County · Minnesota

Stearns County, Minnesota

Stearns County, Minnesota. Stearns County had 164,110 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, up 3.7% since 2020, faster than Minnesota (+2.2%). It holds 67 places (31 cities, villages and boroughs, 34 towns and townships and 2 census-designated) and 37 census tracts. GEOID 27145.

Stearns County is one of the 2 counties of the St. Cloud, MN metropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

164,110

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 158,292 · ACS 2020-2024: 160,865

Median household income

$77,066

±$1,832 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $89,062

Median home value

$273,400

±$5,311 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $329,300

Median gross rent

$1,068

±$42 (90% margin)
Minnesota: $1,280

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

The 2020 Census counted 158,292 residents in Stearns County. The Census Bureau estimates 164,110 for July 1, 2025, up 3.7% since 2020, faster than Minnesota (+2.2%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 160,865 over 1,343 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 +656 (159,112)
2021→2022 +1,007 (160,119)
2022→2023 +1,686 (161,805)
2023→2024 +1,308 (163,113)
2024→2025 +997 (164,110)

Stearns County in Minnesota. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Stearns County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	160,865	5,739,445	+2,413
Households	61,403±529	2,307,955	+1,924
Average household size	2.50±0.02	2.43	−0.03
Housing units	66,625±93	2,545,030	+1,961

Stearns County's population since 2000

From 133,166 in 2000 to 164,110 in 2025: up 23.2%. 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 133,166
2005 (estimate) 141,813
2010 Census 150,642
2015 (estimate) 156,068
2020 Census 158,292
2025 (estimate) 164,110

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 Stearns County?

Stearns County holds 67 places: 31 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places), 34 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government) and 2 census-designated places. The largest is St. Cloud with 72,647 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 Stearns County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

