county

Benson County, ND

Demographic and economic profile of Benson County, ND, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Benson County is a small, rural North Dakota county with a population of 5,861 that has contracted by 14.9% over five years, reflecting persistent outmigration common to the region. The labor force is limited, with a participation rate of 52.3% and just 22.1% of residents holding a bachelor's degree or higher, though the unemployment rate is low at 1.9% and median worker earnings reach $46,167. Housing costs are exceptionally low—median home value of $83,100 and median gross rent of $616/month—though a poverty rate of 22.2% and per capita income of $27,568 indicate significant economic strain within the population.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

5,861

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$64,033

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

32.6 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-14.9% since 2018

Benson County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone2,931 (50.5%)
  • White Alone2,503 (43.1%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races233 (4.0%)
  • Asian Alone48 (0.8%)
  • Some Other Race Alone40 (0.7%)
  • Black or African American Alone35 (0.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish57
  2. 2.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)31
  3. 3.Other Indo-European24
  4. 4.German or other West Germanic9
  5. 5.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)1

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

33.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

50.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

15.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.6%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

255

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$47,831

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$27,568

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

1.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

22.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance612
  2. 2.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services237
  3. 3.Public Administration (Group)218
  4. 4.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining196
  5. 5.Retail Trade (Group)153

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations951
  2. 2.Service Occupations403
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations293
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations238
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations192

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 5.65×)189
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 2.20×)218
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.66×)306
  4. 4.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.20×)590
  5. 5.Construction (LQ 0.88×)128

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$83,100

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$616/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

73.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999137 (9.3%)
  • Less Than $10,000130 (8.8%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999111 (7.5%)
  • $400,000 to $499,99996 (6.5%)
  • $50,000 to $59,99989 (6.0%)
  • $80,000 to $89,99986 (5.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

22.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

88.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

52.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$46,167

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

16.1 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

8.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone1,514 (73.9%)
  • Carpooled203 (9.9%)
  • Walked151 (7.4%)
  • Worked At Home96 (4.7%)
  • Other81 (4.0%)
  • Bicycle5 (0.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.