Health · Fargo

Fargo, ND health

Fargo differs from North Dakota on 13 of 40 measures. It has fewer adults who have had cancer (6.5% vs 8.2%) and fewer adults with heart disease (4.9% vs 6.1%). Where it trails the state: more adults with depression (24.1% vs 21.3%).

CDC PLACES 2025 · adults 18+ · CDC's estimate for Fargo

Report card

How Fargo compares with North Dakota

Each theme counts how many of its measures are better, worse or too close to call against the state. Tap one to jump to it.

Chronic conditions

Out of every 100 Fargo adults…

28 of every 100 Fargo adults have high blood pressure

North Dakota: 32 in 100 · better · margin 25.4–30.2%

Bars show Fargo; the black tick is North Dakota. Tap a condition to see it as people.

Habits

Everyday habits, side by side with the state

Fargo, betterFargo, worseToo close to callNorth Dakota

Get no exerciseshare of adults 18.8% Fargo
ND 21.8%

Sleep under 7 hoursshare of adults 31.2% Fargo
ND 32.7%

Binge drinkshare of adults 21.5% Fargo
ND 21.3%

Smoke cigarettesshare of adults 11.8% Fargo
ND 13.1%

0%10%20%30%40%

Care & screenings

Keeping up with care

Share of Fargo adults getting routine care. The full ring is 100%; the dark tick marks North Dakota.

Yearly checkup

ND 74%

Dentist visit

ND 65%

Cholesterol check

ND 83%

Colon screening

ND 65%

Mammogram

ND 78%

Taking BP meds

ND 76%

1 in 15

working-age adults has no health insurance

Fargo 6.8% · North Dakota 1 in 14 (7.3%)

Mind & connection

How Fargo adults are doing

1 in 3Fargo adults feel lonely

30.9% · North Dakota 29.6% · too close to call

1 in 4Fargo adults have been diagnosed with depression

24.1% · North Dakota 21.3% · worse

1 in 5Fargo adults lack social or emotional support

20.1% · North Dakota 20.6% · too close to call

1 in 7Fargo adults are in frequent mental distress

14.5% · North Dakota 14.2% · too close to call

Everyday needs

Making ends meet

Needs that shape health as much as any doctor visit: food, housing, utilities and a way to get around.

1 in 9

Fargo adults worry about having enough food

11.3% · ND 10.7% · about the same

1 in 11

Fargo adults worry about keeping their housing

9.1% · ND 8.9% · about the same

1 in 17

Fargo adults were threatened with a utility shut-off

5.9% · ND 5.8% · about the same

1 in 14

Fargo adults lack reliable transportation

7% · ND 6.5% · about the same

7.4% of Fargo adults receive SNAP (food stamps), compared with 6.7% across North Dakota.

Disability

Living with a disability

24.3%

of Fargo adults live with a disability (North Dakota 27.6%). Thinking or memory is the most common.

Walking or climbing stairs8.9%

Thinking or memory12.9%

Hearing6.2%

Errands alone7%

Vision3.9%

Dressing or bathing2.8%

Black tick: North Dakota. Shown without a better/worse judgment.

Around Fargo

Fargo and the towns around it

Pick a measure to shade the map. Darker is worse for health. Pins are the nearest hospitals and community health centers.

33.2%35.7%· darker is worse for health

Obesity

#17 of 29towns on this map, healthiest first

Moorhead33.2%

Briarwood33.2%

Moorhead33.6%

Kurtz33.6%

Oakport33.6%

Stanley33.9%

West Fargo34%

Fargo34.3%

Reed34.3%

Horace34.3%

Harwood34.3%

Pleasant34.5%

Frontier35.1%

Care nearby

Essentia HealthFargo · 2.2 mi · ★★★★★ · ER

Sanford Medical Center FargoFargo · 2.4 mi · ★★★★★ · ER

Fargo VA Medical CenterFargo · 3.8 mi · ★★★★★ · ER · VA

Essentia Health AdaAda · 33.1 mi · ER · rural critical access

Family Healthcare South FargoFargo · 1 mi · community health center, sliding-scale fees

Homeless Health Services - Resource & Recovery CenterFargo · 1.2 mi · community health center, sliding-scale fees

✓ Primary careFargo is not a shortage area

✓ Dental careFargo is not a shortage area

✓ Mental healthFargo is not a shortage area

Shortage areas: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas. Hospitals: Medicare overall star ratings, 1–5. Distances are straight-line from the center of Fargo. Nearby towns are shaded from CDC's estimates for their ZIP codes, or CDC's own figure for cities and villages.

