Cavalier County, North Dakota Demographics

Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.

Cavalier County, ND 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 average
    Healthier than 71% of counties in North Dakota
  • B
    Income Around average
    Wealthier than 77% of counties in North Dakota
  • D
    Education Well below average

Source: Map AI Methodology

Cavalier County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Cavalier County North Dakota Avg U.S. Average
Population 3,633 784,730 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 2.4 11.1 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.78% 0.80% 0.59%
Median age 46.8 36.3 37.3
Households 1,560 331,016 130,235,071

Population in Cavalier County declined by 7.0% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 3,633 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Cavalier County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Cavalier County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 23.5% of residents. That is 7.6 points above North Dakota as a whole.

Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below North Dakota, 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 48.6% of the people living in Cavalier County and men 51.4%.

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Economy

Cavalier County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.

Metric Cavalier County North Dakota Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $70,272 $76,862 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 0.93% 3.32% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 1.0% 2.7% 5.2%

The median household income in Cavalier County is about 9% lower than in North Dakota.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Cavalier County North Dakota Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $88,499 $125,877 $248,835
Median rent $785 $953 $1,407
Homeownership rate 81.3% 62.9% 65.2%

The median home price in Cavalier County is about 9.4 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $785 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Cavalier County spend about 24 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 99 hours, about 4.1 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Cavalier County North Dakota Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 11.9 13.8 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 23.8 27.6 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 99 115 187
Estimated yearly cost $3,068 $3,567 $5,790
Work from home 8.6% 8.1% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) — 2,106 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 92 360 1,355

Fastest commutes among counties in North Dakota: McIntosh County (6.9 min), Foster County (7.7 min), Pierce County (7.7 min).
Slowest: McHenry County (28.9 min), Renville County (23.5 min), Oliver County (22.8 min).

The average commute time in Cavalier County is 12 minutes, shorter than the 14 minutes in North Dakota.

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.

Commute and transport details →

Education & Households

Cavalier County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.

Metric Cavalier County North Dakota Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 23.3% 29.0% 31.6%
Average household size 2.28 2.29 2.53

Highest education index among counties in North Dakota: Cass County (0.3), Burleigh County (0.3), Grand Forks County (0.3).
Lowest: Sioux County (0.2), Sheridan County (0.2), Hettinger County (0.2).

Health

Cavalier County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.

Metric Cavalier County North Dakota Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 81.2 79.4 78.3
Self-rated poor health 13.9% 14.3% 16.3%
Smokers 17.0% 18.7% 19.0%

Highest health index among counties in North Dakota: Burleigh County (0.8), Steele County (0.8), Cass County (0.8).
Lowest: Sioux County (0.7), Rolette County (0.7), Benson County (0.8).

Full health data →

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Cavalier County, North Dakota.

What is the population of Cavalier County, North Dakota?

About 3,633 people live in Cavalier County, North Dakota, in 1,560 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 46.8, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 10 years.

Is Cavalier County, North Dakota mostly urban or rural?

Averaged over its land area, Cavalier County, North Dakota has 2 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 3% of the U.S. average of 86.

Is Cavalier County, North Dakota an affordable place to live?

The median home costs 1.3 times the median household income ($88,499 against $70,272), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $785 a month takes about 13% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

Is unemployment high in Cavalier County, North Dakota?

Unemployment in Cavalier County, North Dakota is only 1.0%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.

How educated are people in Cavalier County, North Dakota?

23.3% of adults in Cavalier County, North Dakota hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 4), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.

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