• county
  • FIPS 27161
  • Largest town: Waseca

Waseca County, Minnesota

Waseca County had 18,684 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 423.4 square miles of land. It ranks 50th of 87 in Minnesota by population and 80th by land area.

Population
18,684
#50 of 87 in Minnesota · #1,891 in US
Area
423.4 sq mi
#80 of 87 in Minnesota · #2,394 in US
Density
44 / sq mi
#30 of 87 in Minnesota · #1,585 in US
Median household income
$70,833
#46 of 87 in Minnesota · #944 in US

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

Waseca County within Minnesota. Pin: Saint Paul.

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Tools and pages that start from Waseca County

Waseca County population, land area and income

Waseca County had 18,684 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 423.4 square miles of land. It ranks 50th of 87 in Minnesota by population and 80th by land area. That works out to 44.1 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and below the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Minnesota has 22,050 residents; Waseca County is somewhat smaller.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $70,833 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

18,684

3144th1st

1891st of 3,144 (US)

Land area

423 sq mi

3144th1st

2394th of 3,144 (US)

Density

44.1 / sq mi

3144th1st

1585th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$70,833

3143rd1st

944th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Minnesota (87)

Population

18,684

87th1st

50th of 87 (MN)

Land area

423 sq mi

87th1st

80th of 87 (MN)

Density

44.1 / sq mi

87th1st

30th of 87 (MN)

Median household income

$70,833

87th1st

46th of 87 (MN)

How Waseca County's population changed since 2020

Waseca County lost 271 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 1.4%. That ranks 64th 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, Waseca County recorded 811 births and 853 deaths, a natural change of -42. Net international migration added +51 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -283. The largest single component was domestic migration, which removed 283 people.

19.0k202019.0k202118.9k202218.9k202318.7k2024
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
811
Deaths
853
Net international migration
+51
Net domestic migration
-283
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
-221

Where Waseca County is

The Census internal point of Waseca County is at 44.018500, -93.589800. 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 Waseca 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: Waseca County internal point. Dark pin: Saint Paul.

Internal point

Decimal
44.018500, -93.589800
DMS
44°01'6.60"N 93°35'23.28"W
UTM
15N 452728.0E 4874096.7N
Geohash
9zv6qm3fr
Plus code
86P82C96+C3

Towns in Waseca County

3 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Waseca County, 12,718 people together, or 68% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Waseca County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Waseca with 9,067.

  1. 01Waseca9,067
  2. 02Janesville2,462
  3. 03New Richland1,189
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Waseca County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Waseca County. The most populous is Blue Earth County, MN, with 70,700 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Saint Paul and the nearest big city

Saint Paul is 69.0 miles NNE of Waseca County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Rochester, MN (population 123,624), 55.2 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Owatonna, MN (population 26,626), 18.5 miles away.

Waseca County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Waseca County is 27161: state code 27 for Minnesota plus county code 161. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $70,833.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Waseca County, Minnesota?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 18,684. That is down 271 people (1.4%) from the July 2020 estimate of 18,955.

What is the FIPS code of Waseca County?

27161. The first two digits (27) are Minnesota; the last three (161) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Waseca County?

Waseca, with 9,067 residents inside Waseca County in 2024.

Which counties border Waseca County?

6 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Blue Earth County, MN; Rice County, MN; Steele County, MN; Freeborn County, MN; Le Sueur County, MN; Faribault 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.