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Building Boom), up 200% from five years earlier.
Living costs in North Dakota run below the national norm: the state registers 89.0 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Well Below Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $873 per month statewide. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts North Dakota's average monthly utility costs around $200 (state average). Natural-hazard exposure scores 46.4 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Low).
Median Household Income
N/A /yr
Poverty 2.9%
Cost of Living Index (state)
89.0 (US=100)
Well Below Average - BEA RPP 2024, North Dakota average
How does Spiritwood Lake compare to other US cities?
Where Spiritwood Lake sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Median rent 2% 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 Spiritwood Lake against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to North Dakota only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
North Dakota-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Spiritwood Lake near the bottom of North Dakota's cities
Among the 246 North Dakota cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Spiritwood Lake ranks #128 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Spiritwood Lake only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Gross Rent
#128 of 246
0th percentile in North Dakota
Poverty Rate
#159 of 246
35th percentile in North Dakota
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#15 of 246
94th percentile in North Dakota
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 North Dakota only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Income distribution context
Median household income is not available for Spiritwood Lake in the current Census ACS release (common for very small places).
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 41.0%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL) 2.9%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+) 66.0%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
166
Median Income
N/A
Median Home Value
N/A
Median Age
61.0
Poverty Rate
2.9%
Labor force participation
66.0%
Bachelor's Degree+
41.0%
Population Change
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Housing Supply
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Building Boom
Total Permits (2024)
3
housing units authorized
Single-Family
3
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
18.1
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
| Year | Total |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 1 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 3 |
Permit volume increased 200% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
87.6%
Carpool
10.3%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
2.1%
Based on 97 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
State-average estimates for North Dakota - EIA 2023 residential energy data
Electricity
$90
avg/month
Natural Gas
$70
avg/month
Water & Sewer
$40
avg/month
Total Utilities
$200
estimated/month
Estimates reflect North Dakota state averages. Actual costs vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Cost of living is a North Dakota state average from BEA; rent and hazard risk are county-level figures from HUD and FEMA for the county Spiritwood Lake sits in
Cost of Living Index
89.0
Well Below Average
US average = 100 · BEA RPP 2024
Typical 2-BR Rent
$873/mo
HUD Fair Market Rent
County-level FMR estimate
Natural Hazard Risk
46.4 / 100
Low
FEMA NRI composite score (county)
Similar Cities in North Dakota
Cities of a Similar Size Nationwide
Population-matched peers from other states, closest to Spiritwood Lake's 166 residents (Census ACS 5-Year 2023).
Race & Ethnicity Composition
City-level race and ethnicity, Census ACS 5-year 2023 (tables B02001, B03001), OMB Directive 15 categories.
How Spiritwood Lake compares to nearby North Dakota cities
Population + median household income, sourced from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 (population) and B19013 (median household income).
Census ACS 5-year FIPS ND Census BPS 2024 OMB Bulletin 23-01
What do people ask about Spiritwood Lake, ND?
What is the population of Spiritwood Lake, ND? +
The population of Spiritwood Lake, ND stands at 166 according to U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.
What is the cost of living in Spiritwood Lake? +
BEA does not publish a city-level cost-of-living figure for Spiritwood Lake; the closest available measure is the North Dakota state average, a cost of living index of 89.0 (U.S. average = 100), rated "Well Below Average" based on BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 data. Costs within North Dakota vary by metro area.
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.
Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES.
Citation & verification links
Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCitiesEvery 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.