Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 4,100, settled in 1874. 2.8 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Minnesota town.
Pipestone gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $157K, 2.3 years of the county’s $70K median household income. It grades B+ overall, 166th of 271 graded towns in Minnesota. On the plus side, natural-hazard risk is low. 46% of working residents work locally in Pipestone, where Minnesota’s towns sit at 9.7% and U.S. towns at 8%. Only 28 of Minnesota’s 572 towns score lower on health. Pipestone's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 98% of U.S. towns.
Where Pipestone beats most towns.
Census counts: 222 in 1880, 4,215 in 2020. The archive holds 28 old photos and papers going back to 1920.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Pipestone is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Pipestone, 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 Pipestone.
Pipestone has homes that are cheap against local pay and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Minnesota; it also has lost a quarter or more of its jobs in ten years.
At 2.3 years of the county’s $70K median household income, the typical home (about $157K) costs less against local pay than in 98% of Minnesota towns; that ratio is one input to its A for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $1,121, against $3,357 across Minnesota, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Pipestone’s median rent is $740 a month. Typical home values rose 5.2% in the year to September 2026.
| Pipestone | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $740 a month | $1,199 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 70% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Pipestone Area School District. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Pipestone Senior High, with 302 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pipestone ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 580 | B |
| Pipestone Senior HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 302 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 81% of U.S. communities. Since 1993, 12 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Pipestone.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Pipestone weather station records that 40 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 87% of Minnesota places with climate records.
Pipestone has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 82° and January nights drop to 6°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Pipestone beats the Minnesota average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 18. 30% of adults get no exercise outside work in Pipestone.
| Pipestone | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 23% | 25% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 10% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 30% | 36% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Pipestone | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 79.3% | 76.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here fell from 4,367 in 2013 to 2,558. The average commute for its 2,087 working residents takes 13.1 minutes, against 22.7 across Minnesota.
The average trip to work in Pipestone is 13 minutes. Jobs based in Pipestone fell to 2,558 in 2023, 1,809 fewer than in 2013. 6.2% of Pipestone workers work from home.
| Pipestone | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 13 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 6.2% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $68,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
0.4 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Hiawatha Pageant Park, at 40 acres.
| Pipestone | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.4% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hiawatha Pageant Park | — | 40 |
| 2. Westview Park | 0.1 mi | 23 |
| 3. Leon H. Moore Park | — | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Pipestone; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Pipestone residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
7 places in Pipestone on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Pipestone.
City in Minnesota, United States
Pipestone is a city in and the county seat of Pipestone County, Minnesota. The population was 4,215 at the 2020 census. The city is also the site of the Pipestone National Monument.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Pipestone.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pipestone | #166 | B+ | A | — | B− | C |
| Sweet Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gray Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Pipestone reports no FBI crime data of its own. Sweet Township and Gray Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Pipestone with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Pipestone grades B+ overall, better than 70% of U.S. towns and #166 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades C for health and B− for schools.
7 notable people were born here, including Harold Rawdon Briggs and Phil Bruns.
