Moving to
Farmington.

All Farmington data Compare Farmington

23,902people live here $123,673median household income▲ 53% above US $1,241median rent per month▼ 12% below US $366,200median home value▲ 10% above US

What it's like to live in Farmington

Farmington is a small city in Minnesota with rent below the national average, county unemployment below the national average, household incomes running above the national average, and crime rates well below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Farmington deals with cold, harsh winters and snowy winters.

The good

Rent below the national average
Low unemployment in the county
Higher-than-average incomes
Low crime rates
Highly educated workforce
Growing population

The not so good

Cold, harsh winters
Snowy winters — 41" per year

How Farmington compares

Median household income

Farmington$123,673

Minnesota avg$89,062

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Farmington$1,241

Minnesota avg$1,280

US$1,413

Median home value

Farmington$366,200

Minnesota avg$329,300

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Farmington

Based on Farmington's median rent, home value and household income

To rent

$2,482

up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit

Income to keep rent under 30%: $49,640 a year
48% of Farmington renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$73,240

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $36,620
Homes cost 3.0× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of living▼ 12% below US

$1,241/mo median rent

Cost of living works in this city's favor. Median rent sits around $1,241 a month, nothing that raises eyebrows. Solid value overall. Home prices run above average, with a median around $366,200. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.

Median home value $366,200 · 48% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

3.6% county unemployment

Unemployment in Dakota County is 3.6%, a little below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Dakota County (county-wide)

Safety▼ 85% below US

49 violent crimes per 100k

Safety is genuinely one of the selling points here. Both violent and property crime run well below the national average, the kind of numbers that fade into the background after a week of living somewhere.

Property crime 276/100k · Farmington Police Department · 2025 data

Getting aroundNear US average

28 min average commute

Commutes run about average, at 27.7 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 20% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

72%

Work from home

20%

Carpool

6.2%

Walk

0.9%

Other

0.6%

Public transit

0.3%

Climate

Summers are comfortable, with highs around 80°F, and winters are cold and harsh, with lows dropping to 11°F.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Education & workforceNear US average

39% bachelor's degree or higher

Education levels run about average, with 39% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.

Schools

13 public schools inside the boundary

There are 13 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 16:1, close to the national average of 16:1.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Mississippi National River & Recreation Area (20 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Farmington's strongest points are rent below the national average and county unemployment below the national average; the main tradeoffs are cold, harsh winters and snowy winters. A year of median rent ($1,241/mo) equals 12% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, anyone prioritizing low crime, and remote workers (20% of workers here already work from home). It may be a harder fit for anyone who dislikes long, cold winters.

See all the data for Farmington →·All Minnesota cities →