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Compare towns

Echo vs Lake Wilson

51 miles apart. The biggest differences: property tax bill (2× in Echo) and average commute (7 min in Lake Wilson).

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Echo, MNHomes around $187KMinnesota · 197 people
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Lake Wilson, MNA small town of 237Minnesota · 237 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

EchoHomes around $187K
Housing$187K typical home47% below the MN typical home SchoolsBetter than 36%of MN districts All about Echo →
Lake WilsonA small town of 237
Quiet strengthsLake Wilson doesn’t stand out on the data we haveNeighbors can tell you what the numbers miss.
All about Lake Wilson →
The biggest differences

Where they differ most

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Property tax bill2×
Tax bills are bigger in Echo
Echo $1,155Lake Wilson $573
Average commute7 min
Lake Wilson has the shorter commute
Echo 25 minLake Wilson 18 min
Jobs per worker+55%
Echo is more of a job hub
Echo 0.73Lake Wilson 0.47
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $590 more a month in Echo

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Echo$1,150/mo
Typical home $187K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.11% · or rent about $617/mo · Housing →
Lake Wilson$560/mo
Typical home $99K (Census) · tax rate 0.58% · Housing →

The difference: $590 a month, about $7,000 a year, between Echo and Lake Wilson.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Minnesota ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Schools
C+EchoBetter than 36% of districts in the state –Lake WilsonNot graded
Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
EchoLake Wilson
Snow a year44″46″
January low—4°F
July high—81°F
Growing season (days)—145d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)44th47th
Outdoors & history
EchoLake Wilson
Trails—0 mi
Conserved land—0%
Settled1884—
Community
EchoLake Wilson
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

51 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

EchoMNLake WilsonMN
Echo ↔ Lake Wilson51 miles apart
Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

EchoLake Wilson
People
Population 197Lowest 237Highest
Median age 53.4±5Highest 38% above MN 52.9±12.5Lowest 36% above MN
Echo and Lake Wilson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 11.7%±5.8Lowest MN: 22.9% 13.9%±8.2Highest MN: 22.9%
Lake Wilson and Echo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 21.3%±9.8Lowest MN: 17.3% 28.7%±7.3Highest MN: 17.3%
Lake Wilson and Echo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 16.3%Lowest MN: 39.4% 18.3%Highest MN: 39.4%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.6%±5.4Lowest MN: 5.8% 3.8%±3.3Highest MN: 5.8%
Lake Wilson and Echo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $70,833±$19kHighest 20% below MN $65,500±$18kLowest 26% below MN
Echo and Lake Wilson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $103,600±$24kHighest 69% below MN $98,600±$15kLowest 70% below MN
Echo and Lake Wilson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $617±$24 52% below MN —
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,155Highest 66% below MN $573Lowest 83% below MN
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 70%±100Lowest MN: 48.1% 83.3%±100Highest MN: 48.1%
Lake Wilson and Echo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 14.2%Lowest MN: 9.3% 17.3%Highest MN: 9.3%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 89.8%Lowest MN: 72.2% 93.2%Highest MN: 72.2%
Typical home builtmedian year 1949Lowest 30 yrs older than MN 1952Highest 27 yrs older than MN
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 25 minHighest 10% above MN 18 minLowest 19% below MN
Work from home 0%±8.2Lowest MN: 17.6% 7.3%±5.3Highest MN: 17.6%
Lake Wilson and Echo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 5%Highest 2.9%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 21.3 miHighest 19.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.73Highest 0.47Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Marshall (15%)Fulda (14%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Lake WilsonFew work in Echo
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0% 0%
Trailsmapped miles 0.0 miLowest 0.3 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.6 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0Lowest 1Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 80.3Highest 61.0Lowest
Minnesota average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Echo neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Echo’s Town Square.

Lake Wilson neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Lake Wilson’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Echo and Lake Wilson

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Towns like Echo

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Northome159 people · $88K homes
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Lake Lillian157 people · $114K homes
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Larkin Township153 people · $180K homes
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Akeley289 people · $111K homes
Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks Minnesota towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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