Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 4,329, settled in 1889. 2.1 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Minnesota town.
Cold Spring grades B− overall, 223rd of 271 graded towns in Minnesota, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Residents are healthier than 80% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On the other side, homes are expensive, about $362K for a typical one and 4.7 times the St. Cloud metro’s $76K median household income. Cold Spring’s January low is 3°F, near the Minnesota town median (6°F) and below the median of U.S. towns (22°F). Cold Spring's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 84% of U.S. towns.
Where Cold Spring beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Cold Spring Elementary | PK–5 | 656 |
| St. Boniface School | PK–6 | 232 |
| Rocori Middle | 6–8 | 563 |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Cold Spring is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 486 in 1900, 4,164 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1907 and 2 maps from 1967 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Cold Spring, 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 Cold Spring.
28% of Cold Spring adults sleep under 7 hours. Cold Spring beats the Minnesota average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 29% of Cold Spring adults feel lonely.
| Cold Spring | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 77% | 75% | 79% |
| What stands out | Cold Spring | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7% | 8.9% |
| Fewer adults without reliable transportation | 5.9% | 7.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.6% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Rocori Public School District. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Rocori Senior High, with 824 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cold Spring ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 656 | B+ |
| Rocori Senior HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 824 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
Cold Spring has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Cold Spring is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Cold Spring has about as many jobs (2,153) as working residents, but only 382 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Cold Spring for work: only 19% work in town. Since 2013, Cold Spring has lost 257 jobs, to 2,153 in 2023. 8.4% of workers work from home in Cold Spring.
| Cold Spring | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 9.7% | 8% |
| Work from home | 8.4% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 9.8% | 7% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 63% of U.S. communities. Since 1984, 4 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Cold Spring.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Adults 35 to 64 are 33% of residents (38% statewide). Cold Spring has grown 4% since 2020, to 4,329 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 31% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 39% across Minnesota.
| Cold Spring | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 17% | 18% |
| Median age | 38.5 years | 39.9 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 22% | 23% | 22% |
56% women, 44% men
About 79 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±4.3 points). Across Minnesota, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Cold Spring | MN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.6% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 12% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.5% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.9% | 13.5% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.2% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.9% | 12.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 6.7% | 10.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 13.3% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.3% | 6.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.5% | 23.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.6% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 15.6% | 11.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.8% | 25.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.2% | 13.8% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,300, single groups can be off by several points
The typical Cold Spring home is worth about $362,000, up 2.1% in a year, close to the Minnesota typical home. Cold Spring’s median rent is $1,424 a month.
| Cold Spring | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,424 a month | $1,192 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
0.8 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves.
| Cold Spring | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.1% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Alexander Park | 0.4 mi | 4 |
| 2. Pioneer Park | — | 7 |
| 3. Cold Spring Baseball Park | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
5 within 15 miles of the center of Cold Spring
About 5 of every 100 Cold Spring residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
3 places in Cold Spring on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Cold Spring.
City in Minnesota, United States
Cold Spring is a city in Stearns County, Minnesota, United States, at the gateway of the Sauk River Chain of Lakes, an interconnected system of 14 bay-like lakes fed and connected by the Sauk River. Cold Spring is part of the St. Cloud metropolitan area. Its population was 4,164 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Cold Spring grades B− overall, better than 49% of U.S. towns and #223 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades A− for health and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cloud, MN 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−.
5 notable people were born here, including Eric Decker and Alvin Ganzer.
