County · Minnesota

Murray County, Minnesota

Murray County, Minnesota. Murray County had 7,942 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 2.9% since 2020, while Minnesota grew 2.2%. It holds 30 places (9 cities, villages and boroughs, 20 towns and townships and 1 census-designated) and 3 census tracts. GEOID 27101.

Residents, July 2025 estimate

7,942

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 8,179 · ACS 2020-2024: 8,097

Median household income

$74,033

±$3,954 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $89,062

Median home value

$185,400

±$10,842 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $329,300

Median gross rent

$810

±$48 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $1,280

How many people live in Murray County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 8,179 residents in Murray County. The Census Bureau estimates 7,942 for July 1, 2025, down 2.9% since 2020, while Minnesota grew 2.2%. The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 8,097 over 705 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −31 (8,146)
2021→2022 −85 (8,061)
2022→2023 +29 (8,090)
2023→2024 −63 (8,027)
2024→2025 −85 (7,942)

Murray County in Minnesota. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Murray County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	8,097	5,739,445	−199
Households	3,609±121	2,307,955	no clear change
Average household size	2.21±0.07	2.43	no clear change
Housing units	4,401±90	2,545,030	−226

Murray County's population since 2000

From 9,165 in 2000 to 7,942 in 2025: down 13.3%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 9,165
2005 (estimate) 8,919
2010 Census 8,725
2015 (estimate) 8,395
2020 Census 8,179
2025 (estimate) 7,942

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Murray County?

Murray County holds 30 places: 9 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places), 20 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government) and 1 census-designated place. The largest is Slayton with 1,930 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Murray County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Slayton	city	2,013	2,141±199	$62,344	$161,700	14.3%	100%
Fulda	city	1,371	1,393±141	$71,136	$164,700	7.3%	100%
The Lakes	CDP	590	594±68	$87,969	$397,100	3.5%	100%
Shetek Township	township	310	348±65	$96,250	$322,900	4.0%	100%
Lake Sarah Township	township	282	308±51	$73,750	$382,500	5.2%	100%
Chandler	city	279	331±86	$96,786	$161,100	12.4%	100%
Mason Township	township	276	232±39	$90,833	$333,300	5.2%	100%
Slayton TownshipGEOID 2710160826	township	268	273±72	$74,688	$252,800	14.7%	100%
Lake Wilson	city	254	237±46	$65,500	$98,600	17.3%	100%
Bondin TownshipGEOID 2710106922	township	226	227±57	$112,969	$306,000	0.0%	100%
Currie	city	224	220±35	$47,250	$82,800	14.1%	100%
Chanarambie TownshipGEOID 2710110882	township	201	186±64	$78,750	$170,300	5.9%	100%
Moulton TownshipGEOID 2710144458	township	193	98±28	$86,250	$256,300	0.0%	100%
Leeds TownshipGEOID 2710136260	township	189	134±31	$89,375	$206,900	1.5%	100%
Lime Lake TownshipGEOID 2710137088	township	172	129±48	$80,938	$215,000	2.3%	100%
Belfast TownshipGEOID 2710104708	township	168	137±41	$55,417	$231,300	6.6%	100%
Iona	city	166	214±61	$44,583	$65,600	20.1%	100%
Murray Township	township	163	162±45	$95,625	$346,400	8.6%	100%
Iona Township, Murray CountyGEOID 2710131112	township	161	120±31	$89,167	$300,000	4.2%	100%
Lowville TownshipGEOID 2710138402	township	154	184±53	$103,542	$238,900	1.6%	100%
Fenton Township	township	146	194±56	$73,750	$175,000	0.0%	100%
Ellsborough TownshipGEOID 2710118782	township	139	132±41	$72,500	$182,100	8.3%	100%
Dovray TownshipGEOID 2710116318	township	133	124±43	$81,875	$175,000	0.0%	100%
Des Moines River TownshipGEOID 2710115778	township	132	151±47	not published	not published	10.6%	100%
Skandia Township	township	120	96±20	$83,438	$240,000	16.7%	100%
Cameron TownshipGEOID 2710109460	township	118	68±16	$98,750	$162,500	10.3%	100%
AvocaGEOID 2703052	city	111	100±38	$48,125	$58,800	7.0%	100%
Holly TownshipGEOID 2710129690	township	98	88±20	$54,286	$307,700	2.3%	100%
DovrayGEOID 2716300	city	58	41±16	$51,875	$50,700	4.9%	100%
HadleyGEOID 2726450	city	54	29±12	not published	not published	3.4%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Murray County?

