Buffalo LakeMN
A town of 637, platted in 1881.
Is Buffalo Lake a good place to live?
Buffalo Lake has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
What makes Buffalo Lake stand out
Where Buffalo Lake beats most towns.
637 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Buffalo Lake: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Buffalo Lake, 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Buffalo Lake.
With 1.8 jobs for every working resident, Buffalo Lake draws in 583 commuters
Buffalo Lake’s average trip to work is 29 minutes. Only 14% of working residents stay in Buffalo Lake for work; the rest commute out. Jobs in Buffalo Lake grew by 234 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 630. Among residents here, 20% live below the poverty line.
| Buffalo Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 20% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $90,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 9.8% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The schools Buffalo Lake’s kids attend
Its one school is below. The public schools here belong to the Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart school district.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Little Stangs Learning CenterLargest public school before high schoolGrades PK | Grades PK | 20 | – |
NCES · EDFacts
Homes in Buffalo Lake are worth about $199K, by Zillow’s estimate
Home values are up 6.3% over the year to September 2026. Buffalo Lake’s midpoint rent stands at $759 a month. The share of households in Buffalo Lake who live in a home they own: 78%.
| Buffalo Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $759 a month | $1,196 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 78% | 75% | 73% |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The biggest natural risk in Buffalo Lake is inland flooding, at a low overall level
Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 77% of U.S. communities. A third of Buffalo Lake’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by cold waves at 20%.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The climate in Buffalo Lake brings snowy winters and pleasant summers
The peak summer temperature for Buffalo Lake comes to 82°F, against 82°F in Minnesota’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Crime reported in Buffalo Lake
In a town this small, a few incidents move the numbers a lot, so rates aren't shown. No violent or property crimes were reported in Buffalo Lake in 2025.
Buffalo Lake is small, so we show counts rather than rates.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Compared with most of Minnesota and the rest of the country, more of Buffalo Lake’s adults have diabetes
22% of adults say their health is fair or poor in Buffalo Lake. Only 4 of the 272 Minnesota towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Buffalo Lake. Two figures for adults in the town: 31% get no exercise outside work, 29% sleep under 7 hours. Against the Minnesota average, Buffalo Lake comes out ahead on 1 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 13.
| Buffalo Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 10% | 12% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 23% | 25% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 31% | 35% |
| What stands out | Buffalo Lake | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81.5% | 76.1% |
| More adults with heart disease | 9.3% | 5.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Everything we know about Buffalo Lake
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Buffalo Lake; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Buffalo Lake residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
Every workday, about 583 people come to Buffalo Lake for work
Where Buffalo Lake’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Buffalo Lake
City in Minnesota, United States
Buffalo Lake is a city in Renville County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, Buffalo Lake had a population of 660.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 0.7 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,070 ft
- ZIP code
- 55314
- Area code
- 320
Questions about Buffalo Lake
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Buffalo Lake, MN a good place to live?
Buffalo Lake has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.