Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety60#6,329/15,637
Economy82#2,742/15,631
Housing65#5,215/14,977
Health48#8,095/15,609
Healthcare33#10,512/15,650
Environment93#1,023/15,453
Education74#4,098/15,649
Infrastructure64#5,589/15,650
Community94#951/15,651
Leisure & amenities87#2,104/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where East Gull Lake, Minnesota ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Cass County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Time spent in the emergency room · low68 min
100/100Minnesota 134 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCass County value
New homes permitted · high35.3 /1k
98/100Minnesota 3.9 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Loneliness · low27.9%
97/100Minnesota 32.1%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
High school diploma or higher · high96.6%
97/100Minnesota 93.9%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Social associations · high17.8 /10k
96/100Minnesota 12.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCass County value
Restaurants and bars · high15.9 /10k
96/100Minnesota 8.6 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCass County value

Weaknesses

Distance to an emergency room · high18.5 mi
4/100Minnesota 6.2 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesCass County value
Drought exposure · high95%
4/100Minnesota 37%United States 43%Nov 2025–Oct 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAACass County value
Injury deaths · high142 /100k
5/100Minnesota 81 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCass County value
Average weekly wage · low$888
5/100Minnesota $1,480United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCass County value
Pharmacies · low0.6 /10k
5/100Minnesota 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCass County value
Distance to an airport · high115 mi
7/100Minnesota 43 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauCass County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
995 (2015-2019) → 1,076 (2020-2024)
+8.1%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
67.3% (2015-2019) → 33.3% (2020-2024)
−34 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
43.0% (2015-2019) → 14.8% (2020-2024)
−28 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$86,161 (2015-2019) → $123,333 (2020-2024)
+43%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
44.1% (2015-2019) → 48.9% (2020-2024)
+4.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
93.0% (2015-2019) → 96.8% (2020-2024)
+3.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, East Gull Lake, Minnesota improved on 1 of 9 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 8 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved1

Household income+43%$86,161 → $123,333

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 9 measures

Change of every measure of East Gull Lake, Minnesota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.1 min2015-2019	24.5 min2020-2024	+3.4 min	Within the margin of error	17%
Bachelor's degree or higher	44.1%2015-2019	48.9%2020-2024	+4.8 points	Within the margin of error	66%
Broadband subscriptions	93.0%2015-2019	96.8%2020-2024	+3.8 points	Within the margin of error	24%
Child poverty rate	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	42%
Effective property tax rate	0.80%2015-2019	0.66%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	43%
High school diploma or higher	97.0%2015-2019	96.6%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Within the margin of error	28%
Home price to income ratio	4.0×2015-2019	4.5×2020-2024	+0.5×	Within the margin of error	48%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4312015-2019	0.3832020-2024	−0.048	Within the margin of error	83%
Median household income	$86,1612015-2019	$123,3332020-2024	+43%	Improved	78%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like East Gull Lake, Minnesota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of East Gull Lake, Minnesota in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, East Gull Lake, Minnesota itself moved +1.8 points in standing on average over the same 8 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,076 residents (±161)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 60–69 men (+4.6 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,076 residents (±161)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

White97%1,040
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino2.1%†23

Education

875 residents (±126)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

No high school diploma3.4%†30
High school or GED19%†164
Some college19%

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

436 households (±58)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Under $25k3.2%†14
$25k–50k5.0%†22
$50k–75k11%†47
$75k–100k15%†65
$100k–150k30%†130
$150k–200k15%†66
$200k or more21%†92

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−17.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

436 households (±58)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Own92%403
Rent7.6%†33

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

33 households (±22)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,00012%†4
$1,000–1,50045%†15

Home values

403 homes (±53)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Under $150k0.7%†3
$150k–250k5.7%†23
$250k–400k24%†96

Age of homes

808 homes (±80)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

2010 or later10%†81
2000–200925%198
1980–199938%303

Size of homes

808 homes (±80)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom6.6%†53
2 bedrooms6.9%†56

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

583 workers (±91)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Drive alone80%469
Carpool8.7%†51
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.3%†2
Bike0.5%†3
Work from home9.6%†56
Other0.3%†2

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Walk (−3.6 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

527 workers (±89)

East Gull Lake, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Under 15 min21%†112
15–29 min64%338
30–44 min4.6%†24

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Brainerd, MN

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Cass County, the county holding most of East Gull Lake's residents.

Cass County has 891 employer establishments, 284 for every 10,000 residents (1.14× the US rate of 248; 1.06× Minnesota's), with 7,493 paid employees at an average annual pay of $43,208. The Census Bureau also counts 2,751 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 891; 2,751 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 284; US 248 · Minnesota 268
Paid employees: 7,493
Average annual pay: $43,208; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Cass County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	105	33.5	2.16×More than typical	264	$64,038	301
Restaurants and other eating places	54	17.2	0.94×About typical	558	$25,029	9
Construction of buildings	47	15	1.98×More than typical	146	$52,041	147
Traveler accommodation	45	14.4	7.95×More than typical	1,083	$45,889	34
Lessors of real estate	43	13.7	1.11×About typical	293	$37,041	389
Full-service restaurants	37	11.8	1.54×More than typical	378	$25,992	4
Religious organizations	36	11.5	2.07×More than typical	227	$23,982	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	33	10.5	1.56×More than typical	83	$56,386	220
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	31	9.9	3.14×More than typical	38	$73,053	49
Ambulatory health care services	29	9.3	0.44×Fewer than typical	230	$52,222	66
Building equipment contractors	29	9.3	1.54×More than typical	113	$45,761	45
Other specialty trade contractors	29	9.3	3.69×More than typical	73	$96,342	111

Rank places for an industry Open Cass County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 31,344 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $26.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in East Gull Lake, Minnesota: $24.95 per resident (US $2,007).

Obligations: $26.8K; +1,166% vs FY2025
Per resident: $24.95; US $2,007
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.7%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Forest Service$26.8K100%

Top recipients

IMPERIAL FORESTRY, INCORPORATED$26.8K100%

Spending by fiscal year

19.7KFY2017
12.4KFY2018
3.9KFY2019
5.4KFY2020
39.6KFY2023
2.3KFY2024
2.1KFY2025
26.8KFY2026

Top industries (NAICS)

Support activities for forestry · 1153$26.8K100%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in East Gull Lake, Minnesota, so they do not add up across cities.

East Gull Lake, Minnesota's figures are part of those of Cass County, MN ($14.7M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.2% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: East Gull Lake is mostly in Cass County.

See federal money in Cass County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

East Gull Lake, Minnesota is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Pete StauberR-MN-8 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 1.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Cass County75100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Brainerd, MN87

Other cities and towns in Cass County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/2717630

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends