Most Affordable Cities in Minnesota

Cost of living rankings for 151 cities in Minnesota with uncapped home, rent, and income estimates. On average, Minnesota is expensive with a statewide average Cost Index of 111.

1 source baseline is past its update cadence — newer official vintage not reflected

Cheapest City

Virginia

Index: 73

Most Expensive

Orono

Index: 203

State Average

111

National: 100

Cities Ranked

151

eligible statewide total

Minnesota Affordability Ranking

Showing 1–50 of 151 eligible cities — 50 on this page. Page 1 of 4.

#	City	Index	Home Value	Rent	Income
1	Virginia	73	$131,095	$1,054	$51,720
2	International Falls	76	$156,848	$1,014	$57,662
3	Fairmont	78	$170,959	$1,014	$53,084
4	Crookston	78	$190,266	$1,014	$57,315
5	Hibbing	79	$164,731	$1,207	$55,789
6	Redwood Falls	79	$173,309	$1,014	$61,750
7	Austin	80	$190,664	$1,027	$68,057
8	Albert Lea	81	$182,805	$1,148	$64,603
9	Fergus Falls	82	$205,415	$911	$56,162
10	Thief River Falls	83	$185,981	$1,228	$71,144
11	Montevideo	83	$212,393	$1,014	$68,596
12	Morris	84	$214,600	$1,027	$67,727
13	Willmar	86	$243,378	$929	$62,280
14	Bemidji	86	$219,753	$1,203	$55,405
15	Marshall	87	$242,209	$1,014	$68,566
16	Worthington	88	$248,985	$1,076	$61,797
17	Waseca	88	$250,690	$1,030	$64,074
18	Waite Park	88	$251,127	$1,174	$59,285
19	Winona	89	$262,085	$1,021	$56,337
20	New Ulm	89	$254,537	$1,071	$64,449
21	Glencoe	89	$258,689	$1,073	$71,356
22	Cloquet	90	$266,092	$1,207	$61,367
23	Litchfield	90	$257,886	$1,089	$54,875
24	Moorhead	91	$288,806	$1,164	$72,761
25	Alexandria	91	$297,583	$1,027	$61,374
26	Little Falls	91	$281,100	$1,014	$47,863
27	East Grand Forks	91	$297,460	$1,014	$77,549
28	Sauk Rapids	93	$303,905	$1,098	$71,841
29	St. Cloud	94	$257,776	$1,244	$61,374
30	St. Peter	94	$300,004	$1,230	$65,122
31	Grand Rapids	94	$282,918	$1,164	$61,029
32	Lake City	94	$322,021	$1,014	$72,244
33	Mankato	95	$305,115	$1,192	$66,873
34	Owatonna	95	$298,885	$1,147	$80,750
35	Hutchinson	95	$299,894	$1,183	$72,836
36	Brainerd	95	$315,174	$982	$56,111
37	Duluth	96	$298,068	$1,428	$68,807
38	Red Wing	96	$284,314	$1,357	$67,192
39	North Mankato	96	$313,736	$1,267	$80,791
40	Kasson	97	$332,842	$1,075	$93,333
41	Faribault	98	$305,393	$1,338	$61,449
42	St. Joseph	98	$334,548	$1,233	$74,946
43	Brooklyn Center	100	$297,804	$1,367	$72,535
44	St. Paul	101	$294,297	$1,488	$73,394
45	Stewartville	101	$337,255	$1,422	$82,632
46	Sartell	102	$336,145	$1,530	$84,131
47	Columbia Heights	103	$298,962	$1,608	$73,691
48	South St. Paul	103	$299,854	$1,548	$87,994
49	Detroit Lakes	103	$375,255	$1,105	$62,958
50	Baxter	103	$369,294	$1,172	$70,688

2026 edition — based on ACS 2024, Zillow 2026-08, HUD FY2027, and BEA 2024 dated sources. The edition year is not the observation year.

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