County outline
Where Mower County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 100% of Mower County’s measured area and water for 0%. Its combined area converts to 1,842.8 square kilometers or approximately 455,367 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 711.273 | 1,842.189 | 455,214.7 |
| Water | 0.238 | 0.616 | 152.3 |
| Total | 711.511 | 1,842.805 | 455,367 |
How Mower County compares
By original Census land area, Mower County ranks #40 of 87 in Minnesota and #1288 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 1.054 times the Minnesota county-equivalent median of 674.6 square miles. It accounts for 0.9% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Minnesota ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Mower County
The Census Bureau estimates that 40,971 people lived in Mower County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #1,192 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #26 of 87 in Minnesota. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 40,043, the population has grown by 928 (+2.3%), compared with +2.2% for Minnesota as a whole.
With 711.3 square miles of land, that is 58 people per square mile (22 per km²), placing Mower County #1,419 nationally for density and #26 in Minnesota. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Minnesota median is 27. Put another way, there are about 11 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 40,068 | 40,232 | 40,094 | 40,207 | 40,684 | 40,971 |
| Change | — | +164 | −138 | +113 | +477 | +287 |
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates. Estimates are revised each year and are not decennial census counts. Density divides the whole population by the whole county’s land area, so it describes an average, not how settlement is distributed within the county. Population sources and methods.
Cities and towns in Mower County
Mower County is divided into 34 municipalities and townships. In Minnesota, county subdivisions are local governments, and together they cover all of the county’s land and residents.
The most populous is Austin city, with 26,689 residents (65.1% of the county). The largest by land is Nevada township, at 36.6 mi², or 5.1% of the county’s land. Among those with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, Grand Meadow city grew fastest since then (+2.7%).
| County subdivision | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² | Share of county land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin cityCounty seat | 26,689 | +1.9% | 13.4 | 1.9% |
| Grand Meadow city | 1,159 | +2.7% | 0.687 | 0.1% |
| Le Roy city | 969 | +1.6% | 0.706 | 0.1% |
| Lansing township | 923 | +2.2% | 30.6 | 4.3% |
| Austin townshipCounty seat | 894 | +2.5% | 28.1 | 4% |
| Red Rock township | 734 | +2.1% | 35.4 | 5% |
| Adams city | 705 | +3.1% | 1.003 | 0.1% |
| Brownsdale city | 644 | +1.4% | 0.414 | 0.1% |
| Racine city | 588 | +28.9% | 0.668 | 0.1% |
| Windom township | 533 | +2.9% | 36 | 5.1% |
| Lyle city | 526 | +0.4% | 0.756 | 0.1% |
| Racine township | 485 | +2.3% | 35.7 | 5% |
| Adams township | 451 | +2.3% | 35 | 4.9% |
| Udolpho township | 426 | +2.4% | 36.1 | 5.1% |
| Rose Creek city | 403 | +1.3% | 0.49 | 0.1% |
Show the other 19 subdivisions
| Name | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frankford township | 394 | +2.6% | 29.9 |
| Lyle township | 377 | +2.4% | 35.4 |
| Waltham township | 367 | +1.9% | 35.9 |
| Le Roy township | 352 | +1.7% | 35.2 |
| Nevada township | 349 | +2.6% | 36.6 |
| Grand Meadow township | 347 | +2.1% | 35.7 |
| Dexter city | 329 | +1.9% | 1.408 |
| Marshall township | 322 | +1.9% | 34.7 |
| Sargeant township | 299 | +2% | 35.4 |
| Pleasant Valley township | 296 | +2.1% | 30.1 |
| Dexter township | 257 | +2% | 34.7 |
| Lodi township | 245 | +2.1% | 35.7 |
| Clayton township | 171 | +2.4% | 36.1 |
| Waltham city | 168 | +1.2% | 0.478 |
| Bennington township | 151 | +2.7% | 36.1 |
| Mapleview city | 148 | +1.4% | 0.185 |
| Elkton city | 134 | +1.5% | 1.281 |
| Taopi city | 70 | +20.7% | 0.391 |
| Sargeant city | 66 | +1.5% | 0.798 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each subdivision inside Mower County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
Mower County is a central county of the Austin, MN Micropolitan Statistical Area. Mower County is the area’s only county equivalent, so the micro area has the same 711.3 square miles of land. By combined land it ranks #302 of 542 micropolitan areas, and #312 by population. It belongs to the Rochester-Austin-Winona, MN Combined Statistical Area.
ZIP codes
19 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Mower County; 15 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
55909559125591755918559265593355936559405595055951559535596155967559705597355975559765597755982
ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are the Census Bureau’s approximations of USPS ZIP Code service areas, from the 2020 Census relationship files. Lighter codes have less than half of their land in this county. Post-office-box and single-address ZIP Codes have no tabulation area.
