Fifty LakesMN
A town of 462, settled in 1926.
Is Fifty Lakes a good place to live?
Fifty Lakes’ median age is 66.7 years, above both the Minnesota town median (39.9 years) and the median of U.S. towns (40.5 years). Only 1 of the 274 Minnesota towns we compare have a lower share of working residents who work in town than Fifty Lakes. Fifty Lakes has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
462 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Fifty Lakes: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Fifty Lakes, 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 Fifty Lakes.
52% of residents are 65 or older
People 65 and older are 52% of residents (17% statewide); children under 18 are 7% of residents (23% statewide). 42% of Fifty Lakes adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more, above both Minnesota’s towns (33%) and U.S. towns (29%). Fifty Lakes has grown 3.6% since 2020, to 462 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
Somewhere between 33% and 60% women
The Census survey reached too few of Fifty Lakes’ residents to say more: its margin here is ±13.4 points. Across Minnesota, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Fifty Lakes | MN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 1.9% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 5% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 2.9% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 3.3% | 13.5% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.6% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 20.1% | 12.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 25.3% | 10.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 26.8% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.5% | 6.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.4% | 23.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 20.2% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.9% | 11.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 29.7% | 25.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.4% | 13.8% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 500, single groups can be off by several points
With 0.1 jobs for every working resident, most of Fifty Lakes’ workers commute out
Most working residents leave Fifty Lakes for work: only 1% work in town. The average trip to work in Fifty Lakes is 27 minutes. The top destinations are Crosslake (19%), Brainerd (8%) and Emily (6%).
| Fifty Lakes | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 7% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
A typical Fifty Lakes home is worth about $461K
The typical Fifty Lakes home is worth about $461,000, up 6.2% in a year, 32% above the Minnesota typical home. 94% of households own their home in Fifty Lakes.
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Fifty Lakes has four seasons and pleasant summers
Fifty Lakes has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Fifty Lakes’ July high is 79°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Fifty Lakes faces a high natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 67% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
A larger share of adults in Fifty Lakes have high blood pressure than in the typical Minnesota or U.S. town
45% of Fifty Lakes adults have high blood pressure. Of the 272 Minnesota towns we compare, none has a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Fifty Lakes. 15% of Fifty Lakes adults have diabetes.
| Fifty Lakes | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 45% | 31% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 30% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 30% | 36% |
| What stands out | Fifty Lakes | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 5.6% | 9.3% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 3.8% | 5.7% |
| More adults with heart disease | 10.7% | 5.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Fifty Lakes | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 3.4% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Land O'Lakes State Forest | — | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Fifty Lakes
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Fifty Lakes; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Fifty Lakes residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
99% of working residents leave Fifty Lakes for work
Where Fifty Lakes’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Fifty Lakes
City in Minnesota, United States
Fifty Lakes is a city in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, Fifty Lakes had a population of 443. It is part of the Brainerd Micropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 34 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,289 ft
- ZIP code
- 56448
- Area code
- 218
Questions about Fifty Lakes
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Fifty Lakes, MN a good place to live?
Fifty Lakes has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.