Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 6,528, settled in 1869. 2.6 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Minnesota town.
Litchfield gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $261K, 3.5 years of the county’s $75K median household income. It grades B+ overall, 176th of 271 graded towns in Minnesota. On the plus side, its public schools beat 75% of Minnesota towns on state tests and graduation. 40% of working residents work locally in Litchfield, against 9.7% in Minnesota’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. On civic life, just 3 of Minnesota’s 572 towns do better. Litchfield has 5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Grand Army of the Republic Hall and Trinity Episcopal Church.
Where Litchfield beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Ripley Elementary | K–4 | 568 |
| School of St. Philip | K–5 | 52 |
| Litchfield Middle School | 5–8 | 494 |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Litchfield is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1900 and 2 maps from 1967 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Litchfield, 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 Litchfield.
Litchfield pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Minnesota.
Its A− for schools comes with a B+ for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $261K.
Its public schools are run by the Litchfield Public School District. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Litchfield Senior High, with 448 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Ripley ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–4 | Grades K–4 | 568 | B |
| Litchfield Senior HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 448 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 74% of U.S. communities. Since 2002, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Litchfield.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
61% of households own their home in Litchfield. The typical Litchfield home is worth about $261,000, up 2.9% in a year, 25% below the Minnesota typical home. Litchfield’s median rent is $987 a month.
| Litchfield | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 61% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $987 a month | $1,199 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The Dassel 3se weather station, 13 miles away, records that 41 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 79% of Minnesota places with climate records.
Litchfield has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Litchfield is 82°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Jobs based here grew from 2,772 in 2013 to 4,106.
2.7% of Litchfield workers work from home. Jobs based in Litchfield grew to 4,106 in 2023, 1,334 more than in 2013. 15% of Litchfield residents live below the poverty line.
| Litchfield | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 2.7% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 15% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $55,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
1.4 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Litchfield Sports Park, at 52 acres.
| Litchfield | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 5.6% | 4.6% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Prairie Park | 0.9 mi | 16 |
| 2. Litchfield Sports Park | — | 52 |
| 3. South Park | 0.1 mi | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 7,374 U.S. towns with household incomes like Litchfield’s, it is healthier than 85%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income. Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 80% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar.
Litchfield beats the Minnesota average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 8.
| Litchfield | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 33% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 23% | 25% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 30% | 36% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 10% | 12% |
| What stands out | Litchfield | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 79.4% | 76.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 7% | 5.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Litchfield; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Litchfield residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
5 places in Litchfield on the National Register of Historic Places.
Township in Minnesota, United States
Litchfield Township is a township in Meeker County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 808 at the 2000 census. The township includes most of the city of Litchfield, except for a small protrusion northeast into Forest City Township and another small one due east into Darwin Township.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Litchfield.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Litchfield · Litchfield Township | #176 | B+ | B+ | B− | A− | B− |
| Darwin Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Darwin Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Litchfield Township and Litchfield are one community, graded once. Compare Litchfield with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Litchfield grades B+ overall, better than 66% of U.S. towns and #176 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B− for health, B− for safety and A− for schools.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
