Rice County, Minnesota

County in MN, US

By Neilsberg Research

Last updated May 1, 2026

Key Indicators

A quick look at key numbers

Population

67,917

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

Median Age

37.1

years ∙ half population younger than 37.1, half older

Diversity Index

38.7%

chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Nativity

8.7%

foreign-born population

91.3%Native

8.7% Foreign-born

Geographic Context

Location, size, and surroundings

About

Rice County is a county in Minnesota, United States.

Location

County in MN, US

Co-ordinates

DEC44.350775° N, 93.298513° W

DMS44° 21′ 02.79″ N, 93° 17′ 54.65″ W

Population Density & area

137/sq mi (52.89/km²)

Total Area

515.9 sq mi (1,336.3 km²)

Land Area

495.8 sq mi (1,284.2 km²) · 96.1%

Water Area

20.1 sq mi (52.1 km²) · 3.9%

Demographics & Living

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

Population Composition

Key characteristics of the population

Sex Distribution

51.7% male

Male 51.7%

Female 48.3%

males per 100 females

Rice County 106.8

Minnesota 100.4

United States 98

Nativity

8.7%

foreign-born population

91.3%Native

8.7% Foreign-born

% Foreign-born

Rice County 8.7%

Minnesota 8.7%

United States 14.1%

Age Distribution

How the population is spread across age groups

Median Age

37.1

years ∙ half population younger than 37.1, half older

Rice County

37.1

Minnesota

38.8

United States

38.9

Dependency ratio

61.5

dependents per 100 working-age adults

Rice County 61.5

Minnesota 67.1

United States 64.4

AGE DISTRIBUTION

Distribution of age group

Median age

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Age Group
Children (Under 18)	21.4%	22.9%	22%
Working age (18-64)	62%	59.8%	60.8%
Senior (65+)	16.6%	17.3%	17.2%
Dependency ratio
Total dependency ratio	61.5	67.1	64.4
Child dependency ratio	34.6	38.2	36.1
Old-age dependency ratio	26.9	28.9	28.3

Racial & Ethnic Composition

Racial and ethnic makeup and how it compares

Race & Ethnicity

White

77.2%

Black

6.7%

Asian

2.3%

Hispanic

10.5%

Other

3.3%

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

38.7%

chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Rice County 38.7%

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 Rice County population

Racial and ethnic composition — Rice County vs Minnesota vs United States. Source: ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates.
	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Hispanic or Latino	10.5%	6.4%	19.3%
Mexican	7.5%	3.9%	11.3%
Puerto Rican	0.1%	0.3%	1.8%
Cuban	0.1%	0.1%	0.8%
Other Hispanic / Latino	2.8%	2%	5.5%
Not Hispanic or Latino	89.5%	93.6%	80.7%
One race	86.7%	89.1%	76.4%
White	77.2%	75.9%	57.4%
Black or African American	6.7%	6.9%	11.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native	0.3%	0.7%	0.5%
Asian	2.3%	5.1%	5.9%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0.2%
Some Other Race	0.3%	0.5%	0.6%
Two or more races (Multiracial)	2.8%	4.5%	4.3%

Household & Families Composition

Household size, type, and family structure

Household structure

65.1% family

Family 65.1%

Non family 34.9%

% family households

Rice County 65.1%

Minnesota 62.3%

United States 64.2%

Average household size

2.55

persons per household

Rice County

2.55

Minnesota

2.43

United States

2.53

Household & Family COMPOSITION

Households

Percentage of Rice County population

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Total households	23,493	2,307,955	129,227,496
Average houshold size	2.55	2.43	2.53
Family households	15,295	1,438,404	82,990,528
Average family size	3.17	3.04	3.14
Married couple family	11,906	1,129,003	60,637,388
Other families	3,389	309,401	22,353,140
Male householder	1,210	102,922	6,572,819
Female householder	2,179	206,479	15,780,321
Non-family households	8,198	869,551	46,236,968
One-person households	6,811	686,475	37,140,836
Male householder	3,461	320,418	16,871,444
Senior (65+) living alone	1,168	97,557	5,225,110
Female householder	3,350	366,057	20,269,392
Senior (65+) living alone	1,860	186,557	10,089,070
Other living arrangements	1,387	183,076	9,096,132

Housing Profile

Housing stock, ownership, rentals, and cost burdens

Total housing units

25,295

housing units

Rice County 25,295

Minnesota 2,545,030

United States 143,775,355

Occupancy status

92.9% occupied

Occupied 92.9%

Vacant 7.1%

vacancy rate

Rice County 7.1%

Minnesota 9.3%

United States 10.1%

Housing Characteristics

How the housing supply is structured and used

Types of Housing unit

77.1%

Single family houses

77.1%

Apartments in multi-unit structures

18.8%

Mobile homes

4.2%

Boat, RV, van, etc

Median Year Built

1979

Half of houses were built before 1979, and half after.

