• county
  • FIPS 27131
  • Largest town: Faribault

Rice County, Minnesota

Rice County had 69,025 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 495.9 square miles of land. It ranks 14th of 87 in Minnesota by population and 68th by land area.

Population
69,025
#14 of 87 in Minnesota · #797 in US
Area
495.9 sq mi
#68 of 87 in Minnesota · #2,099 in US
Density
139 / sq mi
#12 of 87 in Minnesota · #731 in US
Median household income
$81,824
#14 of 87 in Minnesota · #408 in US

Census Vintage 2024 estimates · SAIPE 2023 income · 2024 Gazetteer land area

Rice County within Minnesota. Pin: Saint Paul.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Rice County

Rice County population, land area and income

Rice County had 69,025 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 495.9 square miles of land. It ranks 14th of 87 in Minnesota by population and 68th by land area. That works out to 139.2 people per square mile, 1.4 times the US average of 96.3, and in the top quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in Minnesota has 22,050 residents, so Rice County is 3.1 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $81,824 is in the top quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

69,025

3144th1st

797th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

496 sq mi

3144th1st

2099th of 3,144 (US)

Density

139.2 / sq mi

3144th1st

731st of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$81,824

3143rd1st

408th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Minnesota (87)

Population

69,025

87th1st

14th of 87 (MN)

Land area

496 sq mi

87th1st

68th of 87 (MN)

Density

139.2 / sq mi

87th1st

12th of 87 (MN)

Median household income

$81,824

87th1st

14th of 87 (MN)

How Rice County's population changed since 2020

Rice County gained 1,925 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 2.9%. That ranks 18th of 87 in Minnesota for growth. The median Minnesota county changed by +0.6%, and the state as a whole by +1.4%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Rice County recorded 2,817 births and 2,487 deaths, a natural change of +330. Net international migration added +1,674 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -91. The largest single component was international migration, which added 1,674 people.

67.1k202067.3k202167.7k202268.4k202369.0k2024
Census Vintage 2024 county estimates for July 1 of each year. The axis starts above zero so year-to-year changes are visible.

Components of change, April 2020 to July 2024

Births
2,817
Deaths
2,487
Net international migration
+1,674
Net domestic migration
-91
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+605

Where Rice County is

The Census internal point of Rice County is at 44.350800, -93.298500. It sits in UTM zone 15N. The map shades Minnesota's 87 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Rice County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Cook County: -0.5%Kanabec County: +3.4%Carlton County: +1.5%Becker County: +0.7%Dodge County: +1.7%Douglas County: +2.1%Murray County: -1.5%Pipestone County: -3.3%Rock County: -1.7%Steele County: +0.1%Waseca County: -1.4%Pennington County: -2.1%Red Lake County: -1.5%Stevens County: +1.6%Hubbard County: +3.1%Mahnomen County: -1.8%Fillmore County: +1.2%Otter Tail County: +1.4%Rice County: +2.9%Meeker County: +0.2%Nobles County: -1.1%Swift County: -1.5%Watonwan County: -0.3%Wadena County: +2.2%Polk County: -2.1%Lyon County: +0.6%St. Louis County: +0.4%Todd County: +2.6%Carver County: +5.0%Kandiyohi County: +2.2%Olmsted County: +2.1%Roseau County: -0.3%Dakota County: +2.9%Yellow Medicine County: -1.2%Crow Wing County: +3.6%Sibley County: +2.7%Morrison County: +1.5%Lac qui Parle County: -1.0%Lincoln County: -1.3%Martin County: -2.2%Clay County: +2.3%Houston County: -2.5%Wilkin County: -3.3%Nicollet County: -0.0%Norman County: -2.4%Benton County: +1.3%Anoka County: +3.4%Blue Earth County: +2.2%Traverse County: -6.7%Aitkin County: +4.0%Marshall County: -3.0%Grant County: +0.3%Wabasha County: +0.8%Lake County: -2.0%Cottonwood County: -1.6%Brown County: -0.8%Cass County: +4.2%Lake of the Woods County: +0.7%Scott County: +3.9%Isanti County: +5.5%Stearns County: +3.5%Clearwater County: +0.7%Hennepin County: -0.7%Kittson County: -4.7%Wright County: +9.0%Goodhue County: +0.8%Jackson County: -1.3%Washington County: +5.8%Chippewa County: -2.5%Freeborn County: -1.9%Koochiching County: -3.6%Big Stone County: -1.8%Redwood County: -1.1%Chisago County: +4.2%Faribault County: -0.1%Renville County: -1.6%Itasca County: +0.9%Mower County: +2.1%Sherburne County: +5.6%Mille Lacs County: +4.2%Winona County: +0.6%Ramsey County: -1.8%Pine County: +4.9%McLeod County: +0.1%Pope County: +1.5%Le Sueur County: +2.8%Beltrami County: +1.1%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -1.7%
  2. < -0.3%
  3. < +1.2%
  4. < +2.8%
  5. ≥ +2.8%
no data

Orange pin: Rice County internal point. Dark pin: Saint Paul.

Internal point

Decimal
44.350800, -93.298500
DMS
44°21'2.88"N 93°17'54.60"W
UTM
15N 476209.5E 4910879.9N
Geohash
9zvskcy45
Plus code
86P89P22+8J

Towns in Rice County

5 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Rice County, 52,939 people together, or 77% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Rice County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Faribault with 24,983.

  1. 01Faribault24,983
  2. 02Northfield (part)20,068
  3. 03Lonsdale5,066
  4. 04Dundas1,806
  5. 05Morristown1,016
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Rice County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 7 neighbors for Rice County. The most populous is Dakota County, MN, with 453,156 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Saint Paul and the nearest big city

Saint Paul is 42.8 miles NNE of Rice County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Minneapolis, MN (population 428,579), 42.3 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Faribault, MN (population 24,983), 3.7 miles away.

Rice County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Rice County is 27131: state code 27 for Minnesota plus county code 131. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $81,824.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Rice County, Minnesota?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 69,025. That is up 1,925 people (2.9%) from the July 2020 estimate of 67,100.

What is the FIPS code of Rice County?

27131. The first two digits (27) are Minnesota; the last three (131) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Rice County?

Faribault, with 24,983 residents inside Rice County in 2024.

Which counties border Rice County?

7 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Dakota County, MN; Scott County, MN; Goodhue County, MN; Steele County, MN; Le Sueur County, MN; Dodge County, MN; Waseca County, MN.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census Vintage 2024 county population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, counties
  3. 03Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  4. 04Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  5. 05Census 2024 county adjacency file
  6. 06Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.