Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,504, settled in 1884.
Madison’s best subject grades are an A+ for cost of living, an A for walkability, and an A− for history; its weakest is a C− for incomes. 36% of residents are 65 or older in Madison, above both Minnesota’s towns (18%) and U.S. towns (18%). On cost of living, just 6 of Minnesota’s 573 towns do better. On history, just 44 of Minnesota’s 574 towns do better. Madison has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Madison beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Madison is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1905.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Madison, 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 Madison.
The typical Madison home is worth about $171,000, up 1.6% in a year, 51% below the Minnesota typical home. Madison’s median rent is $838 a month, against $1,196 a month in Minnesota’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns.
| Madison | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $838 a month | $1,196 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Lac qui Parle Valley Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madison-Marietta-Nassau ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 151 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 77% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Madison has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 4° and about 47 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 4 of Madison’s working residents works in town. Madison’s average trip to work is 15 minutes. The top destinations are Dawson (7%), Hantho Township (5%) and Montevideo (4%).
| Madison | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 28% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 15 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $90,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 9.1% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Madison beats the Minnesota average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 11. 28% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Madison. Among 272 Minnesota towns, just 5 have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Madison.
| Madison | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 33% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 31% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Madison | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 7.6% | 9.3% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 82.8% | 76.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.9% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Madison; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Madison residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
3 places in Madison on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Madison.
City in Minnesota, United States
Madison is a city in and the county seat of Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, United States, along the 45th parallel. The population was 1,518 at the 2020 census. It proclaims itself to be the "lutefisk capital of the USA."
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
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+.
4 notable people were born here, including Charles E. Peterson and Michael Hunt.