St. Cloud	city	68,881	70,629±45	$61,374	$225,000	20.2%	80%
Sartell	city	19,351	19,758±285	$84,131	$297,300	7.4%	89%
Waite Park	city	8,341	8,399±29	$59,285	$219,400	21.2%	100%
St. Joseph	city	7,029	7,021±20	$74,946	$237,700	19.1%	100%
Sauk Centre	city	4,555	4,621±22	$62,628	$225,700	19.5%	100%
Cold Spring	city	4,164	4,249±19	$72,228	$280,400	9.8%	100%
Melrose	city	3,602	3,671±23	$59,677	$207,200	8.5%	100%
St. Augusta	city	3,497	3,625±38	$140,227	$388,400	0.0%	100%
Collegeville Township	township	3,344	3,351±36	$115,909	$468,600	6.2%	100%
Brockway Township	township	2,895	2,951±22	$116,250	$363,000	2.8%	100%
Albany	city	2,780	2,821±31	$69,167	$238,500	10.8%	100%
Wakefield Township	township	2,746	2,800±25	$108,333	$394,700	4.0%	100%
Paynesville	city	2,388	2,519±30	$75,250	$178,200	5.6%	100%
Rockville	city	2,382	2,452±378	$105,329	$365,800	4.3%	100%
St. Wendel Township	township	2,115	2,315±339	$105,057	$331,500	7.4%	100%
Avon Township	township	2,066	2,004±434	$107,917	$336,700	5.3%	100%
Maine Prairie Township	township	1,886	1,965±258	$100,313	$395,300	4.5%	100%
Lynden Township	township	1,816	1,889±293	$112,083	$365,900	9.5%	100%
Avon	city	1,618	1,552±215	$91,563	$245,100	9.8%	100%
St. John's UniversityGEOID 2757094	CDP	1,585	1,580±71	not published	not published	28.4%	100%
Eden Lake Township	township	1,584	1,640±288	$106,518	$360,900	4.0%	100%
Fair Haven Township	township	1,517	1,488±209	$89,034	$352,300	10.4%	100%
Le Sauk Township	township	1,502	1,446±282	$94,167	$296,300	6.4%	100%
Richmond	city	1,475	1,431±154	$71,438	$241,300	10.1%	100%
Munson Township	township	1,450	1,403±272	$121,000	$398,800	2.5%	100%
Paynesville Township	township	1,421	1,539±258	$103,906	$367,400	4.7%	100%
Holding Township	township	1,182	1,379±280	$99,073	$297,400	2.1%	100%
Sauk Centre Township	township	1,180	1,328±277	$98,611	$314,700	6.3%	100%
Krain Township	township	984	990±168	$101,667	$364,800	4.0%	100%
Albany Township	township	983	1,076±280	$127,946	$423,800	1.8%	100%
Farming Township	township	982	942±147	$95,417	$385,000	11.4%	100%
Millwood Township	township	950	1,038±162	$103,393	$387,700	2.7%	100%
St. Joseph Township, Stearns County	township	946	910±230	$100,000	$416,000	3.1%	100%
Kimball	city	799	709±85	$66,146	$232,200	11.3%	100%
St. Stephen	city	797	694±114	$105,313	$262,100	2.0%	100%
Holdingford	city	743	718±125	$79,375	$205,700	6.3%	100%
Belgrade	city	738	758±116	$51,103	$163,400	17.0%	100%
Melrose Township	township	729	1,198±277	$97,000	$298,700	0.7%	100%
Freeport	city	675	787±154	$89,808	$223,200	2.7%	100%
Luxemburg Township	township	631	751±179	$97,000	$351,500	1.6%	100%
Brooten	city	626	602±72	$48,250	$144,000	18.4%	100%
Oak Township	township	623	474±78	$89,219	$376,000	2.1%	100%
Grove Township	township	480	480±97	$91,875	$368,800	6.3%	100%
Eden Valley	city	1,027	1,002±141	$67,917	$161,300	12.5%	47%
St. Martin Township	township	438	423±95	$98,500	$366,700	2.4%	100%
FairhavenGEOID 2720276	CDP	392	255±54	$89,659	$255,600	9.4%	100%
New Munich	city	356	299±66	$92,188	$179,000	3.2%	100%
Crow Lake Township	township	350	311±71	$95,417	$284,400	16.1%	100%
Getty Township	township	347	386±118	$76,563	$314,300	5.4%	100%
Spring Hill TownshipGEOID 2714561906	township	337	278±69	$91,071	$278,300	0.7%	100%
Crow River Township	township	320	335±109	$91,250	$373,800	2.0%	100%
St. Martin	city	312	313±67	$59,219	$216,900	17.9%	100%
Lake George Township, Stearns County	township	308	275±62	$68,750	$320,700	5.1%	100%
Zion TownshipGEOID 2714572256	township	303	218±48	$95,000	$324,000	6.0%	100%
North Fork Township	township	273	218±43	$88,250	$261,100	15.7%	100%
Ashley TownshipGEOID 2714502530	township	258	227±90	$86,500	$331,300	0.4%	100%
Lake Henry TownshipGEOID 2714534496	township	248	237±46	$79,375	$392,500	5.1%	100%
Raymond TownshipGEOID 2714553314	township	230	249±131	$65,625	$252,300	34.1%	100%
ElrosaGEOID 2719088	city	213	217±57	$86,875	$174,300	6.9%	100%
GreenwaldGEOID 2725874	city	197	270±68	$72,625	$149,200	6.3%	100%
Meire Grove	city	180	167±39	$61,806	$190,600	12.0%	100%
RoscoeGEOID 2755510	city	130	96±39	$48,750	$173,200	27.1%	100%
St. Anthony (Stearns County)GEOID 2756698	city	91	57±21	$85,417	$200,000	3.5%	100%
Lake HenryGEOID 2734478	city	72	77±42	$105,357	$154,200	3.9%	100%
Spring HillGEOID 2761888	city	68	97±44	$87,708	$166,700	0.0%	100%
St. RosaGEOID 2758072	city	58	62±28	$81,458	$325,000	1.6%	100%
Clearwater	city	1,922	1,970±272	$91,346	$271,800	6.5%	0%

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 Stearns County?

