A town of 18,330, settled in 1855. Healthier than 63% of U.S. towns.
The 3 things Albert Lea does most differently from other towns.
1907 · Albert Lea, Fire Dept18 postcards, papers and photographs from public archives, and 6 places on the National Register.
![Albert Lee [sic], Minn](https://images.towntapestry.org/story/8859/8d23f92c0de4b6ea0567-l.jpg)
1908
Albert Lee [sic], Minn
Photo · Library of Congress. A different picture from Albert Lea’s archive appears here every day.
See all 18 archive items →What neighbors are saying. Town Square →
Nothing on the calendar.
Ordered by what stands out in Albert Lea. Another town gets a different order.
The median sale price was $175,000 in May 2026.
Albert Lea beats the Minnesota average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 18.
| What stands out | Albert Lea | MN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.1% | 76.1% |
| More uninsured adults | 11.5% | 7.5% |
54% of Albert Lea’s working residents work right in town. The top destinations are Austin (6%), Rochester (5%) and Owatonna (3%). Half commute less than 3 miles.
6.7 miles of trails across 26 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. South Edgewater Park | 0.4 mi | 20 |
| 2. Shoff Park | 0.3 mi | 21 |
| 3. Brookside Park | 0.3 mi | 15 |
The public schools Albert Lea’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, trail 66% of Minnesota’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the bottom.
| School | Grades | Students | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawthorne Elementary | PK–5 | 400 | C |
| Lakeview Elementary | PK–5 | 400 | A− |
| Halverson Elementary | PK–5 | 360 | C+ |
| Sibley Elementary | PK–5 | 275 | C |
| St. Theodore's El Private | PK–5 | 92 | |
| Southwest Middle | 6–7 | 486 | C |
Albert Lea has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. A typical July afternoon reaches 81°, a January night drops to 6°, and about 40 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
Albert Lea reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 65% report less.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 38% of U.S. communities.
37 notable people were born in Albert Lea.
City in Minnesota, United States
Albert Lea ( AL-bərt LEE) is a city in Freeborn County, in southern Minnesota. It is the county seat. Its population was 18,492 at the 2020 census. The city is at the junction of Interstates 35 and 90, about 90 miles (140 km) south of the Twin Cities. It is on the shores of Fountain Lake, Pickerel Lake, Albert Lea Lake, Goose Lake, School Lake, and Lake Chapeau. Fountain Lake and Albert Lea Lake are part of the Shell Rock River flowage. The city's early growth was based on agriculture, farming support services and manufacturing, and it was a significant rail center. At one time it was the site of Cargill's headquarters. Other manufacturing included Edwards Manufacturing (barn equipment), Sc…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Albert Lea.