Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 23,392, settled in 1857.
White Bear Lake grades A− overall, 122nd among Minnesota's 271 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It is healthier than 86% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $84K. It also does better than most on schools: its schools rank ahead of 71% of Minnesota towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $356K for a typical one and 3.6 times the Minneapolis metro’s $100K median household income. White Bear Lake is home to Century College. White Bear Lake’s median rent is $1,601 a month, against $1,192 a month in Minnesota’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns. White Bear Lake has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Charles P. Noyes Cottage and First National Bank of White Bear.
Where White Bear Lake beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Minnesota), ordered by how far White Bear Lake is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 435 in 1880, 24,883 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 1890 and 5 maps from 1952 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around White Bear Lake. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi Stadium & arenaU.S. Bank Stadium
9 mi Stadium & arenaGrand Casino Arena
12 mi Stadium & arenaHuntington Bank Stadium
14 mi Stadium & arenaTarget Field
11 mi Stadium & arenaAllianz Field
9 mi MuseumMinnesota State CapitolU.S. Bank Stadium: Darb02, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Grand Casino Arena: AlexiusHoratius, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Huntington Bank Stadium: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Target Field: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Allianz Field: Andy Witchger, CC BY 2.0 · Minnesota State Capitol: McGhiever, CC BY-SA 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in White Bear Lake, 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 White Bear Lake.
White Bear Lake trades workers with St. Paul and other neighbors, has seen reported crime fall by a third or more and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Minnesota.
27% of adults sleep under 7 hours in White Bear Lake. White Bear Lake beats the Minnesota average on 10 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 35% of adults feel lonely in White Bear Lake.
| White Bear Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 30% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 30% | 33% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 23% | 25% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 25% | 23% |
| What stands out | White Bear Lake | MN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.6% | 8.9% |
| Fewer adults who get no exercise | 18.1% | 22.3% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10% | 8.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the White Bear Lake School District. Three of its 25 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 922 | B |
| White Bear Lake Area High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,572 | – |
| Lincoln ElementaryTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 469 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MN on state tests and graduation
3.9 miles of trail in 16 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Lakewood Hills Park, 91 acres with 1.6 miles of trail.
| White Bear Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 6.5% | 4.6% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lakewood Hills Park | 1.6 mi | 91 |
| 2. Stellmacher Park | 0.5 mi | 9 |
| 3. Rotary Nature Preserve | 0.4 mi | 38 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 76% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in White Bear Lake.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The U Of Mn St Paul weather station, 10 miles away, records that 40 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 83% of Minnesota places with climate records. January nights average 6.4°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 90% of Minnesota places with climate records; July afternoons average 81.9°.
White Bear Lake has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. White Bear Lake’s January low is 6°F.
| White Bear Lake | 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
White Bear Lake has about as many jobs (11,460) as working residents, but only 1,209 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave White Bear Lake for work: only 11% work in town. 21% of White Bear Lake workers work from home. Since 2013, White Bear Lake has added 1,529 jobs, to 11,460 in 2023.
| White Bear Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 21% | 14% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7% | 7.1% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 9.7% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
People 65 and older are 21% of residents (17% statewide). White Bear Lake has lost 6% of its people since 2020, down to 23,392 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 42% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 39% across Minnesota.
| White Bear Lake | Minnesota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 42% | 33% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 17% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 20% | 23% | 22% |
| Median age | 41.9 years | 39.9 years | 40.5 years |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.9 points. Across Minnesota, 49.9% of residents are women. Median age: women 45.4, men 39.5.
| White Bear Lake | MN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.2% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.3% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.1% | 13% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.2% | 13.5% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.1% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14.9% | 12.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.6% | 10.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.7% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.9% | 6.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 22.5% | 23.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 20.7% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.3% | 11.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 29.7% | 25.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.1% | 13.8% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The typical White Bear Lake home is worth about $356,000, up 2.7% in a year, close to the Minnesota typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Reported crimes fell from 432 to 275 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
21 within 15 miles of the center of White Bear Lake
About 5 of every 100 White Bear Lake residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Minnesota.
4 places in White Bear Lake on the National Register of Historic Places.
14 notable people were born in White Bear Lake.
City in Minnesota, United States
White Bear Lake is a city in Ramsey County in the state of Minnesota, United States. A small portion of the city also extends into Washington County. The population was 24,883 at the 2020 census. The city is located on White Bear Lake, one of the largest lakes in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. The lake is a large lake that is home to many different species of fish including largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, northern pike, and a variety of other species.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with White Bear Lake.
| Town | MN rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White Bear Lake | #122 | A− | C | B− | B+ | A |
| White Bear Township | #68 | A | C+ | — | B+ | A |
| Mahtomedi | #51 | A | C− | — | A+ | A |
| Vadnais Heights | #94 | A | C+ | — | B+ | A− |
| Gem Lake | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Maplewood | #236 | C+ | C+ | D | C | A− |
White Bear Township, Mahtomedi and Vadnais Heights report no FBI crime data of their own. Gem Lake isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare White Bear Lake with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. White Bear Lake grades A− overall, better than 79% of U.S. towns and #122 of 271 in Minnesota. It grades A for health, B− for safety and B+ for schools.
Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
14 notable people were born here, including Moose Goheen and Ryan Carter.
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