Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A city of 89,034, settled in 1843. Home to Normandale Community College.
Trash day: look up yoursBloomington's standout: it has 47 miles of trail. Overall it grades B−, ranked 225th of 271 in Minnesota. It is healthier than 91% of U.S. towns and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 92% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is safety: its police reported 250 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 88% of U.S. towns. Bloomington’s property crime rate is 28.1 per 1,000 residents, where Minnesota’s towns sit at 8.6 and U.S. towns at 9.9. Bloomington is home to Normandale Community College.
Where Bloomington beats most towns.
| College | Students |
|---|---|
| Normandale Community College | 6,023 |
| Northwestern Health Sciences University | 969 |
| Academy College | 117 |
4 colleges in town.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Bloomington is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1843, comes before those of 98% of the Minnesota towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 424 in 1860, 89,987 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1854 and 7 maps from 1896 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Bloomington. Close and well known come first.
Big draw10 mi Stadium & arenaU.S. Bank Stadium
in town Theme parkNickelodeon Universe
11 mi Stadium & arenaTarget Field
11 mi Stadium & arenaHuntington Bank Stadium
7 mi Theme parkValleyfair
13 mi Stadium & arenaGrand Casino ArenaU.S. Bank Stadium: Darb02, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Nickelodeon Universe: Tyler Vigen, CC BY 4.0 · Target Field: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Huntington Bank Stadium: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Valleyfair: https://www.flickr.com/photos/clumpinglitter/, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Grand Casino Arena: AlexiusHoratius, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Bloomington, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Bloomington.
Bloomington draws workers from Minneapolis and beyond and has colder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of Minnesota; it also reports more crime than Richfield and its other graded neighbors.
Bloomington’s trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile. Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, at 2,678 acres with 5.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hyland Lake Park Reserve | 13.2 mi | 1,047 |
| 2. Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge | 5.9 mi | 2,678 |
| 3. River Valley Park | 2.5 mi | 159 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Bloomington Public Schools. Three of its 33 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olson MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 762 | B+ |
| Jefferson High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,684 | A− |
| Ridgeview ElementaryTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 390 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
81,351 jobs are based in Bloomington, 2 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 5 of Bloomington’s working residents works in town. 22% of workers work from home in Bloomington. Since 2013, Bloomington has lost 7,559 jobs, to 81,351 in 2023.
| Bloomington | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 22% | 14% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 20% | 9.7% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $93,000 | $90,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
27% of Bloomington adults have obesity. Bloomington beats the Minnesota average on 6 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 27% of Bloomington adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Bloomington | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 35% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 30% | 36% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 12% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Bloomington | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with obesity | 26.8% | 33.5% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.3% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Each of the 7 graded towns on its borders reports less crime per resident, from Richfield (C) to Savage (B+). Reported crimes fell from 3,673 to 2,721 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The violent crime rate in Bloomington is 2.8 per 1,000 residents. Bloomington reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 88% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 73% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 22 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Bloomington.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 7°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 97% of Minnesota places with climate records; July afternoons average 82.7°.
Bloomington has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. About 51 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Bloomington | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 7°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 83°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Minnesota average. 46% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 39% across Minnesota.
| Bloomington | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 46% | 33% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 20% | 23% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 17% | 18% |
| Median age | 41.1 years | 39.9 years | 40.5 years |
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±1 point). Across Minnesota, 49.9% of residents are women. Median age: women 42.3, men 39.8.
| Bloomington | MN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.2% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.8% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.6% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.7% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.6% | 13.5% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.1% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.3% | 12.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.7% | 10.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.9% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.9% | 6.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 18.8% | 23.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 17.6% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.5% | 11.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 32% | 25.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.2% | 13.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The typical Bloomington home is worth about $360,000, up 1% in a year, close to the Minnesota typical home.
| Bloomington | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,561 a month | $1,192 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 66% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
26 within 15 miles of the center of Bloomington
About 5 of every 100 Bloomington residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
Where Bloomington’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 places in Bloomington on the National Register of Historic Places.
27 notable people were born in Bloomington.
City in Minnesota, United States
Bloomington is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. It is located on the north bank of the Minnesota River above its confluence with the Mississippi River, 10 miles (16 km) south of downtown Minneapolis and just south of the Interstate 494/694 Beltway. The population was 89,987 at the 2020 census, making it Minnesota's fourth-largest city, and the largest suburb of the Twin Cities. Bloomington was established as a post–World War II housing boom suburb connected to Minneapolis's urban street grid, and is serviced by four major freeways: Interstate 35W running north–south through the approximate middle of the city, Minnesota State Highway 77, also signed as Cedar Avenue, runni…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Bloomington.
Edina next door grades higher for schools (A+ to Bloomington’s C+) and lower for cost of living (D to C).
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomington | #225 | B− | C | D | C+ | A |
| Savage | #133 | A− | C− | B+ | B | A |
| Burnsville | #234 | C+ | C | C | C | B+ |
| Eagan | #108 | A− | C | C+ | B+ | A |
| Edina | #79 | A | D | B− | A+ | A+ |
| Eden Prairie | #54 | A | C− | B | A | A+ |
| Richfield | #203 | B | C+ | C | C+ | A |
| Mendota Heights | #109 | A− | C | B | B | A |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Bloomington grades B− overall, better than 48% of U.S. towns and #225 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades A for health, D for safety and C+ for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 3.6 years of the area's median household income ($99,833 across the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
27 notable people were born here, including Pete Docter and Erik Johnson.
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