Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,524, settled in 1880.
Le Center is one of the best-graded places in America: an A+, 36th of 271 graded towns in Minnesota. It reports less crime per resident than 97% of U.S. towns, homes are within reach, about $326K for a typical one, or 3.3 years of the Minneapolis metro’s $100K median household income, and it is more walkable than 78% of U.S. towns. Its lowest mark, a B−, is in schools. Le Center’s average trip to work is 18 minutes, below both the Minnesota town median (23 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Le Sueur County Courthouse and Jail is on the National Register of Historic Places. Among 167 Minnesota towns, just 10 have a lower property crime rate than Le Center.
Where Le Center beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Le Center is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 73 in 1880, 2,517 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1998 and 2 maps from 1966 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Le Center, 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 Le Center.
Le Center pairs an A+ overall with homes cheaper than the Minnesota norm, trades workers with Mankato and other neighbors and is healthy by national standards but behind most towns in Minnesota.
Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025, 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
Le Center’s violent crime rate is 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Tri-City United School District. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Le Center Pre K-8Largest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 385 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
January nights average 6.1°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 81% of Minnesota places with climate records; July afternoons average 81.8°.
Le Center has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The January low in Le Center is 6°F. About 39 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Le Center | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 6°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Le Center has about as many jobs (1,130) as working residents, but only 201 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Le Center for work: only 18% work in town. Since 2013, Le Center has added 111 jobs, to 1,130 in 2023. 5% of residents live below the poverty line in Le Center.
| Le Center | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 18% | 9.7% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 5% | 7.1% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 64% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 78% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar.
Le Center beats the Minnesota average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 73% of Le Center adults had a checkup this year. Only 10 of the 271 Minnesota towns we compare have a higher share of adults 18 to 64 who have no health insurance than Le Center.
| Le Center | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 75% | 79% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 7.3% | 8.1% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 30% | 36% |
| What stands out | Le Center | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 12.6% | 7.5% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 12.1% | 8.9% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 15.3% | 11.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Le Center grades A+ overall with a typical home of about $326K, below the Minnesota typical value; only 39 of the 123 Minnesota towns graded A− or better can say that.
The typical Le Center home is worth about $326,000, up 3.3% in a year, 7% below the Minnesota typical home.
| Le Center | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $889 a month | $1,199 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 69% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. South Park | 0.2 mi | 16 |
| 2. Centennial Park | — | 11 |
| 3. North Park | — | 9 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1 within 15 miles of the center of Le Center
About 4 of every 100 Le Center residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
City in Minnesota, United States
Le Center is a city and the county seat of Le Sueur County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,517 at the 2020 census. The Le Sueur County Courthouse and Jail are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Le Center.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Le Center | #36 | A+ | A | A+ | B− | B |
| Lexington Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Lexington Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Le Center with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Le Center grades A+ overall, better than 95% of U.S. towns and #36 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B for health, A+ for safety and B− for schools.
Not for the area. 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 A.