
Minnesota · Census place 11548
Clara City, MN population, income and ZIP codes
Quick answer
The population of the city of Clara City, Minnesota (Clara City, MN — Census place “Clara City city”) is 1,497 residents, ranking #302 of 914 places in Minnesota. Median household income is $58,431, the median home is worth $116,500 and median gross rent runs $1,063 a month. Looking for the Clara City Minnesota ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Clara City, MN: 56222.
- Population
- 1,497Clara City city residents
- Median household income
- $58,431Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
- Median home value
- $116,500Owner-occupied units
- Median gross rent
- $1,063Rent plus utilities, monthly
- Median age
- 36.5 yrsAll residents
- Homeownership rate
- 66.1%Owner-occupied households
Clara City ZIP codes (Minnesota)
Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Clara City.
The Clara City MN ZIP code list below covers 1 ZIP code. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.
What the numbers mean in Clara City city
Housing cost measured against local earnings.
A household earning the Clara City city median would spend about 21.8% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 2.0× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 9.8% of residents and 66.1% of households own their home.
Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year
Clara City city, MN in context
How this area compares with national benchmarks.
Clara City city is a small town in Minnesota, with 1,497 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #302 of 914 ranked by population — larger than 67% of them. The median age here is 36.5 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly younger profile than the country as a whole. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.
Households in Clara City city earn a median of $58,431 a year, 25.6% below the national figure of $78,538 and 23% below the $75,469 median for the 361 Minnesota cities we cover. Median household income counts every pre-tax dollar arriving at an address — wages, self-employment, Social Security, pensions, interest and public assistance — for everyone living there, so multi-earner households pull the figure up even where individual pay is modest. Poverty reaches 9.8% of residents here, below the 12.4% national rate.
The typical owner-occupied home in Clara City city is valued at $116,500, 61.6% below the national figure and 52% below the $240,400 peer median, while median gross rent runs $1,063 a month, 24.4% below the national figure, or roughly $12,756 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 21.8% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is within the standard affordability guideline. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 2×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so purchase prices are unusually low against local pay, the pattern in places where supply is plentiful and wage growth has been flat. 66.1% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans toward owners. The rent line includes utilities paid by the tenant, a definition worth remembering when comparing it against a landlord's quoted rate.
All values below were released by the Census for this exact geography, with no gap-filling on our side. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.
Compare with nearby places
Places of similar size in Minnesota.
- Avon city 1,493
- Red Lake CDP 1,506
- Dawson city 1,441
- Madison city 1,507
- Babbitt city 1,420
- Lakeland city 1,510
- Renville city 1,397
- Minneota city 1,531
Keep going
More Minnesota coverage.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this area.
- What is the population of Clara City city?
- Clara City city has 1,497 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #302 of 914 in Minnesota.
- What is the median household income in Clara City city?
- Median household income in Clara City city is $58,431 a year, 25.6% below the national figure of $78,538.
- How much does it cost to rent or buy in Clara City city?
- Median gross rent is $1,063 a month and the median home value is $116,500, so rent absorbs about 21.8% of median household income.
- Is Clara City city affordable compared with the rest of the US?
- Homes cost about 2× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Clara City city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 21.8% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
- How current is this Clara City city data?
- All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.