CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

47.87° N · 95.01° W · GEOID 2753458

Red Lake

Beltrami County, Minnesota · part of the Bemidji, MN metro

Limited data population under 5,000, core figures borrowed from county or metro: median_household_income, median_home_value

MinnesotaRed Lake, MNRed LakeRed Lake

The short answer

Red Lake is home to 1,481 people. Median household income is $68,975 a year and median rent is $378 a month, 6.6% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $237,500, about 3.4x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$378
72% below the median place
Median household income
$68,975
14% below the median place
Median home value
$237,500
26% below the median place
Unemployment
4.7%
4% below the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Red Lake

  • Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, household income rose 2.9% a year while rent rose -7.8%, so pay gained on rent more than in 98% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-lowest of 151 Minnesota places.
  • Counting remote workers as zero, the average worker spends about 45 hours a year commuting, less than in 99% of places its size. It is the lowest of 149 Minnesota places.
  • Median rent is $378 a month, lower than in 99% of places its size. It is the lowest of 151 Minnesota places.
  • 41.4% of residents live below the poverty line, more than in 99% of places its size. It is the highest of 139 Minnesota places.
  • 0% of residents were born outside the US, fewer than in 99% of places its size. It is the lowest of 132 Minnesota places.
01

Moving to Red Lake

Beltrami County loses about 2.3 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in1,706
Moved out1,791
Net−85

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Hubbard County, MN178196−18
Cass County, MN111137−26
Clearwater County, MN10798+9

Within Minnesota, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within MinnesotaOther states

Income per tax return

Arrivals$59K
Leavers$57K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Beltrami County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
7.8% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 2.1% from another state.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Beltrami County report $58,800 a year in income on average; those leaving, $56,500.
Income you would need
$15,100 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $378 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $660 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $237,500.
Getting to work
6 minutes each way on average; 0.0% work from home; 1.1% take transit.
If it is close but not quite
Powell, WY matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved here in the past year1
7.8%
36% above the median place
Income of households moving out6
$56,530
20% below the median place
Income of households moving in6
$58,776
17% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureRed LakeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year17.8%36% above
Moved from another state1County figure2.1%5% above
Net movers per 1,000 people6County figure-2.3283% below
Income of households moving in6County figure$58,77617% below
Income of households moving out6County figure$56,53020% below
02

What it costs to live here

Median gross rent is $378, 72% below the median place.

Red Lake6.6%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$15,120
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
6.6%
68% below the median place
Home price to income
3.4x
9% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
7%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$64,500
a year, prices not adjusted
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Red Lake, $378 a month. It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Red Lake.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Red Lake? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$660
65% below the median place
Median year built1
1989
1% above the median place
Property tax rate1
1.0%
7% above the median place
All 15 cost and housing measures
MeasureRed LakeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$37872% below
Rent to income16.6%68% below
Property tax rate11.0%7% above
Home price to income13.4x9% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms2County figure$1,23024% below
HUD area median income3County figure$95,80011% below
Property tax paid (median)1County figure$2,30929% below
Median home value1County figure$237,50026% below
Home prices, 1-year change4County figure5.0%57% above
Home prices, 5-year change4County figure46.4%10% below
Homeownership166.3%0% below
Renters paying 30%+1County figure43.8%14% below
Owner costs with a mortgage1$66065% below
Vacant homes1County figure16.4%132% above
Median year built119891% above
03

Work and pay

Mean commute is 6 min, 76% below the median place.

Mean commute1
6 min
76% below the median place
Works from home1
0.0%
below the median place (median 12.4%)
Poverty rate1
41.4%
285% above the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureRed LakeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1County figure$68,97514% below
Income per person1$20,02850% below
Unemployment1County figure4.7%4% below
Average annual pay5County figure$57,84112% below
Pay growth, 1 year5County figure6.5%76% above
Jobs5County figure20,68786% below
Poverty rate141.4%285% above
Mean commute16 min76% below
Works from home10.0%below (median 12.4%)
Commutes by transit1County figure1.1%32% above
04

Who lives here

Born abroad is 0.0%, below the median place (median 8.8%).

