Best Places55074, MN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 55074, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
55074 ranks 3,964th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and long commutes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 55074
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
55074's strengths and weaknesses
Where 55074 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Household income$107,782 median, better than 85% of zip codes
Where 55074 ranks low
- Short commute36.0 minutes each way, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 29% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,041 a month, better than only 30% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 55074
A household needs to earn about $86,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 55074 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $107,782, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 55074's effective rate of 0.87%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 55074
55074's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 55074.
Who works in 55074, and how
Work in 55074 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 55074
55074 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 91% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 55074 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 55074, month by month
55074 sees roughly 85 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 25, with lows near 10. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 25° | 17° | 10° |
| April | 56° | 44° | 34° |
| July | 84° | 72° | 61° |
| October | 59° | 48° | 40° |
Flying in and out of 55074
Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain sits about 42 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 17.5 million passengers in 2025, with 195 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 55074
Schools across 55074 average a B, better than 68% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lakeside El.B+ · 55% proficient
- Taylors Falls ElementaryB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Osceola MiddleA− · 58% proficient
- Chisago Lakes MiddleB− · 41% proficient
Top high schools
- Chisago Lakes Senior HighB+ · 58% proficient
- Osceola HighC+ · 38% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 55074 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
55074 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 55074 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 55074
Is 55074 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 55074 ranks 3,964th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, state infrastructure, and heat safety, and lowest on long commutes and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 55074 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $326,156. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $107,782 median income, cost of living beats 86% of zip codes.
Is 55074 safe?
Yes, 55074 is safer than 100% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $112 per resident a year.
Compare 55074 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 55074. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 55074 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
55074 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 55074: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 55074: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 55074: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 55074: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
55074 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.