Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,150, platted in 1869. 2.5 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Minnesota town.
Morris is one of the best-graded places in America: an A+, ranked 38th of 271 in Minnesota. Its schools rank ahead of 87% of Minnesota towns, 12% of its land is conserved, and it is more walkable than 85% of U.S. towns. Its lowest mark, a C+, is in incomes. 51% of working residents work locally in Morris, above both Minnesota’s towns (9.7%) and U.S. towns (8%). Only 32 of Minnesota’s 575 towns score higher on hazard risk. Morris's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 98% of U.S. towns.
Where Morris beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Morris Area Elementary | PK–6 | 557 |
| St. Marys School | PK–6 | 98 |
| Morris Area Secondary | 7–12 | 535 |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Morris is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 743 in 1880, 5,105 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1881 and 2 maps from 1912 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Morris, 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 Morris.
Morris pairs an A+ overall with homes cheaper than the Minnesota norm, pairs an A for schools with modest home prices and draws workers from Hancock and beyond.
3,587 jobs are based in Morris, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 13.1 minutes, against 22.7 across Minnesota.
Morris’ average trip to work is 13 minutes. Jobs based in Morris fell to 3,587 in 2023, 753 fewer than in 2013. 16% of Morris residents live below the poverty line.
| Morris | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 13 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 8.1% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $68,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its A for schools comes with a B+ for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $219K.
Its public schools are run by the Morris Area Public Schools. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Morris Area Secondary, with 535 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morris Area ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 557 | B+ |
| Morris Area SecondaryLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 535 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
3.9 miles of trail in 9 parks and preserves. The trail density in Morris is 0.8 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pomme de Terra Park | — | 19 |
| 2. Eagles Ball Park | — | 17 |
| 3. Wells Park | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Morris grades A+ overall with a typical home of about $219K, below the Minnesota typical value; only 39 of the 123 Minnesota towns graded A− or better can say that. At 2.9 years of the county’s $76K median household income, the typical home (about $219K) costs less against local pay than in 90% of Minnesota towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living.
50% of households own their home in Morris. Typical home values rose 6.1% in the year to September 2026.
| Morris | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 50% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $950 a month | $1,199 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 78% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Only 49.8% of households own their home, against 72.2% across Minnesota.
Among 273 Minnesota towns, just 7 have a lower median age than Morris. Adults 18 to 34 are 35% of residents (22% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 29% of residents (38% statewide). 37% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 39% across Minnesota.
| Morris | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 30.7 years | 39.9 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 37% | 33% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 18% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 21% | 23% | 22% |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.9 points. Across Minnesota, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Morris | MN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.1% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.1% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 21.5% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.7% | 13.5% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.3% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 7.6% | 12.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.2% | 10.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.5% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.6% | 6.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.3% | 23.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.3% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.5% | 11.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 26.4% | 25.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11% | 13.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Against the 10,295 U.S. towns with household incomes like Morris’s, it is healthier than 88%, so its B+ isn’t only a matter of income. Within Minnesota it is less healthy than 59% of the 271 graded towns: Minnesota sets a high bar.
Morris beats the Minnesota average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4.
| Morris | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 72% | 75% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 31% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 36% |
| What stands out | Morris | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with high cholesterol | 29.4% | 33.4% |
| Fewer adults with high blood pressure | 27.4% | 31% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.1% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
January nights average 1.6°, colder than in 95% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 81.6°.
Morris has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. About 45 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Morris | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 2°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1 within 15 miles of the center of Morris
College town 18 of every 100 Morris residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
Where Morris’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
5 places in Morris on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Morris.
City in Minnesota, United States
Morris is a city and the county seat of Stevens County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 5,105 at the 2020 census. Morris is surrounded by some of the nation's richest agricultural land, and agribusiness is important to the local economy. Headquartered in Morris, Riverview LLP is Minnesota's largest dairy milking operation and one of the largest in the nation. Other large economic contributors are beef feedlots and swine producers, manufacturing, education, and healthcare industries. The town is home to the University of Minnesota Morris (UMM), part of the University of Minnesota system. It was established as a public college in 1960 on the grounds of a former industrial school …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Morris.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morris · Morris Township | #38 | A+ | B+ | — | A | B+ |
| Darnen Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Framnas Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Morris reports no FBI crime data of its own. Darnen Township and Framnas Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Morris Township and Morris are one community, graded once. Compare Morris with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Morris grades A+ overall, better than 95% of U.S. towns and #38 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 B+.
9 notable people were born here, including Aaron Schock and Adele Watson.
