Best PlacesDowntown Grand Forks, Grand Forks, ND Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks, 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.
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks ranks 2,187th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
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.
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks' strengths and weaknesses
Where Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks ranks high
- Short commute14.8 minutes each way, better than 98% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
Where Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 1% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Household income$54,010 median, better than only 20% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than only 22% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 30% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
A household needs to earn about $55,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $54,010; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks' effective rate of 1.17%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks runs younger than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks.
Who works in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks, and how
Work in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks centers on education and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 11%
Life in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks has more restaurants and bars per resident than 85% of neighborhoods and more parkland per resident than 93% of neighborhoods. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks, month by month
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks sees roughly 134 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 19, with lows near 2. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 19° | 10° | 2° |
| April | 51° | 39° | 29° |
| July | 84° | 71° | 59° |
| October | 56° | 45° | 35° |
Flying in and out of Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
The nearest airport, Grand Forks International, is about 7 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain, about 278 miles away.
The best schools in and around Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
Schools across Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks average a C+, better than 58% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Nathan Twining Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Viking Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Wilder Elementary SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Top middle schools
- Nathan Twining Middle SchoolA− · 53% proficient
Top high schools
- Central High SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Community Alternative High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks 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 Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks
Is Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks ranks 2,187th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on short commutes, a stable housing market, and heat safety, and lowest on distance from a big city and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $200,636. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $54,010 median income, cost of living beats 32% of neighborhoods.
Is Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks safe?
Yes, Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks is safer than 82% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $419 per resident a year.
Compare Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks 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.
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Downtown Grand Forks, Grand Forks 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.