City · Walsh County, North Dakota

Grafton, North Dakota

Grafton is a city in Walsh County, North Dakota. It has 4,102 residents. Grafton, North Dakota has a quality-of-life score of 78 out of 100 (high), ranking #3,366 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Dakota it ranks #45 of 56 cities and towns. It ranks best on students per teacher (low), injury deaths (low) and loneliness (low). It ranks worst on public EV charging ports (low), mental health providers (low) and broadband subscriptions (low).

78High

Quality-of-life score: #3,366 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Dakota: #45 of 56 in ND
Population: 4,102 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 1,242.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 3831820

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.

Safety76#3,705/15,637
Economy53#7,378/15,631
Housing97#517/14,977
Health62#5,879/15,609
Healthcare24#11,868/15,650
Environment99#105/15,453
Education52#7,552/15,649
Infrastructure28#11,313/15,650
Community87#2,014/15,651
Leisure & amenities94#933/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Students per teacher · low9.0×
100/100North Dakota 11.6×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsWalsh County value
Injury deaths · low38 /100k
99/100North Dakota 80 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWalsh County value
Loneliness · low30.3%
99/100North Dakota 29.8%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Mammography screening · high60.0%
98/100North Dakota 55.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWalsh County value
Rent-burdened households · low36.2%
98/100North Dakota 38.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Average commute time · low15.6 min
98/100North Dakota 17.9 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100North Dakota 3.5 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyWalsh County value
Mental health providers · low39 /100k
4/100North Dakota 261 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWalsh County value
Broadband subscriptions · low80.6%
7/100North Dakota 88.7%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Distance to an airport · high108 mi
8/100North Dakota 136 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauWalsh County value
Preventable hospital stays · high4,015 /100k
9/100North Dakota 3,048 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWalsh County value
Flu vaccinations · low31.0%
10/100North Dakota 45.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWalsh County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedImproving
0.2 /1k (2021) → 1.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+410%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
67.9% (2015-2019) → 80.6% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
1.8% (2015-2019) → 14.4% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
1.6× (2015-2019) → 2.4× (2020-2024)
+46%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
4.6% (2015-2019) → 13.6% (2020-2024)
+8.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Poverty rateWorsening
9.0% (2015-2019) → 14.4% (2020-2024)
+5.4 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, Grafton, North Dakota improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 7 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

Inequality−0.1150.495 → 0.380
Broadband+13 points67.9% → 80.6%

Declined3

Uninsured+8.9 points4.6% → 13.6%
Poverty+5.4 points9.0% → 14.4%
Price / income+0.7×1.6× → 2.4×

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Grafton, North Dakota between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	12.7 min2015-2019	15.6 min2020-2024	+2.9 min	Within the margin of error	20%
Bachelor's degree or higher	14.2%2015-2019	16.7%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Within the margin of error	47%
Broadband subscriptions	67.9%2015-2019	80.6%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	71%
Effective property tax rate	1.43%2015-2019	1.08%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	80%
High school diploma or higher	81.6%2015-2019	85.7%2020-2024	+4.1 points	Within the margin of error	76%
Home price to income ratio	1.6×2015-2019	2.4×2020-2024	+0.7×	Declined	34%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4952015-2019	0.3802020-2024	−0.115	Improved	97%
Median household income	$52,7602015-2019	$62,6792020-2024	+19%	Within the margin of error	31%
Poverty rate	9.0%2015-2019	14.4%2020-2024	+5.4 points	Declined	11%
Rent as share of income	22.9%2015-2019	22.0%2020-2024	−0.9 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Rent-burdened households	39.4%2015-2019	36.2%2020-2024	−3.2 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	4.6%2015-2019	13.6%2020-2024	+8.9 points	Declined	4%

“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 Grafton, North Dakota five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Grafton, 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, Grafton, North Dakota itself moved +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

4,102 residents (±18)

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

1,851 households (±116)

Grafton, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Under $25k15%†282
$25k–50k28%517
$50k–75k15%†

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,851 households (±116)

Grafton, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Own64%1,181
Rent36%670

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

2,040 workers (±176)

Grafton, North Dakota
North Dakota share

Drive alone83%1,687
Carpool12%†243
Public transit0.3%†

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 Walsh County, the county holding most of Grafton's residents.

Walsh County has 362 employer establishments, 352 for every 10,000 residents (1.42× the US rate of 248; 1.09× North Dakota's), with 3,372 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,991. The Census Bureau also counts 793 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 362; 793 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 352; US 248 · North Dakota 323
Paid employees: 3,372
Average annual pay: $53,991; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	28	27.2	1.76×More than typical	100	$66,110	61
Truck transportation	22	21.4	4.23×More than typical	164	$56,500	60
Religious organizations	19	18.5	3.33×More than typical	53	$20,642	—
Restaurants and other eating places	17	16.5	0.90×About typical	47	$18,021	10
Insurance agencies and brokerages	16	15.6	3.54×More than typical	30	$49,933	20
Ambulatory health care services	15	14.6	0.70×Fewer than typical	140	$46,371	27
Banks and credit unions	14	13.6	4.22×More than typical	96	$70,667	—
Building equipment contractors	12	11.7	1.94×More than typical	53	$70,698	11
Full-service restaurants	11	10.7	1.39×More than typical	44	$13,545	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	10	9.7	1.93×More than typical	25	$48,800	27
Lessors of real estate	10	9.7	0.79×Fewer than typical	24	$18,750	87
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	9	8.8	3.29×Too few to compare	22	$24,227	5

Rank places for an industry Open Walsh County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 10,277 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 $305 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Grafton, North Dakota: $0.07 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $305; −91% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.07; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

Department of Veterans Affairs$305100%

Top recipients

LUTHERAN SUNSET HOME CORPORATION$305100%

Spending by fiscal year

5.3KFY2017
3.1KFY2018
1.9KFY2019
1.7KFY2020
1.1KFY2021
851.5FY2022
6.5KFY2023
6.1KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Nursing care facilities (skilled nursing facilities) · 6231$305100%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 Grafton, North Dakota, so they do not add up across cities.

Grafton, North Dakota's figures are part of those of Walsh County, ND ($46.9K in FY2026), never added to them: 0.7% of that total.

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

See federal money in Walsh 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.

Grafton, 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.

Walsh County93100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Walsh 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/3831820

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends