Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 11,090, settled in 1857.
Cambridge is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B overall, 197th among Minnesota's 271 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is health: CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 62% of the country. A typical home there costs about $328K, 3.3 years of the Minneapolis metro’s $100K median household income. On walkability, just 51 of Minnesota’s 574 towns do better. Isanti County Courthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places. Cambridge's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 82% of U.S. towns.
Where Cambridge beats most towns.
8,111 counted in 2010 and 9,611 in 2020; an estimated 11,090 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 15.4% since 2020, after 18.5% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Cambridge is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 136 in 1880, 9,611 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 2005 and 3 maps from 1961 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Cambridge, 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 Cambridge.
Cambridge is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has seen reported crime fall by about half, but it has many renters stretched by housing costs.
Its public schools are run by the Cambridge-Isanti Public School District. Two of its 15 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Cambridge-Isanti High School, with 1,582 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge Intermediate SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 536 | A− |
| Cambridge-Isanti High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,582 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
Cambridge has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Cambridge’s July high is 81°F, against 82°F in Minnesota’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 4 of Cambridge’s working residents works in town. Cambridge’s average trip to work is 28 minutes, above both Minnesota’s towns (23 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Jobs based in Cambridge grew to 6,316 in 2023, 710 more than in 2013.
| Cambridge | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 24% | 9.7% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $69,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 7% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 10,465 U.S. towns with household incomes like Cambridge’s, it is healthier than 79%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income. Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 70% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar.
74% of adults had a checkup this year in Cambridge. Cambridge beats the Minnesota average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 8. 30% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Cambridge.
| Cambridge | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 74% | 75% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 30% | 36% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 35% | 35% |
| What stands out | Cambridge | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 12.6% | 8.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 6.7% | 5.4% |
| More smokers | 15.9% | 13.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1.5 miles of trail in 11 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Joe's Lake Natural Preserve, at 127 acres. The trail density in Cambridge is 0.2 miles per square mile.
| Cambridge | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.2% | 4.6% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Central Green Park | 0.4 mi | 14 |
| 2. Joe's Lake Natural Preserve | 0.1 mi | 127 |
| 3. Cambridge City Park | — | 15 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Reported crimes fell from 218 to 80 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 4 reported in 2025, 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
Cambridge’s violent crime rate is 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Cambridge | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.4 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.7 per 1,000 residents | 8.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
60.6% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.1% across Minnesota.
The typical Cambridge home is worth about $328,000, up 1.5% in a year, 6% below the Minnesota typical home. 66% of Cambridge households own their home.
| Cambridge | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 66% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,302 a month | $1,192 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 51% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Cambridge; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Cambridge residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
7 notable people were born in Cambridge.
City in Minnesota, United States
Cambridge is a city in Isanti County, Minnesota, United States, located at the junction of Minnesota State Highways 65 and 95. The population was 9,611 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Isanti County. It is located along the Rum River and BNSF's Hinckley Subdivision. Cambridge is notable for having the highest percentage of Swedish Americans of any city in the United States with a population of over 5,000 people.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Cambridge.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge | #197 | B | B− | B | B− | B |
| Isanti Township | — | — | B | — | B− | B+ |
| Cambridge Township | #200 | B | B− | — | B− | B |
| Springvale Township | — | — | C+ | — | B− | B |
| Bradford Township | #215 | B− | B | — | B− | B+ |
Isanti Township and Springvale Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Isanti Township, Cambridge Township, Springvale Township and Bradford Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Cambridge with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Cambridge grades B overall, better than 58% of U.S. towns and #197 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B for health, B for safety and B− for schools.
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 B−.
7 notable people were born here, including Grace McCallum and Kerri Hoskins.