County profile

Lake of the Woods County

Minnesota · ACS 2020–2024

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Latest estimates

At a glance

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Total population
3,821
Median household income
$77,546
People below poverty
6.4%
Median home value
$216,100

Income

The median income of households in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota was $77,546. An estimated 2.6% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 11.7% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 2.6
$10,000 to $14,999 2.4
$15,000 to $24,999 9.9
$25,000 to $34,999 7.6
$35,000 to $49,999 10.3
$50,000 to $74,999 16.5
$75,000 to $99,999 14
$100,000 to $149,999 20.6
$150,000 to $199,999 4.5
$200,000 or more 11.7

Median Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Workers by Sex in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Dollars
Male 61131
Female 53618

An estimated 74% of households received earnings. An estimated 42.5% of households received Social Security and an estimated 24.3 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $22,547. These income sources are not mutually exclusive; that is, some households received income from more than one source.

Proportion of Households with Various Income Sources in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 74
Social Security 42.5
Retirement income 24.3
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 3
Cash public assistance income 0.9

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 6.4 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 5.5% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 9.4% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 5.2% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 6.4
Children under 18 years below poverty 5.5
People 65 years old and over below poverty 9.4
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 5.2

In 2020-2024, 3 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 24.1% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 55.6% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 0% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024, 96.5% had health insurance coverage and 3.5% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 77.9% and public coverage was 42.8%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 4.9%.


In 2020-2024, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota had a total population of 3,821 - 1,749 (45.8%) females and 2,072 (54.2%) males. The median age was 50.7 years. An estimated 18.4% of the population was under 18 years, 25.8% was 19 to 44 years, 27.3% was 45 to 64 years, and 26.9 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 130 77
5 to 9 114 136
10 to 14 97 30
15 to 19 110 71
20 to 24 138 31
25 to 29 96 91
30 to 34 94 62
35 to 39 82 114
40 to 44 153 125
45 to 49 72 50
50 to 54 101 109
55 to 59 148 154
60 to 64 221 189
65 to 69 219 162
70 to 74 142 165
75 to 79 68 78
80 to 84 53 41
85 and over 34 64

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 87.7% were White; 0.3% were Black or African American; 4.9% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 0.2% were Asian; 0.3% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 9.7% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 1.6% of the people in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 87.7% of the people in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 1,817 households in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota. The average household size was 2.08 people.

Married-couple households made up 48.5% of the households in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota while cohabiting couple households made up 6.8% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 18.2% of all households, while 26.5% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 21.2% of households were male householders living alone, and 12.2% were female householders living alone, for a total of 33.4% of all households.

In Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, 17.1% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 41.6% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 48.5
Cohabiting Couples 6.8
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
26.5
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
18.2

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 50.7% of males and 62.6% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 33 12.2
Now married, except separated 50.7 62.6
Separated 0.9 0
Widowed 2.3 10.2
Divorced 13.1 14.9

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, 19 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 0% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 98.5% of the people living in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota were U.S. natives. 73.4% of the Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 1.5% of Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 25.9% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 27.6 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota come from different parts of the world. The bar graph below displays the percentage of foreign-born from each world region of birth in 2020-2024 for Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 10.3
Asia 0
Europe 0
Africa 19
Northern America 70.7
Oceania 0

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024, 1.2 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 0.3% of people at least five years old; 0.2% reported that they did not speak English "very well."

Percentage of the Population 5 years and over who Speak a Language other than English in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 0.3
Other Indo-European languages 0.6
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 0
Other languages 0.3

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 93.1 % of the people at least one year old living in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 93.1
Different house, same county 1.5
Different county, same state 2.8
Different state 0.8
Abroad 1.8

Education

In 2020-2024, 96.8 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 25.4% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 3.2% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota was 690 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 55 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 497. College or graduate school enrollment was 138.

Educational Attainment of People in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 3.2
High school diploma or equivalency 30.5
Some college, no degree 26.8
Associate's degree 14.1
Bachelor's degree 18.3
Graduate or professional degree 7.2

Disability

In Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 13.4 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 4.8% of people under 18 years old, to 10% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 26.7% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota, 65.8 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 33.2% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 68.1% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 22.4% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 9.6 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 1,416 68.1
Federal, state, or local government workers 465 22.4
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 199 9.6

Industries

In 2020-2024, the civilian employed population 16 years and older in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota worked in the following industries:

Percent by Industry in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 4.4
Construction 3.8
Manufacturing 27.1
Wholesale trade 0.2
Retail trade 7.4
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 7.5
Information 1.3
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 5.3
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 3.2
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 15.8
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 9.4
Other Services, except public administration 5
Public administration 9.7

Occupations

Occupations for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and over in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 635 30.5
Service occupations 305 14.7
Sales and office occupations 366 17.6
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 321 15.4
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 453 21.8

Commuting to Work

An estimated 75.9% of Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 11.4% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 16.2 minutes to get to work.

Percent of Workers 16 and over Commuting by Mode in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 75.9
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 11.4
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 0
Walked 6.3
Other means 1
Worked from home 5.4

In 2020-2024, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota had a total of 3,497 housing units. Of these housing units, 66% were single-family houses either not attached to any other structure or attached to one or more structures (commonly referred to as "townhouses" or "row houses"). 7.7% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 26.4% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 66
Apartments in multi-unit structures 7.7
Mobile homes 26.4
Boat, RV, van, etc 0

14.4% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 8.6% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota was 5 rooms, and of these housing units 55.2% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota had 1,817 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 1,680 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 81.8% while renters occupied 18.2%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.14 and in renter-occupied houses it was 1.81.

2.6% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 10% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 2.4% and another 35.2% had three or more vehicles available for use.

The following chart provides the primary fuel used to heat houses in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota:

House Heating Fuel Used in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 66.1
Electricity 23.7
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 0.6
All other fuels 9.5
No fuel used 0.2

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota was $216,100.

Of the owner-occupied households, 41.5 % had a mortgage. 58.5% owned their houses "free and clear," that is without a primary mortgage or loan on the house. The median monthly housing costs for owners with a mortgage was $1,412 and for owners without a mortgage it was $616.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Lake of the Woods County, Minnesota was $955. Gross rent includes the monthly contract rent and any monthly payments made for electricity, gas, water and sewer, and any other fuels to heat the house.