Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Because it does well by almost any measure. Lakeville earns an A+, ranked 30th of 271 in Minnesota. The median household earns $139K, CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 92% of the country, and its schools rank ahead of 90% of Minnesota towns. Its lowest mark, a C, is in cost of living. Lakeville’s median household income is $139,000, where Minnesota’s towns sit at $90,000 and U.S. towns at $80,000. Emil J. Oberhoffer House is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Lakeville beats most towns.
55,954 counted in 2010 and 69,490 in 2020; an estimated 79,270 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 14.1% since 2020, after 24.2% 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 Lakeville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1850, comes before those of 94% of the Minnesota towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 168 in 1880, 69,490 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1874 and 3 maps from 1957 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lakeville. Close and well known come first.
Big draw21 mi Stadium & arenaU.S. Bank Stadium
21 mi Stadium & arenaHuntington Bank Stadium
21 mi Stadium & arenaTarget Field
13 mi Theme parkValleyfair
20 mi Stadium & arenaGrand Casino Arena
12 mi Theme parkNickelodeon UniverseU.S. Bank Stadium: Darb02, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Huntington Bank Stadium: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Target Field: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Valleyfair: https://www.flickr.com/photos/clumpinglitter/, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Grand Casino Arena: AlexiusHoratius, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Nickelodeon Universe: Tyler Vigen, CC BY 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Lakeville, 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 Lakeville.
Lakeville costs more than Farmington or any other town next door, owes part of its health edge to its incomes and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Minnesota.
Against the 3,660 U.S. towns with household incomes like Lakeville’s, it is healthier than 70%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
26% of adults have high blood pressure in Lakeville. Lakeville beats the Minnesota average on 19 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 9.9% of adults report frequent physical distress in Lakeville.
| Lakeville | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 31% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 9.9% | 12% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 36% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.2% | 10% | 12% |
| What stands out | Lakeville | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6% | 8.9% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 4.1% | 5.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Lakeville Area Schools. Three of its 28 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Century Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 950 | A− |
| Lakeville North HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,871 | A |
| Cherry View ElementaryTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 599 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
27 miles of trail in 69 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Ritter Farm Park, 337 acres with 9.3 miles of trail. The trail density in Lakeville is 0.7 miles per square mile.
| Lakeville | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.8% | 4.6% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Ritter Farm Park | 9.3 mi | 337 |
| 2. Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve | 0.6 mi | 18 |
| 3. Antlers Park | 0.5 mi | 20 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Farmington is next at $399K.
The typical Lakeville home is worth about $485,000, up 0.9% in a year, 39% above the Minnesota typical home. Lakeville’s median rent is $1,806 a month.
| Lakeville | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,806 a month | $1,192 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 88% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Reported crimes fell from 606 to 484 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 73 reported in 2025, 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Jobs based here grew from 12,835 in 2013 to 17,733.
Most working residents leave Lakeville for work: only 11% work in town. 23% of Lakeville workers work from home. Since 2013, Lakeville has added 4,898 jobs, to 17,733 in 2023.
| Lakeville | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 23% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 2.9% | 7.1% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 9.7% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Farmington 3 Nw weather station records that 41 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 80% of Minnesota places with climate records. January nights average 7.1°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 97% of Minnesota places with climate records; July afternoons average 81.7°.
Lakeville has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers.
| Lakeville | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 7°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 56% of U.S. communities. Since 1984, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Lakeville.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
6 within 15 miles of the center of Lakeville
About 5 of every 100 Lakeville residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
Where Lakeville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
13 notable people were born in Lakeville.
City in Minnesota, United States
Lakeville () is the largest city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States. An exurb in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, it is about 20 miles (32 km) south of both downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul along Interstate 35. The population was 69,490 at the 2020 census, making it the ninth-most populous city in Minnesota. Lakeville was founded in 1855. It was once a flourishing milling center; its agriculture industry and other major industries are still in operation. The city first became notable in 1910 when Marion Savage built the Dan Patch Railroad Line to serve his Antlers Amusement Park. Lakeville is one of the fastest-growing cities in the Twin Cities area. While man…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Lakeville.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Farmington (A+) comes closest. Farmington next door grades lower for schools (B to Lakeville’s A) and higher for cost of living (B to C).
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeville | #30 | A+ | C | A− | A | A |
| Eureka Township | — | — | C− | — | A− | A |
| Farmington | #37 | A+ | B | A | B | A |
| Credit River | — | — | C+ | — | A | — |
| Apple Valley | #143 | A− | C | C+ | A− | A− |
| Burnsville | #234 | C+ | C | C | C | B+ |
| Empire | — | — | B+ | — | A− | — |
Eureka Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Eureka Township, Credit River and Empire report no FBI crime data of their own. Credit River and Empire aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Lakeville with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Lakeville grades A+ overall, better than 96% of U.S. towns and #30 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades A for health, A− for safety and A for schools.
That is 4.9 years of the area's median household income ($99,833 across the Minneapolis-St. 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 C.
13 notable people were born here, including Brady Skjei and Jake Oettinger.
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