Born abroad1
0.0%
below the median place (median 8.8%)
Median age1
31.6
19% below the median place
High school or higher1
80.0%
13% below the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

No health insurance13.2% 2.1×
Homes with broadband88.0% −5%
Household size2.7 +8%
All 8 people measures
MeasureRed LakeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population11,4816646th largest
Median age131.619% below
Bachelor's or higher1County figure31.8%1% below
High school or higher180.0%13% below
Household size12.78% above
Born abroad10.0%below (median 8.8%)
No health insurance113.2%106% above
Homes with broadband188.0%5% below
05

Life in Red Lake

13 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, one of them a National Historic Landmark.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents27.0 2.7×
Playgrounds per 10k108.0 11.5×
Grocery stores per 10k13.5 6.4×
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k0.0 −100%
Libraries per 10k6.8 7.8×
Named paths and bike trails0 km −100%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars18.7 −10%
Shops44.1 +46%
Arts, recreation and fitness6.9 +68%
Doctors' offices and clinics16.1 −20%
Child care centers1.5 −35%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Public school students10
1,496
69% below the median place
Students per teacher10
15.7
2% above the median place
Public schools10
10
11% above the median place
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureRed LakeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools101011% above
Public school students101,49669% below
Students per teacher1015.72% above
Restaurants and bars per 10k7County figure18.710% below
Shops per 10k7County figure44.146% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7County figure6.968% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k7County figure16.120% below
Child care centers per 10k7County figure1.535% below
Parks per 10k827.0166% above
Playgrounds per 10k8108.0above (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k813.5above (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k80.0below (median 11.2)
Libraries per 10k86.8above (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails80.0below (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi80.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings9County figure130% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

January average low is -1°F, below the median place (median 25°F).

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Red Lake. Larger places are fetched first.

January average low11
-1°F
below the median place (median 25°F)
Average temperature11
39°F
29% below the median place
July average high11
79°F
10% below the median place
All 10 weather and risk measures
MeasureRed LakeAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high11County figure79°F10% below
January average low11County figure-1°Fbelow (median 25°F)
Average temperature11County figure39°F29% below
Annual precipitation11County figure24.6 in44% below
Natural hazard risk12County figure60.635% below
Tornado risk12County figure40.850% below
Wildfire risk12County figure82.535% above
Heat wave risk12County figure39.956% below
Median air quality index13County figure3616% below
Good air days13County figure79.1%15% above
08

Red Lake in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 9% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 10% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$378/mo (2024)$460/mo$370 to $560/mo+3.2%
Median household income$46,328 (2024)$58,500$49,500 to $69,000+3.9%
Median home value$116,500 (2024)$171,000$124,000 to $236,000+6.6%

The median home would be worth 2.9 years of the median income in 2030, against 2.5 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Red Lake

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Powell, WY$764$63,523Compare
Colby, KS$750$63,494Compare
Greenville, PA$626$52,661Compare
Hiawatha, IA$855$66,270Compare
Hiawatha, IAGreenville, PAColby, KSPowell, WYRed Lake, MNRed LakePowellColbyGreenvilleHiawathaRed LakePowellColbyGreenvilleHiawatha

Common questions

Is Red Lake a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, household income rose 2.9% a year while rent rose -7.8%, so pay gained on rent more than in 98% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-lowest of 151 Minnesota places. Counting remote workers as zero, the average worker spends about 45 hours a year commuting, less than in 99% of places its size. It is the lowest of 149 Minnesota places. On cost, space and class size it scores 60 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Red Lake expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 6.6% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $237,500.

What salary do you need to live in Red Lake?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $15,120 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Red Lake?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Powell, WY, Colby, KS, Greenville, PA and Hiawatha, IA.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  3. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  7. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  8. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  9. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  13. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Red Lake with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Red Lake itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/red-lake-minnesota

Citytistics. “Red Lake, Minnesota.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/red-lake-minnesota/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.