Kanabec County, Minnesota Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Kanabec County, MN Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
-
B
Health Around averageLess healthy than 77% of counties in Minnesota
-
B
Income Around averageLess wealthy than 70% of counties in Minnesota
-
D
Education Well below averageLess educated than 88% of counties in Minnesota
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Kanabec County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 16,388 | 5,724,000 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 30.7 | 65.8 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 0.37% | 0.64% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 43.7 | 37.1 | 37.3 |
| Households | 6,563 | 2,299,361 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Kanabec County grew by 2.0% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 16,388 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Kanabec County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 22.1% of residents. That is 2.4 points above Minnesota as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 2,904 17.7% -3.6 pts
- Millennials 29–44 2,997 18.3% -3.6 pts
- Gen X 45–60 3,617 22.1% +2.4 pts
- Boomers 61–79 3,531 21.5% +5.0 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Minnesota, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 50.2% of the people living in Kanabec County and men 49.8%.
- Women 50.2% Minnesota 50.0%
- Men 49.8% Minnesota 50.0%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Kanabec County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Kanabec County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.
| Metric | Kanabec County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $71,703 | $89,852 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.21% | 4.43% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 4.6% | 4.1% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Kanabec County is about 20% lower than in Minnesota.
Housing
| Metric | Kanabec County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $189,237 | $236,718 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $961 | $1,280 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 84.5% | 72.2% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Kanabec County is about 16.4 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $961 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Kanabec County spend about 51 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 213 hours, about 8.9 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Kanabec County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 25.5 | 20.3 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 51.1 | 40.6 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 213 | 169 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $6,598 | $5,249 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 9.0% | 17.6% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 3,572 | 7,066 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 445 | 854 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Minnesota:
Brown County (10.6 min), Pennington County (10.8 min), Cottonwood County (10.9 min).
Slowest:
Chisago County (30.9 min), Wright County (28.8 min), Sherburne County (28.8 min).
The average commute time in Kanabec County is 26 minutes, longer than the 20 minutes in Minnesota.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Kanabec County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Kanabec County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 13.9% | 35.5% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.45 | 2.43 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Minnesota:
Hennepin County (0.4), Olmsted County (0.4), Carver County (0.4).
Lowest:
Nobles County (0.2), Mahnomen County (0.2), Watonwan County (0.2).
Health
Kanabec County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.
| Metric | Kanabec County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 80.2 | 80.8 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 14.2% | 13.0% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 21.3% | 18.5% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Minnesota:
Carver County (0.8), Washington County (0.8), Stevens County (0.8).
Lowest:
Mahnomen County (0.8), Clearwater County (0.8), Beltrami County (0.8).
Kanabec County, MN Compared With Nearby Counties
Kanabec County, MN is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 16,388 residents against a local median of 42,596. Where Kanabec County, MN breaks from the counties next to it is median home price, sitting 20% below the local median of $237,318 at $189,237.
Median household income tells the same story from another angle: $71,703 against a local median of $87,417, 18% below it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is median household income, and at 18% below the local median it puts Kanabec County, MN at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves spread $126,473 on median home price, so Kanabec County, MN sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Kanabec County, MN has the 6th highest median home price of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kanabec County, MN | 16,388 | $71,703 #5/6 | $189,237 #6/6 | 25.5 min #4/6 |
| Mille Lacs County, MN | 27,123 | $73,418 | $275,520 | 23.7 min |
| Isanti County, MN | 42,596 | $87,417 | $237,318 | 26.9 min |
| Pine County, MN | 29,640 | $70,962 | $197,727 | 23.2 min |
| Chisago County, MN | 57,989 | $99,358 | $234,677 | 30.9 min |
| Anoka County, MN | 370,272 | $101,615 | $324,200 | 23.6 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Kanabec County, Minnesota.
What is the population of Kanabec County, Minnesota?
About 16,388 people live in Kanabec County, Minnesota, in 6,563 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 43.7, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.
Is Kanabec County, Minnesota urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Kanabec County, Minnesota has 31 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 36% of the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Kanabec County, Minnesota?
The median home costs 2.6 times the median household income ($189,237 against $71,703), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $961 a month takes about 16% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How educated are people in Kanabec County, Minnesota?
13.9% of adults in Kanabec County, Minnesota hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 7), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
Analyze any area in the US
Get local demographics for any address, aggregated by drive time or radius, on the interactive map.
Explore the map →