Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Homes are affordable here, though not without reasons. Virginia’s overall C+ puts it 244th of 271 in Minnesota. On that grade it does better than 38% of U.S. towns. Its weakest is health: CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 84% of the country. Incomes are weaker too — the median household income is $52K, and 18% of residents live below the poverty line. Cost of living is its strong suit (A): a typical home costs about $129K, 1.8 years of the Duluth metro’s $72K median household income. Virginia's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 82% of U.S. towns. 37% of working residents work locally in the town, against 9.7% in Minnesota’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES · Census LEHD, 2023.
Where Virginia beats most towns.
Lincoln School Building
Its 18 National Register listings are more than in 96% of Minnesota towns with a listing.
Census counts: 2,962 in 1900, a peak of 14,034 in 1960, 8,421 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1900 and 3 maps from 1951 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far Virginia is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Virginia, 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 Virginia.
Virginia draws workers from Hibbing and beyond, has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
At 1.8 years of the Duluth metro’s $72K median household income, the typical home (about $129K) costs less against local pay than in any other Minnesota town; that ratio is one input to that grade. The median property tax bill is $1,232, against $3,357 across Minnesota, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
On the market in Virginia: a median 48 days to sell. The typical home value in the town is about $129,000, up 0.5% in a year, 63% below the Minnesota typical home. In Virginia, the rent at the middle of the market is $792 a month.
| Virginia | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 59% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $792 a month | $1,199 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 53% | 48% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Public schools: the Rock Ridge Public Schools. The largest public high school is Rock Ridge High School, with 1,048 students. Below: Two of its 11 schools, each with why it was picked.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Star ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–6 | Grades 3–6 | 389 | B− |
| Rock Ridge High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 1,048 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests
5,775 jobs are based in Virginia, 1.9 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
The top destinations are Mountain Iron (11%), Duluth (9%) and Hibbing (6%). Employers in Virginia shed 735 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 5,775. In Virginia, the average trip to work is 18 minutes. Roughly one working resident in three has a job in Virginia itself.
| Virginia | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 37% | 9.7% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 7% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $52,000 | $91,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The biggest park or preserve is Olcott Park, at 31 acres. In 6 parks and preserves, walkers have 12 miles of trail. Virginia’s density of trails is 0.6 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Olcott Park | — | 31 |
| 2. Miners Memorial Park | — | 24 |
| 3. Pepelnjak Southside Park | 0.1 mi | 18 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Against the 6,363 U.S. towns with household incomes like Virginia’s, it is less healthy than 65%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income. All 3 graded neighbors score healthier than its C−, from Eveleth (C+) to Mountain Iron (B).
In Virginia, 26% of adults have been diagnosed with depression. Among 271 Minnesota towns, just 9 have a higher share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Virginia. CDC measures, 32 in all: Virginia beats Minnesota on 1 and trails on 21. Two figures for adults locally: 16% report frequent physical distress, 15% have diabetes.
| Virginia | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 12% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 10% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 16% | 19% |
| What stands out | Virginia | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.2% | 76.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.1% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The rate of thefts and burglaries for Virginia comes to 23 per 1,000 residents. The violent crime rate for Virginia comes to 2.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Virginia | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 23 per 1,000 residents | 8.6 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.7 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 78% of U.S. communities. Households in Virginia have drawn federal disaster aid in 2 declared disasters, most recently in 2024. FEMA puts two thirds of the town’s expected hazard losses down to cold waves, and 24% to inland flooding.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Tower 2s weather station, 21 miles away, records that about 4 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 96% of U.S. towns. January nights average -3.3°, colder than in 99% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 77.9°.
About 69 inches of snow falls in a winter. For Virginia, the January low is -3°F.
| Virginia | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | -3°F | 6°F | 22°F |
| July high | 78°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
None within 15 miles of Virginia; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Virginia residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Minnesota.
Where Virginia’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
18 places in Virginia on the National Register of Historic Places.
14 notable people were born in Virginia.
City in Minnesota, United States
Virginia is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. With an economy heavily reliant on large-scale iron ore mining, Virginia is considered the Mesabi Iron Range's commercial center. The population was 8,421 at the 2020 census. Virginia is a part of the Duluth metropolitan area, and U.S. Highway 53 runs through town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Virginia.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | #244 | C+ | A | C− | B | C− |
| Mountain Iron | #99 | A− | A | — | B | B |
| Gilbert | — | — | A+ | C | B | B− |
| Wuori Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Eveleth | #242 | C+ | A | C− | B | C+ |
| Biwabik Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Gilbert has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Mountain Iron reports no FBI crime data of its own. Wuori Township and Biwabik Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Virginia with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Virginia grades C+ overall, better than 38% of U.S. towns and #244 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades C− for health, C− for safety and B for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
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.
14 notable people were born here, including Daniel Berrigan and Matt Cullen.
