Should I Move To
Roughly 58,935 people live in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Living here costs very affordable relative to the rest of the country, 22% below the national average. Median rent runs about $927/mo; the typical household pulls in $59,079. On the UrbRank Score it pulls a 49/100 — a D, putting it at #540 nationally.
UrbRank Score · General
Each dimension scored 0-100 against every other US city.
Based on overall cost of living vs. other US cities.
Temperate summers & winters, moderate precipitation.
Walk Score — how feasible daily errands are on foot.
Unemployment rate plus household income vs. national median.
Share of residents 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher.
By the composite index, Grand Forks sits at 78 — very affordable when stacked against the rest of the country. Running the rent-to-income math ($927/mo against $59,079 median household income), housing eats roughly 19% of a typical paycheck — comfortably under the 30% rule of thumb, which is unusual. Buying-side, the median home value is $237,000.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →The weather here is cold-winter: roughly 81°F in summer, 12°F in winter. Annual precipitation lands near 32 inches. You'll need a car for most things, though the central core is more walkable than the citywide score suggests. AQI runs about 39 — a "good" reading.
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
For families, Grand Forks is workable — not standout, not weak. The profile-weighted score is 60/100 — a C. Its standout dimension is affordability (98/100); the soft spot is climate (3/100).
For retirees, Grand Forks isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 50/100 — a D. Its standout dimension is affordability (98/100); the soft spot is climate (3/100).
For remote workers, Grand Forks is workable — not standout, not weak. The profile-weighted score is 60/100 — a C+. Its standout dimension is affordability (98/100); the soft spot is climate (3/100).
For young professionals, Grand Forks isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 51/100 — a C-. Its standout dimension is affordability (98/100); the soft spot is climate (3/100).
Our overall score for Grand Forks is 49/100 — a D, sitting at #540 in the national ranking. It's a weighted average across the seven UrbRank dimensions.
By the composite index, Grand Forks sits at 78 — very affordable, 22% below the national average. Median renter pays around $927 a month.
Grand Forks runs cold-winter on the weather. Summer's near 81°F, winter's near 12°F; 32 inches of precipitation annually.
Walk Score: 48/100. You'll need a car for most things, though the central core is more walkable than the citywide score suggests.
Roughly 58,935 people live here, with 39% college-educated (bachelor's or higher) among adults 25+ with a median age of 29.
Drop Grand Forks into the comparison tool with any other US city and you'll get housing costs, salaries, demographics, and quality-of-life data lined up side by side. Profile-specific leaderboards (families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals) are linked from the navigation.
Every US city is scored 0-100 on seven dimensions using public data from the US Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, FBI Crime Data Explorer, EPA Air Quality System, NOAA NCEI, and Walk Score. Each dimension is a percentile rank against every other city — so a score of 80 means the city is in the top 20% nationally on that dimension.
The overall score is a weighted average. Five lifestyle profiles — general, families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals — weight the dimensions differently to reflect what each cares about. Families get more weight on safety and schools; young professionals get more weight on jobs and walkability; retirees get more weight on climate.
Compare Grand Forks with other North Dakota cities scored on UrbRank.
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