Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Red Wing is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C overall, ranked 254th of 271 in Minnesota, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is cost of living: a typical home costs about $282K, 3.3 years of the Red Wing area’s $84K median household income. Its lowest everyday mark is in incomes: the median household income is $67K, and 14% of residents live below the poverty line. 46% of working residents work locally in Red Wing, against 9.7% in Minnesota’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Minnesota State Training School and James L. Lawther House. Only 24 of Minnesota’s 572 towns score higher on civic life.
Where Red Wing beats most towns.
Minnesota State Training School
Its founding year, 1850, comes before those of 94% of the Minnesota towns we grade with a known year. Its 25 National Register listings are more than in 97% of Minnesota towns with a listing.
Census counts: 1,250 in 1860, 16,547 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1860 and 4 maps from 1944 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Red Wing is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Red Wing, 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 Red Wing.
Red Wing is healthier than towns with similar incomes, is safe by national standards but not by Minnesota’s and has cooler summers than most of the country, though not than most of Minnesota.
23 miles of trail in 15 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Memorial Park, 345 acres with 12.2 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Memorial Park | 12.2 mi | 345 |
| 2. Ḣe Mni C̣aƞ - Barn Bluff | 2.3 mi | 68 |
| 3. Colvill Park | 0.8 mi | 40 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Red Wing Public School District. Two of its 17 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twin Bluff SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–7 | Grades 5–7 | 502 | C+ |
| Red Wing Senior HighLargest public high schoolGrades 8–12 | Grades 8–12 | 762 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
At 26.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 81% of Minnesota’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 383 to 281 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Red Wing’s property crime rate is 14.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Red Wing | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 14.6 per 1,000 residents | 8.6 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.1 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
July afternoons average 82.4°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 88% of Minnesota places with climate records; January nights average 6.4°.
Red Wing has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The January low in Red Wing is 6°F. About 44 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Red Wing | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 6°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical Red Wing home is worth about $282,000, about the same as a year ago, 19% below the Minnesota typical home.
| Red Wing | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $969 a month | $1,199 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
7.2% of Red Wing workers work from home. Since 2013, Red Wing has lost 821 jobs, to 10,011 in 2023. The top destinations are St.
| Red Wing | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 7.2% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $67,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 10,235 U.S. towns with household incomes like Red Wing’s, it is healthier than 60%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
Red Wing beats the Minnesota average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 15. 29% of adults get no exercise outside work in Red Wing.
| Red Wing | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 23% | 25% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 33% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 31% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Red Wing | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 78.9% | 76.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 7.6% | 5.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 51% of U.S. communities. Since 1993, 22 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Red Wing.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Red Wing; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Red Wing residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
25 places in Red Wing on the National Register of Historic Places.
25 notable people were born in Red Wing.
City in Minnesota, United States
Red Wing is a city in and the county seat of Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States, along the upper Mississippi River. The population was 16,547 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. The federal government established a Mdewakanton Sioux Indian reservation—now Prairie Island Indian Community—in 1936 along the Mississippi River. The city of Red Wing developed around it. The National Trust for Historic Preservation placed Red Wing on its 2008 distinctive destinations list because of its "impressive architecture and enviable natural environment".
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Red Wing.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Wing | #254 | C | B | C | B− | B− |
| Wacouta Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hay Creek Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Featherstone Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Welch Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Wacouta Township, Hay Creek Township, Featherstone Township and Welch Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Red Wing with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Red Wing grades C overall, better than 33% of U.S. towns and #254 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades B− for health, C for safety and B− for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
25 notable people were born here, including Patrick Flueger and Frances Theresa Densmore.