Counties bordering Mower County
Mower County shares a land border with 8 county equivalents, including 3 in Iowa. It has more land than 7 of them. The largest neighbor is Fillmore County (861.3 mi²) and the smallest is Worth County (400.1 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Mower County forms a block of 5,145 mi² of land, of which it holds 13.8%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Mower | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fillmore County | 861.3 | 1.2× larger | Compare |
| Freeborn County | 707.2 | about the same | Compare |
| Olmsted County | 653.5 | 1.1× smaller | Compare |
| Howard CountyIowa | 473.2 | 1.5× smaller | Compare |
| Mitchell CountyIowa | 469.3 | 1.5× smaller | Compare |
| Dodge County | 439.4 | 1.6× smaller | Compare |
| Steele County | 429.6 | 1.7× smaller | Compare |
| Worth CountyIowa | 400.1 | 1.8× smaller | Compare |
How big is Mower County compared with U.S. states?
Mower County has less land than any of the 50 states. Rhode Island, the smallest state by land area, has 1,033.9 mi², about 1.5 times as much. Minnesota’s county land could hold about 112 areas the size of Mower County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 26.7 miles (42.9 km) on each side. Real county shapes are rarely square, so this is a scale reference rather than a width or driving distance.
State figures are the sums of each state’s county-equivalent land measurements in the same Census release, so states and counties are compared on the same basis. Published state totals can differ slightly because of rounding. Compare all states · Counties bigger than entire states.
What stands out about Mower County?
Mower County has more land than 1,934 of the other 3,221 county equivalents in the dataset.
A median is the middle county-equivalent measurement, not the average of the largest and smallest. All three bars use the same linear scale. Very small areas may appear as a thin sliver; the labels retain their values.
Does including water change its rank?
Using land plus water places Mower County at #1,415 nationally by total area, 127 places farther from the top than its land rank. Other county equivalents gain more area when their water measurements are included.
Its water share is 0%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 1.1 percentage points lower. This describes the statistical geography’s land/water mix, not flood exposure or developable land.
Closest positions in the national land ranking
These entries sit immediately beside Mower County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1287 | Steele County, North Dakota | 712.1 | Compare |
| #1288 | Mower County, Minnesota | 711.3 | This county |
| #1289 | Guadalupe County, Texas | 711.2 | Compare |
Calculated from the same Census release as the area table. Total-area order uses original ALAND + AWATER; water shares and chart labels use published square miles. Calculation details.
Representative coordinates
The Census internal point is 43.666249, -92.759514. It represents a location inside the geography; it is not necessarily the centroid or the address of a courthouse.
Source and precision
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 Gazetteer Files, Counties. Original ALAND: 1,842,188,276 m²; AWATER: 617,123 m². Rankings use ALAND; exact ties use ascending GEOID. Tables preserve Census-published square miles to three decimals, with conversions based on those values.
Common questions
How big is Mower County?
Mower County, Minnesota has 711.3 square miles (1,842.2 km²) of land and 0.238 square miles of water, for a total area of 711.5 square miles. It ranks #1288 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Mower County the largest county in Minnesota?
No. Mower County ranks #40 of 87 in Minnesota by land area. The largest is St. Louis County, with 6,248.1 square miles of land.
What counties border Mower County?
Mower County shares a land border with Freeborn County, Mitchell County, Iowa, Fillmore County, Dodge County, Olmsted County, Howard County, Iowa, Worth County, Iowa, and Steele County.
What is the population of Mower County?
The Census Bureau estimates Mower County had 40,971 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #1,192 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 58 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Mower County?
The county seat of Mower County is Austin.
What cities and towns are in Mower County?
Mower County has 34 county subdivisions (cities, towns and townships). The most populous five are Austin city, Grand Meadow city, Le Roy city, Lansing township, and Austin township.
Is Mower County part of a metropolitan area?
Yes. It is a central county of the Austin, MN Micropolitan Statistical Area.
How many ZIP codes are in Mower County?
19 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Mower County, and 15 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Mower County compare with U.S. states?
It has less land than every state. Rhode Island, the smallest, has 1.5 times as much land.
How many acres of land are in Mower County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 455,215 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 455,367 acres. One square mile equals 640 acres.
Why might another source show a different area?
Check whether it reports land or total area, its Census vintage, and its rounding. Our guide explains how to reconcile county area figures.
Can this establish a property boundary?
No. Statistical measurements and generalized maps do not establish property lines. Consult the relevant local surveying or land-records authority.