City · Polk County, Minnesota

Fosston, Minnesota

Fosston is a city in Polk County, Minnesota, part of the Grand Forks, ND-MN metro area. It has 1,374 residents. Fosston, Minnesota has a quality-of-life score of 68 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,085 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Minnesota it ranks #319 of 364 cities and towns. It ranks best on mammography screening (high), social associations (high) and time spent in the emergency room (low). It ranks worst on new business applications (low), unemployment rate (high) and poverty rate (high).

68High

Quality-of-life score: #5,085 of 15,651 cities and towns
Minnesota: #319 of 364 in MN
Population: 1,374 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 682.8 /mi²
FIPS code: 2721986

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

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

Safety85#2,401/15,637
Economy9#14,150/15,631
Housing67#4,893/14,977
Health44#8,780/15,609
Healthcare60#6,188/15,650
Environment91#1,424/15,453
Education49#7,993/15,649
Infrastructure38#9,748/15,650
Community86#2,243/15,651
Leisure & amenities75#3,876/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Fosston, Minnesota ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Polk 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

Mammography screening · high61.0%
99/100Minnesota 54.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePolk County value
Social associations · high20.7 /10k
98/100Minnesota 12.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePolk County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low91 min
98/100Minnesota 134 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesPolk County value
Property crime rate · low372 /100k
94/100Minnesota 1,412 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationPolk County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,665 /100k
94/100Minnesota 2,419 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePolk County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Minnesota 2.9 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataPolk County value

Weaknesses

New business applications · low8.3 /1k
9/100Minnesota 12.7 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauPolk County value
Unemployment rate · high10.0%
9/100Minnesota 3.9%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Poverty rate · high25.6%
11/100Minnesota 9.3%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Broadband subscriptions · low82.3%
11/100Minnesota 91.6%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Depression · high27.3%
18/100Minnesota 25.1%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Median household income · low$52,500
20/100Minnesota $87,120United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
1,571 (2015-2019) → 1,374 (2020-2024)
−13%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
59.2% (2015-2019) → 39.2% (2020-2024)
−20 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
35.3% (2015-2019) → 23.0% (2020-2024)
−12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Child poverty rateWorsening
25.8% (2015-2019) → 37.1% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
71.4% (2015-2019) → 82.3% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
15.3% (2015-2019) → 25.6% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Fosston, Minnesota improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 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.

Improved4

Rent / income−12 points35.3% → 23.0%
Rent burden−20 points59.2% → 39.2%
Broadband+11 points71.4% → 82.3%
Household income+25%$41,964 → $52,500

Declined1

Poverty+10 points15.3% → 25.6%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Fosston, Minnesota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.4 min2015-2019	14.6 min2020-2024	−4.8 min	Within the margin of error	89%
Bachelor's degree or higher	26.3%2015-2019	20.7%2020-2024	−5.6 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Broadband subscriptions	71.4%2015-2019	82.3%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	64%
Child poverty rate	25.8%2015-2019	37.1%2020-2024	+11 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Effective property tax rate	1.09%2015-2019	1.26%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	4%
High school diploma or higher	88.9%2015-2019	84.4%2020-2024	−4.5 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Home price to income ratio	2.6×2015-2019	2.9×2020-2024	+0.3×	Within the margin of error	60%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4362015-2019	0.4402020-2024	+0.003	Within the margin of error	48%
Median household income	$41,9642015-2019	$52,5002020-2024	+25%	Improved	44%
Poverty rate	15.3%2015-2019	25.6%2020-2024	+10 points	Declined	4%
Rent as share of income	35.3%2015-2019	23.0%2020-2024	−12 points	Improved	95%
Rent-burdened households	59.2%2015-2019	39.2%2020-2024	−20 points	Improved	94%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	3.5%2015-2019	3.9%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	42%

“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 Fosston, Minnesota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Fosston, 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, Fosston, Minnesota itself moved +7.6 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

1,374 residents (±145)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

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

Household income

604 households (±73)

Fosston, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Under $25k28%168
$25k–50k19%116
$50k–75k24%146

Homes

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

Owners and renters

604 households (±73)

Fosston, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Own55%334
Rent45%270

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

513 workers (±77)

Fosston, Minnesota
Minnesota share

Drive alone74%381
Carpool7.8%†40
Public transit0.4%†2

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 Grand Forks, ND-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 Polk County, the county holding most of Fosston's residents.

Polk County has 733 employer establishments, 240 for every 10,000 residents (0.97× the US rate of 248; 0.89× Minnesota's), with 8,944 paid employees at an average annual pay of $47,103. The Census Bureau also counts 2,179 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 733; 2,179 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 240; US 248 · Minnesota 268
Paid employees: 8,944
Average annual pay: $47,103; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	60	19.6	1.27×More than typical	279	$87,427	193
Religious organizations	44	14.4	2.60×More than typical	237	$22,561	—
Restaurants and other eating places	41	13.4	0.73×Fewer than typical	730	$20,918	6
Ambulatory health care services	34	11.1	0.53×Fewer than typical	460	$64,722	58
Insurance agencies and brokerages	27	8.8	2.01×More than typical	82	$55,598	44
Building equipment contractors	24	7.9	1.30×More than typical	110	$61,400	25
Construction of buildings	22	7.2	0.95×About typical	185	$82,924	91
Truck transportation	22	7.2	1.42×More than typical	308	$44,789	83
Full-service restaurants	21	6.9	0.89×About typical	410	$23,076	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	21	6.9	1.02×About typical	67	$39,836	163
Gasoline stations	18	5.9	1.82×More than typical	251	$19,239	—
Landscaping services	17	5.6	1.59×More than typical	46	$46,348	53

Rank places for an industry Open Polk County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 30,563 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Fosston, Minnesota: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

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

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

57FY2017
3.1FY2025

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 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 Fosston, Minnesota, so they do not add up across cities.

Fosston, Minnesota's figures are part of those of Polk County, MN ($3.8M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Fosston is mostly in Polk County.

See federal money in Polk 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.

Fosston, Minnesota is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Michelle FischbachR-MN-7 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 0.4%

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.

Polk County89100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Grand Forks, ND-MN97

Other cities and towns in Polk 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/2721986

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends