Brown County, Minnesota

County in MN, US

By Neilsberg Research

Last updated May 1, 2026

Key Indicators

A quick look at key numbers

Population

25,800

Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates

Median Age

years ∙ half population younger than 42, half older

Diversity Index

16.2%

chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Nativity

2.9%

foreign-born population

97.1%Native

2.9% Foreign-born

Geographic Context

Location, size, and surroundings

About

Brown County is a county in Minnesota, United States.

Location

County in MN, US

Co-ordinates

DEC44.246541° N, 94.733647° W

DMS44° 14′ 47.55″ N, 94° 44′ 01.13″ W

Population Density & area

42.22/sq mi (16.3/km²)

Total Area

618.3 sq mi (1,601.3 km²)

Land Area

611.1 sq mi (1,582.8 km²) · 98.8%

Water Area

7.2 sq mi (18.5 km²) · 1.2%

Demographics & Living

Who lives here, how households are formed, and community composition

Population Composition

Key characteristics of the population

Sex Distribution

50.2% male

Male 50.2%

Female 49.8%

males per 100 females

Brown County 100.8

Minnesota 100.4

United States 98

Nativity

2.9%

foreign-born population

97.1%Native

2.9% Foreign-born

% Foreign-born

Brown County 2.9%

Minnesota 8.7%

United States 14.1%

Age Distribution

How the population is spread across age groups

Median Age

years ∙ half population younger than 42, half older

Brown County

Minnesota

38.8

United States

38.9

Dependency ratio

78.8

dependents per 100 working-age adults

Brown County 78.8

Minnesota 67.1

United States 64.4

AGE DISTRIBUTION

Distribution of age group

Median age

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Age Group
Children (Under 18)	21.9%	22.9%	22%
Working age (18-64)	55.9%	59.8%	60.8%
Senior (65+)	22.2%	17.3%	17.2%
Dependency ratio
Total dependency ratio	78.8	67.1	64.4
Child dependency ratio	39.1	38.2	36.1
Old-age dependency ratio	39.7	28.9	28.3

Racial & Ethnic Composition

Racial and ethnic makeup and how it compares

Race & Ethnicity

White

91.4%

Black

0.9%

Asian

0.5%

Hispanic

5.1%

Other

2.1%

Note: White, Black, and Asian refer to individuals belonging to a single race and not of Hispanic origin. Hispanics may be of any race.

Diversity Index

16.2%

chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Brown County 16.2%

Minnesota 41%

United States 61.4%

Note: The Diversity Index (DI), based on the Blau Index, measures the probability that two randomly selected individuals differ in race and ethnicity. Values range from 0 (no diversity) to 1 (high diversity) and are shown as percentages.

RACIAL & ETHNIC COMPOSITION

Race & Ethnicity

Percentage of Brown County population

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Hispanic or Latino	5.1%	6.4%	19.3%
Mexican	4.3%	3.9%	11.3%
Puerto Rican	0.3%	0.3%	1.8%
Cuban	0.1%	0.1%	0.8%
Other Hispanic / Latino	0.5%	2%	5.5%
Not Hispanic or Latino	94.9%	93.6%	80.7%
One race	93.5%	89.1%	76.4%
White	91.4%	75.9%	57.4%
Black or African American	0.9%	6.9%	11.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native	0.2%	0.7%	0.5%
Asian	0.5%	5.1%	5.9%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0.2%
Some Other Race	0.5%	0.5%	0.6%
Two or more races (Multiracial)	1.4%	4.5%	4.3%

Household & Families Composition

Household size, type, and family structure

Household structure

61% family

Family 61%

Non family 39%

% family households

Brown County 61%

Minnesota 62.3%

United States 64.2%

Average household size

2.23

persons per household

Brown County

2.23

Minnesota

2.43

United States

2.53

Household & Family COMPOSITION

Households

Percentage of Brown County population

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Total households	11,027	2,307,955	129,227,496
Average houshold size	2.23	2.43	2.53
Family households	6,726	1,438,404	82,990,528
Average family size	2.87	3.04	3.14
Married couple family	5,368	1,129,003	60,637,388
Other families	1,358	309,401	22,353,140
Male householder	482	102,922	6,572,819
Female householder	876	206,479	15,780,321
Non-family households	4,301	869,551	46,236,968
One-person households	3,829	686,475	37,140,836
Male householder	1,933	320,418	16,871,444
Senior (65+) living alone	640	97,557	5,225,110
Female householder	1,896	366,057	20,269,392
Senior (65+) living alone	1,144	186,557	10,089,070
Other living arrangements	472	183,076	9,096,132

Housing Profile

Housing stock, ownership, rentals, and cost burdens

Total housing units

11,827

housing units

Brown County 11,827

Minnesota 2,545,030

United States 143,775,355

Occupancy status

93.2% occupied

Occupied 93.2%

Vacant 6.8%

vacancy rate

Brown County 6.8%

Minnesota 9.3%

United States 10.1%

Housing Characteristics

How the housing supply is structured and used

Types of Housing unit

82.6%

Single family houses

82.6%

Apartments in multi-unit structures

14.4%

Mobile homes

3.1%

Boat, RV, van, etc

Median Year Built

1963

Half of houses were built before 1963, and half after.