Historic ∙ 1939 or earlier

17.8%

Postwar & mid-century ∙ 1940 - 1969

19.7%

Late 20th century ∙ 1970 - 1999

35.9%

Modern ∙ 2000 or later

26.5%

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

Housing Characteristics

Units, rooms & bedrooms

Physical characteristics of housing units

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Rooms per unit
Median rooms	6.3	6.1	5.5
1–3 rooms	11.4%	14.9%	15.1%
4–6 rooms	41%	41.4%	51.6%
7+ rooms	47.7%	43.7%	33.4%
Bedrooms
No bedroom / studio	1.8%	2.7%	2.9%
1 bedroom	8.5%	11.4%	10.9%
2 bedrooms	24.5%	24.5%	25%
3 bedrooms	34.2%	32.2%	38.7%
4+ bedrooms	31%	29.1%	22.4%
At a glance
Median year built	1979	1979	1981
Total housing units	25,295	2,545,030	143,775,355

Occupancy Profile

Who is inside and how they use it

Homeownership

76.3% owners

Renter-occupied 23.7%

Owner-occupied 76.3%

homeownership rate

Rice County 76.3%

Minnesota 72.2%

United States 65.2%

Average household size

2.63

Owner-occupied

2.31

Renter-occupied

owner-occupied average size

Rice County 2.63

Minnesota 2.59

United States 2.64

Housing Characteristics

Occupied unit characteristics

Tenure, crowding, and utilities

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Total occupied units	23,493	2,307,955	129,227,496
Year moved in
2020 or later	21%	23.8%	24.8%
2010 to 2019	39.3%	38.9%	39.6%
2000 to 2009	18.2%	16.1%	16.4%
1999 or earlier	21.4%	21.2%	19.1%
Occupants per room
1.00 or fewer	97.4%	97.7%	96.6%
1.01 to 1.50	2.1%	1.5%	2.2%
1.51 or more	0.5%	0.8%	1.2%
Vehicles availability
No vehicles	5.6%	6.7%	8.4%
1 vehicle	28.9%	30.8%	33.1%
2 vehicles	39.9%	39.5%	36.6%
3 or more vehicles	25.6%	23.1%	21.9%
House heating fuel used
Gas	79.4%	75.9%	51.4%
Electricity	17.8%	19.4%	41.3%
Solar	0%	0.1%	0.3%
Fuel oil, kerosene etc	0.3%	1.3%	3.9%
All other fuels	1.9%	2.5%	2%
No fuel used	0.5%	0.9%	1.2%
Selected characteristics
Lacking complete plumbing	0.3%	0.4%	0.4%
Lacking complete kitchen	0.7%	0.7%	0.8%
No telephone service available	0.3%	0.7%	0.9%

Housing Value

What owner-occupied units are worth

Median home value

$320,200

owner-occupied units

Median value(USD)

Rice County

$320,200

Minnesota

$329,300

United States

$332,700

Housing Cost Burden

29.4%

of homeowners with a mortgage are cost-burdened

% Cost-Burdened Households

Owners with a mortgage

29.4%

Owners without a mortgage

14.4%

Renters

44.7%

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

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Property value
Median Value	$320,200	$329,300	$332,700
Under $100,000	6.5%	7.7%	11.4%
$100,000 - $200,000	14.4%	13.3%	15.8%
$200,000 - $300,000	24.4%	22.6%	17.8%
$300,000 - $500,000	37.4%	36.9%	26.9%
$500,000 - $1,000,000	15.9%	17%	20.9%
$1,000,000 and more	1.4%	2.6%	7.1%
Owner-occupied households
With a mortgage	60.5%	64%	60.6%
Without a mortgage	39.5%	36%	39.4%
Median monthly owner costs
With a mortgage	$1,922	$1,947	$1,963
Without a mortgage	$673	$698	$638
Gross rent
Median rent	$1,083	$1,280	$1,413