The median resident of Murray County is 46.5 years old; 21.7% are under 18 and 26.6% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 89.1%, then Hispanic or Latino residents (of any race) at 5.2%. 3.2% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Murray County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	46.5±0.5	38.8	−1.6
Under 18 years	21.7%±0.3 pts	22.9%	–
65 years and over	26.6%±0.2 pts	17.3%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	5.2%	6.4%	+1.2 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	89.1%±0.8 pts	75.9%	−3.9 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	0.7%±0.2 pts	6.9%	+0.3 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	0.9%±0.3 pts	5.1%	−0.7 pts
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.7%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.3 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.0%±0.6 pts	4.5%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	1.0%±0.7 pts	0.5%	–
Born outside the United States	3.2%±0.7 pts	8.7%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	6.7%±1.3 pts	12.4%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	7.4%±0.9 pts	5.9%	–
With a disability	13.4%±1.6 pts	11.6%	–
No health insurance coverage	5.0%±1.3 pts	4.7%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	91.9%±1.2 pts	93.9%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	23.5%±2.5 pts	39.4%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	5.7%±0.9 pts	13.8%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.1%±0.4 pts	1.8%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Murray County earn?

Half of Murray County's 3,609 households earn less than $74,033 a year (±$3,954), against $89,062 in Minnesota. In 2015-2019 it was $74,126 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 9.3% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Murray County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$74,033±$3,954	$89,062	no clear change
Mean household income	$90,836±$3,994	$118,304	–
Per capita income	$40,935±$1,541	$48,237	no clear change
People below the poverty line	9.3%±1.5 pts	9.3%	+2.2 pts
Children under 18 below the poverty line	10.1%±3.9 pts	10.3%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	6.2%±2.0 pts	7.9%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	85.1%±2.2 pts	91.6%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Murray County?

Owners occupy 82.2% of Murray County's occupied homes and renters 17.8%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $185,400 by its owner (±$10,842). The median renter pays $810 a month including utilities, and 30.6% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Murray County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$185,400±$10,842	$329,300	+$37,594
Median gross rent	$810±$48	$1,280	+$106
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	30.6%±8.6 pts	38.4%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,384±$54	$1,947	–
Owner-occupied homes	82.2%±2.3 pts	72.2%	no clear change
Housing units	4,401±90	2,545,030	−226
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.5%±0.4 pts	0.6%	–
Rental vacancy rate	10.1%±8.0 pts	5.3%	–
Single-family detached homes	90.0%±2.1 pts	66.0%	–
Mobile homes	3.0%±1.2 pts	2.9%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.6%±0.3 pts	1.9%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	25.8%±2.0 pts	15.6%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Murray County building?

Builders took permits for 18 new housing units across Murray County in 2025 (18 single-family), 2.3 per 1,000 residents.

2019 17 units
2020 24 units
2021 30 units
2022 37 units
2023 22 units
2024 22 units
2025 18 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Murray County get to work?

74.3% of Murray County's workers drive alone and 9.9% work from home. The average trip to work takes 21.0 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 2.7%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Murray County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	62.5%±1.7 pts	68.1%	–
Unemployment rate	2.7%±0.9 pts	4.1%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	74.3%±2.6 pts	68.9%	–
Carpooled	9.9%±2.0 pts	7.5%	–
Public transportation	0.2%±0.3 pts	1.8%	–
Walked	4.1%±1.0 pts	2.5%	–
Worked from home	9.9%±1.3 pts	17.6%	+3.0 pts
Mean travel time to work	21.0 min±0.9	22.7 min	no clear change

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Murray County's census tracts?

Murray County is divided into 3 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $65,833 (Tract 9003) to $81,685 (Tract 9001).

Census tracts of Murray County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 900127101900100	The Lakes (16%)	1,849	1,833±113	$81,685	$278,400	$947	6.9%
Tract 900227101900200	Fulda (17%)	3,221	3,158±161	$75,769	$167,200	$814	7.7%
Tract 900327101900300	Slayton (27%)	3,109	3,106±184	$65,833	$170,100	$775	12.3%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Murray County compare with Minnesota's other counties?

Murray County's rank among Minnesota's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	75th of 87
Growth 2020-2025	81st of 87
Residents per square mile	69th of 87
Median household income	44th of 87
Median home value	61st of 87
Median gross rent	62nd of 87
Poverty rate	53rd of 87
Bachelor's degree or higher	54th of 87
Median age	12th of 87

Every county in Minnesota

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Murray County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.