The median resident of Stearns County is 35.1 years old; 23.6% are under 18 and 16.1% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 80.2%, then non-Hispanic Black residents at 9.0%. 7.9% 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	Stearns County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	35.1±0.2	38.8	+0.7
Under 18 years	23.6%	22.9%	–
65 years and over	16.1%±0.1 pts	17.3%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	4.8%	6.4%	+1.4 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	80.2%±0.3 pts	75.9%	−5.8 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	9.0%±0.5 pts	6.9%	+2.6 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	1.9%±0.3 pts	5.1%	no clear change
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%±0.1 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.7%±0.6 pts	4.5%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.1 pts	0.5%	–
Born outside the United States	7.9%±0.5 pts	8.7%	+1.1 pts
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	12.0%±1.0 pts	12.4%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	6.3%±0.5 pts	5.9%	–
With a disability	11.7%±0.6 pts	11.6%	–
No health insurance coverage	4.9%±0.5 pts	4.7%	+1.3 pts
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	92.5%±0.5 pts	93.9%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	28.8%±1.1 pts	39.4%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	9.8%±0.7 pts	13.8%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.6%±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 Stearns County earn?

Half of Stearns County's 61,403 households earn less than $77,066 a year (±$1,832), against $89,062 in Minnesota. In 2015-2019 it was $77,274 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 12.9% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Stearns County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$77,066±$1,832	$89,062	no clear change
Mean household income	$98,367±$2,415	$118,304	–
Per capita income	$38,286±$892	$48,237	no clear change
People below the poverty line	12.9%±1.2 pts	9.3%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	13.3%±2.7 pts	10.3%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	9.5%±0.9 pts	7.9%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	90.6%±0.7 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 Stearns County?

Owners occupy 67.9% of Stearns County's occupied homes and renters 32.1%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $273,400 by its owner (±$5,311). The median renter pays $1,068 a month including utilities, and 43.3% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Stearns County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$273,400±$5,311	$329,300	+$45,845
Median gross rent	$1,068±$42	$1,280	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	43.3%±3.2 pts	38.4%	+9.6 pts
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,696±$24	$1,947	–
Owner-occupied homes	67.9%±1.1 pts	72.2%	no clear change
Housing units	66,625±93	2,545,030	+1,961
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.7%±0.4 pts	0.6%	–
Rental vacancy rate	5.1%±1.4 pts	5.3%	–
Single-family detached homes	68.7%±1.2 pts	66.0%	–
Mobile homes	2.1%±0.3 pts	2.9%	–
Built 2020 or later	1.5%±0.4 pts	1.9%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	11.2%±0.8 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 Stearns County building?

Builders took permits for 648 new housing units across Stearns County in 2025 (371 single-family), 3.9 per 1,000 residents.

2019 488 units
2020 498 units
2021 532 units
2022 611 units
2023 618 units
2024 572 units
2025 648 units

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

How do people in Stearns County get to work?

74.7% of Stearns County's workers drive alone and 10.6% work from home. The average trip to work takes 21.7 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 4.1%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Stearns County	Minnesota	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	69.7%±0.8 pts	68.1%	–
Unemployment rate	4.1%±0.7 pts	4.1%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	74.7%±1.1 pts	68.9%	–
Carpooled	7.9%±0.9 pts	7.5%	–
Public transportation	1.3%±0.4 pts	1.8%	–
Walked	4.3%±0.6 pts	2.5%	–
Worked from home	10.6%±0.8 pts	17.6%	+5.3 pts
Mean travel time to work	21.7 min±0.7	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 Stearns County's census tracts?

Stearns County is divided into 37 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $30,489 (Tract 116) to $122,035 (Tract 101.01).

All 37 census tracts of Stearns County, with their figures

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

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

Stearns County's rank among Minnesota's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	8th of 87
Growth 2020-2025	18th of 87
Residents per square mile	13th of 87
Median household income	30th of 87
Median home value	23rd of 87
Median gross rent	16th of 87
Poverty rate	15th of 87
Bachelor's degree or higher	27th of 87
Median age	84th 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 Stearns 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.