Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Minden gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $204K, 2.7 years of the Kearney area’s $76K median household income. It grades A− overall, ranked 14th of 57 in Nebraska. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 70% of U.S. communities, with hail at the top. On the plus side, it reports less crime per resident than 82% of U.S. towns. Minden has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Kearney County Courthouse and US Post Office-Minden. Among 45 Nebraska towns, just 1 have a lower property crime rate than Minden. 26% of working residents work locally in Minden, against 35% in Nebraska’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns.
Where Minden beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Minden | NE |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.6% | 8.3% |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Nebraska), ordered by how far Minden is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 98 in 1880, 3,118 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 1891 and 2 maps from 1955 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Minden, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Minden.
Minden pairs an A− overall with homes cheaper than the Nebraska norm, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has seen reported crime fall by about half.
Reported crimes fell from 26 to 4 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Minden Public Schools. Its three schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| C L Jones Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 4–8 | Grades 4–8 | 283 | B− |
| Minden High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 272 | B |
| Minden East Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades PK–3 | Grades PK–3 | 239 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NE on state tests and graduation
About one in 4 of Minden’s working residents works in town. 4.8% of residents live below the poverty line in Minden. Since 2013, Minden has lost 175 jobs, to 931 in 2023.
| Minden | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 4.8% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 17 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $68,000 | $70,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 10,382 U.S. towns with household incomes like Minden’s, it is healthier than 91%, so its B+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Minden beats the Nebraska average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of Minden adults binge drink.
| Minden | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 19% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 18% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 14% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 31% | 36% |
| What stands out | Minden | NE |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.6% | 8.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Minden grades A− overall with a typical home of about $204K, below the Nebraska typical value; only 8 of the 18 Nebraska towns graded A− or better can say that. At 2.7 years of the Kearney area’s $76K median household income, the typical home (about $204K) costs less against local pay than in 82% of Nebraska towns; that ratio is one input to its A− for cost of living.
Typical home values rose 8.5% in the year to September 2026. Minden’s median rent is $823 a month.
| Minden | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $823 a month | $921 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 75% | 67% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Minden has cold winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 15° and about 25 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
People 65 and older are 22% of residents (17% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 31% of residents (36% statewide). 28% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 35% across Nebraska.
| Minden | Nebraska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 22% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 38.6 years | 37.5 years | 40.5 years |
53% women, 47% men
About 89 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.7 points). Across Nebraska, 49.7% of residents are women.
| Minden | NE | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.4% | 13.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 16.9% | 11.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.6% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.9% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7.7% | 13.1% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.2% | 11.1% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.4% | 11.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.2% | 9.9% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 11.7% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 11.6% | 7.8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.2% | 25% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.4% | 21.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.6% | 11% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.9% | 22.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 4.3% | 12.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 3,100, single groups can be off by several points
0.0 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Augie Nelson Park | — | 5 |
| 2. Jaycee Park | — | 4 |
| 3. American Legion Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Minden. Close and well known come first.
Fort Kearny: Hanyou23, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pioneer Village: Rolf Blauert Dk4hb, Public domain · Museum of Nebraska Art: Ammodramus, Public domain
None within 15 miles of Minden; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Minden residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Nebraska.
3 places in Minden on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Minden.
City in Nebraska, United States
Minden is a city in Kearney County, Nebraska, United States. The city serves as the county seat of Kearney County. The population was 3,118 at the 2020 census. It is home to the Pioneer Village museum complex of 28 buildings.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Minden grades A− overall, better than 85% of U.S. towns and #14 of 57 in Nebraska. It grades B+ for health, A− for safety and B− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
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−.
7 notable people were born here, including Carl Curtis and Norbert Tiemann.
11 mi
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