New Ulm, Minnesota

Area Profile

14,056 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for New Ulm, in Brown County.

64out of 100
Area Score
Top 33% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 12 sources
Opportunity2,453rd of 4,199 cities measured52
SchoolsTop 50% of 4,162 cities measured50
GrowthTop 7% of 4,224 cities measured77
Housing affordabilityTop 22% of 4,218 cities measured76
Climate4,109th of 4,225 cities measured54
Physical resilienceTop 25% of 4,226 cities measured80
Access4,075th of 4,226 cities measured50
Economic stabilityTop 34% of 4,226 cities measured66
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.1% and median household income $64,449, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured. The unemployment rate is published for Brown County, MN, which contains New Ulm, rather than for New Ulm alone.

In the public schools here, 57% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 14.5 students for every teacher.

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 134 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, against 20 the year before.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
14,056
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$64,449
Bottom 47% nationally
Density
1,383/sq mi
10.2 sq mi of land
Median age
39.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Minnesota
Micro area
Nearest major airport
MSP
73 mi · Minneapolis-St Paul Intl/Wold-Chamberlain
Median home value
$204,200
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Brown County, MN, which contains New Ulm, is 4.1%, lower than in 58% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Brown County, MN, which contains New Ulm, fell 1.9% over the past year, to 13,415 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$4,3302024 ACS 5-Year$64,449Bottom 47%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,5452024 ACS 5-Year$35,978Top 43%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year9.2%Top 43%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.0 min2024 ACS 5-Year13.5 minTop 4%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year27.9%Top 34%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year79.6%58th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentBrown County, MN’s figureJuly 202613,415Bottom 9%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Brown County, MN’s figureJuly 2026+1.5%Top 26%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Brown County, MN’s figureJuly 2026−1.9%Bottom 22%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceBrown County, MN’s figureJuly 202613,9899th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year84.6%Top 25%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year0.7%81st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Brown County, MN’s figureJuly 2026+0.3%Bottom 29%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateBrown County, MN’s figureJuly 20264.1%Top 42%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year5.6%39th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202464k60k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $64,449 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Brown County, MN, which contains this city.

57% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 57% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 14.5 students for every full-time teacher across 9 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
12
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
14.5
across 9 of them
Math proficiency
56.6%
Top 46% in Minnesota
Reading proficiency
57.1%
Bottom 35% in Minnesota
The 12 largest public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
New Ulm High SchoolNEW ULM PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT68718.667%67%
Jefferson ElementaryNEW ULM PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT64313.457%49%
New Ulm Middle SchoolNEW ULM PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT61715.850%60%
Washington Learning CenterNEW ULM PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT18012.0——
River Bend Early Childhood Prog.RIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT9022.5——
River Bend Area Learning CenterRIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT436.110%10%
Imprints ProgramRIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT305.010%10%
R.I.S.E. ProgramRIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT175.7——
Raptor ProgramRIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT153.8——
W.O.R.K. ProgramRIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT88.0——
New Ulm CTE CenterNEW ULM PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT0———
River Bend ALC Credit Recovery ProgRIVER BEND EDUCATION DISTRICT0———

32.2% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Minnesota’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Minnesota is up 43% over five years, and up 3.8% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $2,333 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.14% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $973, close to the $962 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $973 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $38,900 a year, about 60% of the median household income here of $64,449.

The typical renter household here spends 28% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $962 a month.

A median home at $204,200 costs 2.5 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $80,328, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
28.4%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.5×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$973
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$962
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$204,200
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against New Ulm’s median household income of $64,449, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Minnesota’s figure2026 Q2+3.8%63rd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Minnesota’s figure2026 Q2+42.5%49th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Minnesota’s figure2026 Q2+88.5%44th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year2.5Bottom 48%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year75.1%48th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±1872024 ACS 5-Year6,37791st percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$742Top 3%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,177Top 2%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$973Top 5%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$712024 ACS 5-Year$962Top 49%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$11,2972024 ACS 5-Year$204,20054th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$1072024 ACS 5-Year$2,33362nd percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$6,3232024 ACS 5-Year$80,328Top 48%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.08%2024 ACS 5-Year1.14%60th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year28.4%Top 50%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±512024 ACS 5-Year4982nd percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.8%60th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year3.9%32nd percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1182024 ACS 5-Year29684th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

77/ 100
Top 7% of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was broadly flat, in a series running from 2022 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has fallen 1% since 2020, to 13,970 in 2024.

87% of the 134 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses.

At 9.5 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
134
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
9.5
Top 13% nationally
Year over year
+570%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
87.3%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202414k14k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Housing units permitted per year

20222023202420252010
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was higher than 2022 (+33%).

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 82°F and January a low of 7°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 31.1 inches, including 38.3 inches of snow.

0°20°40°60°80°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station NEW ULM 2 SE, 1.3 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND5.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals31.1"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals38.3"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals7°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals82°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals57°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

80 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and tornado, with inland flooding alone responsible for 38% of it. Cold wave is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

Overall hazard risk is lower than 75% of measured US cities.

Winter weatherModerate
Strong windHigh
HailModerate
TornadoHigh
Inland floodingModerate
Heat waveModerate
LightningModerate

Low or minimal exposure: cold wave, drought, landslide, ice storm, wildfire, earthquake, hurricane, tsunami, volcanic activity, avalanche, coastal flooding.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
29
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
818
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

New Ulm's police department reported 29 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 818.

Drug overdose deaths run at about 8.2 per 100,000 residents in Brown County.

Firearm deaths, all intents
10.5
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Drug overdose
8.2
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Suicide
14.1
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by New Ulm’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around New Ulm (Brown County) rather than New Ulm itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, and no county figure could be attached to this page.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

1 major airport lies within 100 miles, the nearest Minneapolis-St Paul Intl/Wold-Chamberlain at 73 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year86.1%Bottom 35%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle73 miBottom 5%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle1Bottom 1%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year11.1%Bottom 33%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Minneapolis-St Paul Intl/Wold-ChamberlainMSP73 mi11,006 ft
Rochester IntlRST102 mi9,034 ft
Joe Foss FldFSD124 mi9,000 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
64
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

ZIP codes in New Ulm

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in New Ulm with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track New Ulm closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
5607317,339$70,250$218,700—