Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Luverne is one of the best-graded places in America: an A+, 32nd among Minnesota's 271 graded towns. Homes are within reach, about $255K for a typical one, or 3.1 years of the Sioux Falls metro’s $83K median household income, its schools rank ahead of 90% of Minnesota towns, and 6% of its land is conserved. Its lowest mark, a B−, is in incomes. 39% of working residents work locally in Luverne, above both Minnesota’s towns (9.7%) and U.S. towns (8%). Luverne has 9 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them R. B. Hinkly House and Holy Trinity Church-Episcopal. Among 256 Minnesota towns, just 3 have a lower median rent than Luverne.
Where Luverne beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Luverne Elementary | PK–5 | 515 |
| Luverne Middle | 6–8 | 271 |
| Luverne Senior High | 9–12 | 351 |
R. B. Hinkly HouseEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Luverne is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 679 in 1880, 4,946 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1883 and 2 maps from 1967 on.
9 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Luverne, 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 Luverne.
Luverne pairs an A+ overall with homes cheaper than the Minnesota norm, pairs an A for schools with modest home prices and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
Its A for schools comes with an A for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $255K.
Its public schools are run by the Luverne Public School District. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Luverne Senior High, with 351 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luverne ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 515 | A− |
| Luverne Senior HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 351 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
Luverne grades A+ overall with a typical home of about $255K, below the Minnesota typical value; only 39 of the 123 Minnesota towns graded A− or better can say that.
The typical Luverne home is worth about $255,000, up 2.9% in a year, 27% below the Minnesota typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
January nights average 6.4°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 90% of Minnesota places with climate records; July afternoons average 83.1°.
Luverne has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Luverne’s January low is 6°F. Only 5 of the 274 Minnesota towns we compare have a higher July high than Luverne.
| Luverne | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 6°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 83°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 9,803 U.S. towns with household incomes like Luverne’s, it is healthier than 86%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income. Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 67% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar.
Luverne beats the Minnesota average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 29% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Luverne.
| Luverne | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 30% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 23% | 25% |
| What stands out | Luverne | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 79.8% | 76.1% |
| More adults with heart disease | 7.8% | 5.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The average commute for its 2,497 working residents takes 16 minutes, against 22.7 across Minnesota.
About one in 3 of Luverne’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Luverne is 16 minutes. Jobs based in Luverne grew to 2,480 in 2023, 139 more than in 2013.
| Luverne | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $64,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 10% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
0.5 miles of trail in 11 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Hawkinson Park, at 48 acres.
| Luverne | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.1% | 4.6% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hawkinson Park | 0.1 mi | 48 |
| 2. The Lake Park | — | 23 |
| 3. Riverside Park | — | 16 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 52% of U.S. communities. Since 1984, 17 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Luverne.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Luverne; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Luverne residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
9 places in Luverne on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Luverne.
City in Minnesota, United States
Luverne ( lə-VURN) is a city in and the county seat of Rock County, Minnesota, United States, along the Rock River. Its population was 4,946 as of the 2020 census. Luverne is part of the Sioux Falls metropolitan statistical area (MSA), which is home to over 300,000 people. Luverne has been featured in numerous films and television series. It is one of four towns profiled in the 2007 Ken Burns documentary The War. It is also the main setting for the second season of the TV show Fargo.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Luverne.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luverne · Luverne Township | #32 | A+ | A | — | A | B |
| Mound Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Luverne reports no FBI crime data of its own. Mound Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Luverne Township and Luverne are one community, graded once. Compare Luverne with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Luverne grades A+ overall, better than 96% of U.S. towns and #32 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B for health 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 A.
8 notable people were born here, including Shantel VanSanten and James Russell Wiggins.
