?WhereToHQ

Ranked · Renting · Minnesota

Best cities for renters in Minnesota

Cities of 25,000+ residents, scored with the “Renting” weighting the live tool uses, heaviest on 2-bedroom rent, 1-bedroom rent, rent yoy, walkability. Scores are relative to this set; open the tool to change the weights and re-rank.

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Top 10 · computed ranking

  1. 1.Moorhead, MN45k residents

    67/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,043/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $729/mo · walkability: 30/100

  2. 2.Austin, MN26k residents

    63/100

    2-bedroom rent: $941/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $739/mo · walkability: 30/100

  3. 3.Duluth, MN87k residents

    62/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,139/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $855/mo · walkability: 34/100

  4. 4.Owatonna, MN26k residents

    60/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,125/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $770/mo · walkability: 30/100

  5. 5.St. Cloud, MN71k residents

    58/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,060/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $888/mo · walkability: 34/100

  6. 6.Elk River, MN27k residents

    56/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,226/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $968/mo · walkability: 30/100

  7. 7.Rochester, MN122k residents

    55/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,390/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $1,164/mo · walkability: 38/100

  8. 8.Mankato, MN45k residents

    54/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,219/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $900/mo · walkability: 30/100

  9. 9.Winona, MN26k residents

    54/100

    2-bedroom rent: $988/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $724/mo · walkability: 30/100

  10. 10.Rosemount, MN28k residents

    53/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,616/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $976/mo · walkability: 30/100

Methodology: each city is scored 0–100 by min–max normalizing every weighted facet across this candidate set (direction-aware), identical math to the tool's “Best fit” tab. A different weighting produces a different order, which is the point: this is a starting shortlist, not a verdict.

Questions & answers
Which city is best for renters in Minnesota?
Moorhead, MN ranks first with a fit score of 67/100, followed by Austin (63) and Duluth (62), using the "Renting" weighting.
How is this ranking calculated?
Each of the 10 candidate cities (25,000+ residents) is scored 0 to 100 by min-max normalizing the weighted facets, heaviest on 2-bedroom rent, 1-bedroom rent, rent yoy, walkability, across this set. Change the weights in the live tool and the order changes with them.