City · Pembina County, North Dakota

Cavalier, North Dakota

Cavalier is a city in Pembina County, North Dakota. It has 1,426 residents. Cavalier, North Dakota has a quality-of-life score of 82 out of 100 (very high), ranking #2,749 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Dakota it ranks #42 of 56 cities and towns. It ranks best on rent-burdened households (low), students per teacher (low) and social associations (high). It ranks worst on flu vaccinations (low), mental health providers (low) and public EV charging ports (low).

82Very high

Quality-of-life score: #2,749 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Dakota: #42 of 56 in ND
Population: 1,426 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 1,655.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 3812940

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.

Safety92#1,223/15,637
Economy47#8,261/15,631
Housing89#1,630/14,977
Health48#8,133/15,609
Healthcare13#13,565/15,650
Environment98#370/15,453
Education97#453/15,649
Infrastructure33#10,422/15,650
Community83#2,702/15,651
Leisure & amenities100#26/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Cavalier, North Dakota ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Pembina 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

Rent-burdened households · low11.8%
100/100North Dakota 38.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Students per teacher · low8.4×
100/100North Dakota 11.6×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsPembina County value
Social associations · high28.5 /10k
100/100North Dakota 15.7 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePembina County value
Grocery stores · high6.1 /10k
100/100North Dakota 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPembina County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low79 min
99/100North Dakota 113 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesPembina County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high3.0 /10k
99/100North Dakota 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPembina County value

Weaknesses

Flu vaccinations · low22.0%
2/100North Dakota 45.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePembina County value
Mental health providers · low30 /100k
2/100North Dakota 261 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePembina County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100North Dakota 3.5 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyPembina County value
Distance to an airport · high134 mi
4/100North Dakota 136 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPembina County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,996 /100k
9/100North Dakota 3,048 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePembina County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · high22.7%
10/100North Dakota 6.6%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,130 (2015-2019) → 1,426 (2020-2024)
+26%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
43.0% (2015-2019) → 11.8% (2020-2024)
−31 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
62.5% (2015-2019) → 86.0% (2020-2024)
+24 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
New homes permittedWorsening
0.7 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
5.2% (2015-2019) → 22.7% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
24.0% (2015-2019) → 14.9% (2020-2024)
−9.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

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, Cavalier, North Dakota improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 9 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.

Improved2

Rent burden−31 points43.0% → 11.8%
Broadband+24 points62.5% → 86.0%

Declined1

Uninsured+18 points5.2% → 22.7%

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Cavalier, North Dakota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	12.9 min2015-2019	11.1 min2020-2024	−1.8 min	Within the margin of error	68%
Bachelor's degree or higher	27.4%2015-2019	28.9%2020-2024	+1.5 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Broadband subscriptions	62.5%2015-2019	86.0%2020-2024	+24 points	Improved	94%
Effective property tax rate	1.01%2015-2019	0.93%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	32%
High school diploma or higher	89.3%2015-2019	92.8%2020-2024	+3.4 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	2.8×2020-2024	+0.7×	Within the margin of error	38%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4542015-2019	0.4232020-2024	−0.031	Within the margin of error	74%
Median household income	$49,4582015-2019	$60,4492020-2024	+22%	Within the margin of error	38%
Poverty rate	5.9%2015-2019	6.2%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	41%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	43.0%2015-2019	11.8%2020-2024	−31 points	Improved	98%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	5.2%2015-2019	22.7%2020-2024	+18 points	Declined	1%

“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 Cavalier, North Dakota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Cavalier, North Dakota 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, Cavalier, North Dakota itself moved +6 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

1,426 residents (±190)

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: Under 10 women (+5.0 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

1,426 residents (±190)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

White91%1,296
Black2.9%†41
Hispanic or Latino2.9%†42

Education

1,035 residents (±119)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

No high school diploma7.2%†75
High school or GED24%†246
Some college21%

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

688 households (±90)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Under $25k11%†78
$25k–50k30%†208
$50k–75k16%†111
$75k–100k16%†111
$100k–150k15%†102
$150k–200k9.4%†65
$200k or more1.9%†13

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Under $25k (−16.1 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

688 households (±90)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Own51%348
Rent49%340

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−21.6 points).

Table view

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

Rent paid

296 households (±93)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Under $75048%†142
$750–1,00046%†136
$1,000–1,5004.7%†

Home values

348 homes (±71)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Under $150k37%†130
$150k–250k39%†136
$250k–400k21%†73

Age of homes

790 homes (±94)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

2010 or later0.6%†5
2000–20090.6%†5
1980–199931%†241

Size of homes

790 homes (±94)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Studio0.6%†5
1 bedroom13%†103
2 bedrooms28%†221

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

698 workers (±111)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Drive alone74%515
Carpool5.4%†38
Public transit0.0%0
Walk5.3%†37
Bike3.4%†24
Work from home11%†75
Other1.3%†9

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 B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

623 workers (±114)

Cavalier, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Under 15 min69%430
15–29 min17%†108
30–44 min12%†77

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

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 Pembina County, the county holding most of Cavalier's residents.

Pembina County has 264 employer establishments, 395 for every 10,000 residents (1.59× the US rate of 248; 1.22× North Dakota's), with 2,538 paid employees at an average annual pay of $55,377. The Census Bureau also counts 493 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 264; 493 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 395; US 248 · North Dakota 323
Paid employees: 2,538
Average annual pay: $55,377; US $68,342

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

Religious organizations	16	24	4.32×More than typical	35	$13,286	—
Specialty trade contractors	12	18	1.16×About typical	52	$55,596	30
Gasoline stations	11	16.5	5.08×More than typical	137	$36,839	—
Ambulatory health care services	10	15	0.72×Fewer than typical	58	$25,431	15
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	10	15	5.63×More than typical	34	$31,147	5
Banks and credit unions	10	15	4.63×More than typical	81	$66,000	—
Construction of buildings	8	12	1.58×Too few to compare	24	$49,083	20
Truck transportation	8	12	2.37×Too few to compare	130	$42,985	23
Building equipment contractors	7	10.5	1.74×Too few to compare	43	$53,395	7
Restaurants and other eating places	7	10.5	0.57×Too few to compare	38	$23,763	3
Building material and supplies dealers (hardware, home centers)	5	7.5	4.54×Too few to compare	28	$50,429	—
Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)	5	7.5	6.17×Too few to compare	28	$8,714	5

Rank places for an industry Open Pembina County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 6,679 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Pembina 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.

Cavalier, North Dakota is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Julie FedorchakR-ND · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 2.1%

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.

Pembina County97100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Pembina 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

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