Historic ∙ 1939 or earlier

30.1%

Postwar & mid-century ∙ 1940 - 1969

26.1%

Late 20th century ∙ 1970 - 1999

31.3%

Modern ∙ 2000 or later

12.5%

Note: Median year built reflects occupied units only; distribution includes all units.

Housing Characteristics

Units, rooms & bedrooms

Physical characteristics of housing units

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Rooms per unit
Median rooms	6.4	6.1	5.5
1–3 rooms	8.6%	14.9%	15.1%
4–6 rooms	43%	41.4%	51.6%
7+ rooms	48.4%	43.7%	33.4%
Bedrooms
No bedroom / studio	1.3%	2.7%	2.9%
1 bedroom	8.6%	11.4%	10.9%
2 bedrooms	23.2%	24.5%	25%
3 bedrooms	38.2%	32.2%	38.7%
4+ bedrooms	28.7%	29.1%	22.4%
At a glance
Median year built	1963	1979	1981
Total housing units	11,827	2,545,030	143,775,355

Occupancy Profile

Who is inside and how they use it

Homeownership

78.9% owners

Renter-occupied 21.1%

Owner-occupied 78.9%

homeownership rate

Brown County 78.9%

Minnesota 72.2%

United States 65.2%

Average household size

2.36

Owner-occupied

1.77

Renter-occupied

owner-occupied average size

Brown County 2.36

Minnesota 2.59

United States 2.64

Housing Characteristics

Occupied unit characteristics

Tenure, crowding, and utilities

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Total occupied units	11,027	2,307,955	129,227,496
Year moved in
2020 or later	16.7%	23.8%	24.8%
2010 to 2019	38.1%	38.9%	39.6%
2000 to 2009	16.7%	16.1%	16.4%
1999 or earlier	28.4%	21.2%	19.1%
Occupants per room
1.00 or fewer	98.8%	97.7%	96.6%
1.01 to 1.50	1%	1.5%	2.2%
1.51 or more	0.2%	0.8%	1.2%
Vehicles availability
No vehicles	4.9%	6.7%	8.4%
1 vehicle	31.6%	30.8%	33.1%
2 vehicles	38.5%	39.5%	36.6%
3 or more vehicles	25.1%	23.1%	21.9%
House heating fuel used
Gas	79.8%	75.9%	51.4%
Electricity	14.2%	19.4%	41.3%
Solar	0%	0.1%	0.3%
Fuel oil, kerosene etc	2.2%	1.3%	3.9%
All other fuels	3%	2.5%	2%
No fuel used	0.7%	0.9%	1.2%
Selected characteristics
Lacking complete plumbing	0.2%	0.4%	0.4%
Lacking complete kitchen	0.1%	0.7%	0.8%
No telephone service available	0.6%	0.7%	0.9%

Housing Value

What owner-occupied units are worth

Median home value

$191,200

owner-occupied units

Median value(USD)

Brown County

$191,200

Minnesota

$329,300

United States

$332,700

Housing Cost Burden

18.7%

of homeowners with a mortgage are cost-burdened

% Cost-Burdened Households

Owners with a mortgage

18.7%

Owners without a mortgage

13.5%

Renters

47.9%

Note: Households spending 30% or more of their income on housing costs are considered cost-burdened.

Financial characteristics

Property value and housing costs

Tenure, crowding, and utilities

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Property value
Median Value	$191,200	$329,300	$332,700
Under $100,000	16.3%	7.7%	11.4%
$100,000 - $200,000	36%	13.3%	15.8%
$200,000 - $300,000	25.9%	22.6%	17.8%
$300,000 - $500,000	17%	36.9%	26.9%
$500,000 - $1,000,000	4.2%	17%	20.9%
$1,000,000 and more	0.5%	2.6%	7.1%
Owner-occupied households
With a mortgage	52.9%	64%	60.6%
Without a mortgage	47.1%	36%	39.4%
Median monthly owner costs
With a mortgage	$1,392	$1,947	$1,963
Without a mortgage	$578	$698	$638
Gross rent
Median rent	$890	$1,280	$1,413

Education Profile

How educated is the community and how education pays off

Adults with a college degree

24.5%

of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher

Brown County 24.5%

Minnesota 39.4%

United States 35.7%

Adults without a high school diploma

7.2%

of adults (25+) without a high school diploma

Brown County 7.2%

Minnesota 6.1%

United States 10.4%

School Enrollment

Who is enrolled in school and at what level

School enrollment

6,052

population (age 3+) enrolled in school

Nursery / Preschool

7.6%

K–12

69.7%

College / Undergraduate

19.8%

Graduate / Professional

2.9%

College-going rate (18-24 yr olds)

41.2%

of 18-24-year-olds in college or graduate school

Brown County

41.2%

Minnesota

39.1%

United States

40.9%

Enrollment & school type

Enrollment levels, college-going rate, and public vs private school split

Population 3+ currently enrolled in a school

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Total enrolled (age 3+)	6,052	1,385,086	80,089,790
Nursery / preschool	7.6%	6.2%	5.7%
K–12	69.7%	69.9%	67.6%
Kindergarten	6%	5.2%	5%
Elementary: Grades 1–4	20.5%	20.6%	19.8%
Elementary: Grades 5–8	22.3%	21.7%	21%
High School: Grades 9–12	20.9%	22.4%	21.7%
College or graduate school	22.7%	23.9%	26.7%
College, undergraduate	19.8%	18.8%	21%
Graduate, professional school	2.9%	5.1%	5.8%
College-going rate · 18-24 yr olds	41.2%	39.1%	40.9%
School type
Public school	68.4%	83.3%	82%
Private school	31.6%	16.7%	18%

Education Attainment by Level & Gender

What is the highest level of education completed among adults

Education attainment

17,816

population 25 years and over

Total adults (25+)

Less than 9th grade

2.8%

9th-12th, no diploma

4.4%

HS graduate

34.5%

Some college no degree

21.2%

Associates degree

12.7%

Bachelors degree

16.5%

Graduate or professional degree

Attainment by gender

Male vs Female

Adults (25+) · Share within each education level

% male · % female

Less than 9th grade

53.4% · 46.6%

9th-12th, no diploma

60.1% · 39.9%

HS graduate

49.4% · 50.6%

Some college no degree

51.9% · 48.1%

Associates degree

47.4% · 52.6%

Bachelors degree

43.9% · 56.1%

Graduate or professional degree

48.6% · 51.4%

Educational Attainment Overview

Distribution and key education attainment rates for adults (25+)

Highest credential completed · adults 25+

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Population (25+)	17,816	3,923,744	230,807,303
Less than 9th grade	2.8%	2.7%	4.7%
9th–12th, no diploma	4.4%	3.4%	5.7%
High school diploma or GED	34.5%	23.3%	26%
Some college, no degree	21.2%	19.5%	19.1%
Associate's degree	12.7%	11.8%	8.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher	24.5%	39.4%	35.7%
Bachelor's degree	16.5%	25.6%	21.6%
Graduate or professional	8%	13.8%	14.1%
High School or higher	92.8%	93.9%	89.6%

Earnings by education level

percentage as applicable

Median Earnings

$50,988

Median earnings for adults 25+, by level

Less than HS graduate

$32,446

HS graduate

$44,417

Some college or associates

$48,973

Bachelors degree

$56,675

Graduate or professional degree

$72,325

Poverty Rate

2.4%

for ages 25+, with bachelors degree or higher

Less than HS graduate

26.3%

HS graduate

10.4%

Some college or associates

6.6%

Bachelors degree or higher

2.4%

Outcomes by Education Level

Earnings and poverty rates across education levels (25+)

Adults 25+

	Brown County	Minnesota	United States
Median earnings
Population 25+, with earnings	$50,988	$58,615	$52,696
Less than high school graduate	$32,446	$36,257	$32,485
High school graduate (includes equivalency)	$44,417	$42,951	$40,153
Some college or associate's degree	$48,973	$51,845	$47,260
Bachelor's degree	$56,675	$73,301	$70,044
Graduate or professional degree	$72,325	$89,644	$90,720
Poverty rates
Less than high school graduate	26.3%	23.7%	24.2%
High school graduate (includes equivalency)	10.4%	12.3%	14.4%
Some college or associate's degree	6.6%	7.8%	9.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher	2.4%	3.2%	4.5%

Insights for Brown County, by topic

Income By year By race By age By gender

Population By year By race By age By gender

About Neilsberg Research

Neilsberg Research team are data scientists with expertise in processing, analysis and visualization of big data helping small businesses make right decisions.

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