Grand Lake TownshipMN
A town of 2,705. Public schools that outperform most of Minnesota.
Is Grand Lake Township a good place to live?
Grand Lake Township grades C+ overall, 247th among Minnesota's 271 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. On the other side, the typical home is worth about $329K, 4.6 years of the Duluth metro’s $72K median household income. It also does better than most on schools: its public schools beat 70% of Minnesota towns on state tests and graduation. On walkability, just 55 of Minnesota’s 574 towns do worse. The biggest place to walk is Gichigami Ziibi WMA, 2,149 acres with 6.6 miles of trail. Only 8 of the 274 Minnesota towns we compare have a lower typical July afternoon high than Grand Lake Township.
What makes Grand Lake Township stand out
Where Grand Lake Township beats most towns.
98% of working residents leave Grand Lake Township for work
Where Grand Lake Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
How Grand Lake Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Grand Lake Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Grand Lake Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Grand Lake Township, 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 Grand Lake Township.
Grand Lake Township gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns, sends most of its workers to Duluth and beyond and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in Minnesota.
In Grand Lake Township, 3.4% of the land is conserved
In 2 parks and preserves, walkers have 37 miles of trail. Grand Lake Township’s density of trails is 0.5 miles per square mile, against 0.5 in Minnesota’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns.
| Grand Lake Township | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 3.4% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Gichigami Ziibi WMA | 6.6 mi | 2,149 |
| 2. Cloquet Valley State Forest | 2.3 mi | 1,314 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| N.E. Regional Correction Cntr.Largest public high schoolGrades 8–12 | Grades 8–12 | – | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
About two in five of Grand Lake Township’s working residents commute to Duluth
Grand Lake Township has 254 jobs for its 1,179 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 30 minutes, against 22.7 across Minnesota.
The top destinations are Duluth (41%), Cloquet (11%) and Hermantown (7%). For most workers, Grand Lake Township is a place to come home to: only 2% work in town. Also worth knowing: its mean commuting time is 30 minutes, where Minnesota’s towns sit at 23 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Jobs in Grand Lake Township grew by 48 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 254.
| Grand Lake Township | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.8% | 9.9% | 8% |
| Median household income | $101,000 | $90,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.7% | 7.1% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
On CDC estimates, Grand Lake Township is healthier than 67% of U.S. towns
Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 61% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar. Against the 8,518 U.S. towns with household incomes like Grand Lake Township’s, it is healthier than 51%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
In Grand Lake Township, 33% of adults have high blood pressure. Among adults in the town, 33% sleep under 7 hours and 76% had a checkup this year.
| Grand Lake Township | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 30% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 76% | 75% | 79% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Grand Lake Township | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with arthritis | 26.7% | 22.3% |
| More adults with heart disease | 6.9% | 5.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.8% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
In Grand Lake Township, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers
The Duluth weather station, 10 miles away, records that 90 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 96% of U.S. towns. The Duluth weather station, 10 miles away, records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 96% of U.S. towns.
The January low in Grand Lake Township is -2°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Ages in Grand Lake Township track Minnesota closely
Age groups here sit within 4 points of the Minnesota average. Grand Lake Township: 21% of residents are under 18. Here, just over a third of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree, against 39% in Minnesota as a whole.
| Grand Lake Township | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 21% | 23% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 35% | 33% | 29% |
| Median age | 41.3 years | 39.9 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 17% | 18% | 18% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.6 points. Across Minnesota, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Grand Lake Township | MN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.6% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.2% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.7% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.6% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.5% | 13.5% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.4% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.1% | 12.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.9% | 10.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.8% | 6.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.3% | 23.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 27.6% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.4% | 11.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 26.7% | 25.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.2% | 13.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,700, single groups can be off by several points
Moderate risk in Grand Lake Township, with inland flooding at the top
Federal aid has come to Grand Lake Township households in 7 declared disasters; the latest was in 2024. Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 52% of U.S. communities. 87% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Lake Superior Railroad Museum and 8 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Grand Lake Township. Close and well known come first.
16 mi MuseumLake Superior Railroad Museum
16 mi Zoo & aquariumGreat Lakes Aquarium
16 mi MuseumDuluth Depot17 mi Zoo & aquariumLake Superior Zoo
19 mi MuseumFairlawn Mansion
34 mi MuseumTwo Harbors LighthousePhoto credits
Lake Superior Railroad Museum: User resedabear on Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Great Lakes Aquarium: Tmajewski, Public domain · Duluth Depot: Hikki Nagasaki, Public domain · Fairlawn Mansion: Nfarmakes, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Two Harbors Lighthouse: pmarkham, CC BY-SA 2.0
Everything we know about Grand Lake Township
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Grand Lake Township
About 4 of every 100 Grand Lake Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
About Grand Lake Township
Township in Minnesota, United States
Grand Lake Township is a township in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,720 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Twig is in Grand Lake Township. U.S. Highway 53 serves as a main route. Other routes include Industrial Road, Old Miller Trunk Highway, Munger Shaw Road, Bergstrom Road, Caribou Lake Road, and Canosia Road. Grand Lake Township is in the unincorporated area of Saginaw.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 72 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,381 ft
Grand Lake Township’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Grand Lake Township.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Lake Township | #247 | C+ | C− | — | B+ | B+ |
| Solway Township | — | — | C+ | — | B+ | B |
| Industrial Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Fredenberg Township | — | — | C+ | — | A | A− |
| New Independence Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Canosia Township | — | — | C | — | A− | A− |
Solway Township, Fredenberg Township and Canosia Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Grand Lake Township, Solway Township, Fredenberg Township and Canosia Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Industrial Township and New Independence Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Grand Lake Township with a neighbor →
Questions about Grand Lake Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Grand Lake Township, MN a good place to live?
Grand Lake Township grades C+ overall, better than 37% of U.S. towns and #247 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B+ for health and B+ for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Is Grand Lake Township, MN expensive?
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.