Education Profile

How educated is the community and how education pays off

Adults with a college degree

30.2%

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

Rice County 30.2%

Minnesota 39.4%

United States 35.7%

Adults without a high school diploma

7.3%

of adults (25+) without a high school diploma

Rice County 7.3%

Minnesota 6.1%

United States 10.4%

School Enrollment

Who is enrolled in school and at what level

School enrollment

19,078

population (age 3+) enrolled in school

Nursery / Preschool

4.4%

K–12

56.4%

College / Undergraduate

37.4%

Graduate / Professional

1.8%

College-going rate (18-24 yr olds)

64.4%

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

Rice County

64.4%

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

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Total enrolled (age 3+)	19,078	1,385,086	80,089,790
Nursery / preschool	4.4%	6.2%	5.7%
K–12	56.4%	69.9%	67.6%
Kindergarten	4.6%	5.2%	5%
Elementary: Grades 1–4	15.9%	20.6%	19.8%
Elementary: Grades 5–8	17.8%	21.7%	21%
High School: Grades 9–12	18.1%	22.4%	21.7%
College or graduate school	39.2%	23.9%	26.7%
College, undergraduate	37.4%	18.8%	21%
Graduate, professional school	1.8%	5.1%	5.8%
College-going rate · 18-24 yr olds	64.4%	39.1%	40.9%
School type
Public school	65.9%	83.3%	82%
Private school	34.1%	16.7%	18%

Education Attainment by Level & Gender

What is the highest level of education completed among adults

Education attainment

43,777

population 25 years and over

Total adults (25+)

Less than 9th grade

3.2%

9th-12th, no diploma

4.1%

HS graduate

32.8%

Some college no degree

18.7%

Associates degree

11%

Bachelors degree

18.4%

Graduate or professional degree

11.8%

Attainment by gender

Male vs Female

Adults (25+) · Share within each education level

% male · % female

Less than 9th grade

52.2% · 47.8%

9th-12th, no diploma

61% · 39%

HS graduate

59.3% · 40.7%

Some college no degree

51.4% · 48.6%

Associates degree

47.5% · 52.5%

Bachelors degree

46.8% · 53.2%

Graduate or professional degree

45.4% · 54.6%

Educational Attainment Overview

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

Highest credential completed · adults 25+

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Population (25+)	43,777	3,923,744	230,807,303
Less than 9th grade	3.2%	2.7%	4.7%
9th–12th, no diploma	4.1%	3.4%	5.7%
High school diploma or GED	32.8%	23.3%	26%
Some college, no degree	18.7%	19.5%	19.1%
Associate's degree	11%	11.8%	8.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher	30.2%	39.4%	35.7%
Bachelor's degree	18.4%	25.6%	21.6%
Graduate or professional	11.8%	13.8%	14.1%
High School or higher	92.7%	93.9%	89.6%

Earnings by education level

percentage as applicable

Median Earnings

$51,062

Median earnings for adults 25+, by level

Less than HS graduate

$36,916

HS graduate

$41,314

Some college or associates

$51,146

Bachelors degree

$68,386

Graduate or professional degree

$77,330

Poverty Rate

3.1%

for ages 25+, with bachelors degree or higher

Less than HS graduate

26.1%

HS graduate

11%

Some college or associates

7.8%

Bachelors degree or higher

3.1%

Outcomes by Education Level

Earnings and poverty rates across education levels (25+)

Adults 25+

	Rice County	Minnesota	United States
Median earnings
Population 25+, with earnings	$51,062	$58,615	$52,696
Less than high school graduate	$36,916	$36,257	$32,485
High school graduate (includes equivalency)	$41,314	$42,951	$40,153
Some college or associate's degree	$51,146	$51,845	$47,260
Bachelor's degree	$68,386	$73,301	$70,044
Graduate or professional degree	$77,330	$89,644	$90,720
Poverty rates
Less than high school graduate	26.1%	23.7%	24.2%
High school graduate (includes equivalency)	11%	12.3%	14.4%
Some college or associate's degree	7.8%	7.8%	9.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher	3.1%	3.2%	4.5%

Insights for Rice 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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