Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Mandan grades C+ overall, 17th of 23 graded towns in North Dakota, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It is healthier than 78% of U.S. towns. On the other side, its crime rate is higher than 83% of U.S. towns, with 71 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2024. Mandan’s trail density is 1.6 miles per square mile, against 0.7 in North Dakota’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. Mandan has 5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Lewis and Clark Hotel and Sunnyside Farm Barn. Only one of the 15 North Dakota towns we compare has a higher property offense rate than Mandan.
Where Mandan beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Mandan | ND |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.1% | 10.8% |
Lewis and Clark Hotel18,331 counted in 2010 and 24,206 in 2020; an estimated 25,061 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Dakota), ordered by how far Mandan is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 239 in 1880, 24,206 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1883 and 3 maps from 1951 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Mandan, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Jul 30, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Mandan.
Mandan has more trail for its size than nearly any town in North Dakota and has colder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of North Dakota; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of North Dakota (mostly inland flooding).
At 1.6 miles of trail per square mile, it ranks #2 of 22 North Dakota towns.
The biggest park or preserve is Lions Park, at 41 acres. Count the trails in 10 parks and preserves and they come to 21 miles. Parks and preserves in Mandan: 10, covering 77 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lions Park | 0.8 mi | 41 |
| 2. Missouri River Natural Area | 0.4 mi | 9 |
| 3. Kiwanis Park | 0.4 mi | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Of its 14 schools, three are listed below, each with the reason. The public schools here belong to the Mandan 1 school district. Public school enrollment locally: 2,034 students across 6 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandan Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,003 | C+ |
| Mandan High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,175 | C |
| Red Trail Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 438 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ND on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 971 to 563 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
In Mandan, the rate of reported violence is 2.9 per 1,000 residents, where North Dakota’s towns sit at 2.6 and U.S. towns at 1.7.
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
In Mandan, 33% of adults sleep under 7 hours. Two figures for adults in the town: 29% feel lonely, 14% report frequent mental distress.
| Mandan | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 22% | 16% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 17% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 75% | 73% | 79% |
| What stands out | Mandan | ND |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.1% | 10.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 77% of North Dakota towns, with expected losses of about $126 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
Federal disaster aid has reached households in Mandan after 7 declared disasters, most recently in 2025. For Mandan, the natural-hazard score from FEMA is 72 of 100. Paid flood insurance claims locally since 1978: 109. FEMA puts nearly a third of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 25% to cold waves.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 3°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 90% of North Dakota places with climate records; July afternoons average 83.6°.
Mandan’s January low stands at 3°F. About 51 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Mandan | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 3°F | 1°F | 22°F |
| July high | 84°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
A home in Mandan typically sold within 46 days of listing. Typical home values rose 5.1% in the year to September 2026. Mandan: 69% of households live in a home they own.
| Mandan | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 69% | 56% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,083 a month | $973 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
25% of working residents work locally in Mandan. Jobs based in Mandan grew to 8,749 in 2023, 1,256 more than in 2013. The top destinations are Bismarck (53%), Fargo (2%) and Minot (2%). In Mandan, the average commute is 18 minutes.
| Mandan | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 25% | 39% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 16 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 11% | 5.5% | 11% |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $75,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
For Mandan, the median age is 36.1 years. By age, Mandan looks like North Dakota: each broad group is within 4 points. The share of residents in Mandan who are under 18: 22%. The bachelor’s-degree share among adults 25 and older is 30%, against 33% across North Dakota.
| Mandan | North Dakota towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 22% | 27% | 22% |
| Median age | 36.1 years | 33.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 13% | 18% |
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.3 points. Across North Dakota, 48.8% of residents are women. Median age: women 37.6, men 35.7.
| Mandan | ND | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.3% | 13% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.5% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10.3% | 11.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.1% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.6% | 13.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.9% | 10.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.9% | 11.4% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.9% | 9.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.4% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.8% | 6% | 10.4% |
| High school | 28% | 25.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.8% | 21.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.2% | 14% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.2% | 23% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7% | 9.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
3 within 15 miles of the center of Mandan
About 5 of every 100 Mandan residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across North Dakota.
3.2% of the town is conserved land, across 10 parks and preserves.
5 places in Mandan on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Mandan.
Morton County Seat
Mandan is a city on the eastern border of Morton County, North Dakota, United States. Founded in 1879 on the west side of the upper Missouri River, it was designated in 1881 as the county seat of Morton County. The population was 24,206 as of the 2020 census, and was estimated at 25,061 in 2025, making it the eighth-most populous city in North Dakota. Across the Missouri River from Bismarck. Mandan is a core city of the Bismarck metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Mandan.
| Town | ND rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mandan | #17 | C+ | B | C− | C+ | A− |
| Captain's Landing Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Captain's Landing Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Mandan with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Mandan grades C+ overall, better than 40% of U.S. towns and #17 of 23 in North Dakota. It grades A− for health, C− for safety and C+ for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a C−.
That is 4.1 years of the area's median household income ($85,156 across the Bismarck, ND 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 B.
10 notable people were born here, including George F. Shafer and Victor Steinbrueck.