All 40 measures for Fargo

Measure	Fargo	Margin	North Dakota
Chronic conditions
High blood pressure	27.8%	25.4–30.2%	31.8%	better
High cholesterol	31%	28.5–33.5%	33.8%	better
Obesity	34.3%	30.6–38.2%	36.5%	about the same
Arthritis	21.2%	19.4–23.2%	25.3%	better
Depression	24.1%	21.5–27%	21.3%	worse
Lost all teeth (65+)	10.2%	8.1–12.1%	10.8%	about the same
Asthma	10.1%	9–11.2%	10.1%	about the same
Cancer (not skin)	6.5%	6–7.1%	8.2%	better
Diabetes	8.1%	7.2–9.1%	9.8%	better
COPD	4.8%	4.3–5.3%	5.9%	better
Heart disease	4.9%	4.5–5.4%	6.1%	better
Stroke	2.5%	2.3–2.6%	3.1%	better
Habits
Smoke cigarettes	11.8%	10.4–13.3%	13.1%	about the same
Binge drink	21.5%	18.9–24.2%	21.3%	about the same
Get no exercise	18.8%	16.5–21.2%	21.8%	better
Sleep under 7 hours	31.2%	27.2–34.9%	32.7%	about the same
Care & screenings
Yearly checkup	74.1%	71–77%	74.4%	about the same
Dentist visit	66.4%	63.2–69.3%	64.5%	about the same
Cholesterol check	80.5%	78.3–82.5%	82.7%	worse
Colon screening	66.2%	61.9–69.9%	64.9%	about the same
Mammogram	79.9%	73.6–84.6%	78%	about the same
Taking BP meds	73%	70.3–75.5%	76.3%	worse
No health insurance	6.8%	5.8–7.9%	7.3%	about the same
Mind & connection
Feel lonely	30.9%	28.1–34.3%	29.6%	about the same
Lack emotional support	20.1%	17.9–22.7%	20.6%	about the same
Frequent mental distress	14.5%	13–16.1%	14.2%	about the same
Fair or poor health	14.8%	13.2–16.5%	16.1%	about the same
Frequent physical distress	10%	9–11.2%	11.4%	better
Everyday needs
Food insecurity	11.3%	10–12.8%	10.7%	about the same
Housing insecurity	9.1%	8–10.4%	8.9%	about the same
Utility shut-off threat	5.9%	5.2–6.8%	5.8%	about the same
No reliable transportation	7%	6.2–7.9%	6.5%	about the same
Receive SNAP	7.4%	6.3–8.7%	6.7%
Disability
Any disability	24.3%	21.9–27%	27.6%
Walking or climbing stairs	8.9%	7.9–10%	11.2%
Thinking or memory	12.9%	11.6–14.4%	12.6%
Hearing	6.2%	5.6–6.9%	7.8%
Vision	3.9%	3.5–4.2%	4.1%
Dressing or bathing	2.8%	2.5–3%	3.1%
Errands alone	7%	6.3–7.8%	7.1%

About these numbers

How CDC estimates town health

They're modeled estimatesCDC combines a large national health survey with each area's age, sex, race and income mix to estimate local rates. Nobody surveyed Fargo door to door.

Close calls stay grayEvery figure has a margin of error. When the North Dakota figure falls inside it, we don't call Fargo better or worse.

CDC's own town estimateCDC publishes Fargo directly, so these are its own figures.

CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, 2025 release. The North Dakota figure combines its counties, weighted by adult population.

Health estimates: CDC PLACES. Hospitals and star ratings: Medicare Care Compare (CMS). Health centers and shortage areas: HRSA. Town boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau.