Best Places56549, MN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 56549, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
56549 ranks 5,154th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and noise is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 56549
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.
56549's strengths and weaknesses
Where 56549 ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 142 pleasant days a year, better than 87% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 56549 ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 26% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 27% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 56549
A household needs to earn about $86,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 56549 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $102,900, 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 56549's effective rate of 0.93%, 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 56549
56549'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 56549.
Who works in 56549, and how
Work in 56549 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 56549
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 56549.
What the weather is like in 56549, month by month
56549 sees roughly 142 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 83 degrees. January highs sit near 20, with lows near 5. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 20° | 12° | 5° |
| April | 51° | 41° | 32° |
| July | 83° | 72° | 62° |
| October | 57° | 46° | 38° |
Flying in and out of 56549
The nearest airport, Hector International, is about 24 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain, about 203 miles away.
The best schools in and around 56549
Schools across 56549 average a B+, better than 76% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Barnesville ElementaryA− · 61% proficient
- Viking Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Hawley ElementaryA− · 57% proficient
Top middle schools
- Dilworth-glyndon-felton Middle SchC+ · 39% proficient
Top high schools
- Hawley SecondaryB+ · 58% proficient
- Dilworth-glyndon-felton Senior HighB · 50% proficient
- Lake Park Audubon SecondaryC+ · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 56549 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
56549 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 56549 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 56549
Is 56549 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 56549 ranks 5,154th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a strong job market, state infrastructure, and low crime, and lowest on noise and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 56549 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $322,460. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $102,900 median income, cost of living beats 84% of zip codes.
Is 56549 safe?
Yes, 56549 is safer than 89% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $201 per resident a year.
Compare 56549 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 56549. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 56549 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.
56549 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 56549: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 56549: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 56549: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 56549: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
56549 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.