Most Americans have never been to small town North Dakota. However, as the North Dakotan who live there know, small town North Dakota is an awesome place to call home.
But is it all roses? Definitely not. Just like any other state, North Dakota has its trouble spots. This article aims to determine, using Saturday Night Science, the absolute worst small towns to live in the Peace Garden State. Don’t freak out, we will use data to show which places have high crime, poverty, and unemployment.
After analyzing more than 38 of North Dakota’s smallest cities, we came up with this list as the 10 worst small towns in North Dakota where you’d never want to live:
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
These are the worst small towns in North Dakota for 2025:
- Shell Valley
- Rolla
- Belcourt
- Mayville
- New Town
- New Rockford
- Tioga
- Harvey
- Grafton
- Oakes
So what is the worst small town to call home in North Dakota for 2025? According to the most recent census data, Shell Valley is the worst small town to live in North Dakota.
While many of these small towns have seen better days, they have wonderful communities and people. This report in no way means to knock the folks that call towns like Shell Valley home. Everyone
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers, or scroll to the bottom to see how your town ranked.
And if you already know about the small towns, check out the best places to live in North Dakota or the worst places to live in North Dakota.
If you’re looking for something more national, check out the worst cities in America or the worst states in America.
The 10 Worst Small Towns In North Dakota For 2025
1. Shell Valley
/10
Population: 1,112
Median Home Value: $55,200
Median Income: $43,281
Unemployment Rate: 11.9%
2. Rolla
/10
Population: 1,164
Median Home Value: $121,500
Median Income: $52,841
Unemployment Rate: 7.3%
3. Belcourt
/10
Population: 1,739
Median Home Value: $94,300
Median Income: $64,526
Unemployment Rate: 3.7%
4. Mayville
/10
Population: 2,050
Median Home Value: $196,200
Median Income: $64,044
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
5. New Town
/10
Population: 2,725
Median Home Value: $199,700
Median Income: $50,707
Unemployment Rate: 2.9%
6. New Rockford
/10
Population: 1,325
Median Home Value: $101,400
Median Income: $47,969
Unemployment Rate: 3.0%
7. Tioga
Population: 1,525
Median Home Value: $196,800
Median Income: $62,315
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%
8. Harvey
/10
Population: 1,720
Median Home Value: $118,000
Median Income: $42,368
Unemployment Rate: 1.8%
9. Grafton
/10
Population: 4,128
Median Home Value: $153,800
Median Income: $60,184
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
10. Oakes
/10
Population: 2,046
Median Home Value: $160,100
Median Income: $64,750
Unemployment Rate: 3.2%
Methodology: How do you decide if a small place in North Dakota is lousy or not?
To rank the worst small towns to live in North Dakota, we had to determine what criteria people like or dislike about a place. Assuming that people like low crime, solid education, things to do, and a stable economy isn’t a stretch.
We then analyzed the criteria using Saturday Night Science, the thinking you’d use at a bar. It seems like even your crazy Uncle would agree that a town with high crime is worse than a town with low crime; all else the same.
Using FBI crime data and the Census’s 2019-2023 American Community Survey, this is the criteria we used:
- Population Density (The lower, the worse)
- Highest Unemployment Rates
- Low housing costs (meaning there’s no demand)
- Adjusted Median Income (Median income adjusted for the cost of living)
- Education (Number of high school dropouts)
- High Crime
We looked at cities with populations between 1,000 and 5,000 people, of which there were many – 38 to be exact.
We get the crime numbers from the FBI, which gets them from the cities. Dropout numbers are based on the adult population, not just the current graduation rates of teenagers.
We base all our research on facts, which is meant as infotainment. We updated this article for 2025, which is our tenth time ranking the worst small places to live in North Dakota.
There You Have It – The Worst Small Towns In North Dakota
If you’re analyzing teeny places in the Peace Garden State with the worst economic situations, where there’s high crime and there’s not a lot to do, this is an accurate list.
The worst small towns in North Dakota are Shell Valley, Rolla, Belcourt, Mayville, New Town, New Rockford, Tioga, Harvey, Grafton, and Oakes.
If you’re curious enough, here are the best small towns to live in North Dakota, according to science:
- Horace (Pop. 3,964)
- Lincoln (Pop. 4,309)
- Thompson (Pop. 1,092)
For more North Dakota reading, check out:
Worst Small Towns In North Dakota
| Rank | Town | Population | Unemployment Rate | Home Value | Median Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shell Valley | 1,112 | 11.9% | $55,200 | $43,281 |
| 2 | Rolla | 1,164 | 7.3% | $121,500 | $52,841 |
| 3 | Belcourt | 1,739 | 3.7% | $94,300 | $64,526 |
| 4 | Mayville | 2,050 | 3.3% | $196,200 | $64,044 |
| 5 | New Town | 2,725 | 2.9% | $199,700 | $50,707 |
| 6 | New Rockford | 1,325 | 3.0% | $101,400 | $47,969 |
| 7 | Tioga | 1,525 | 4.0% | $196,800 | $62,315 |
| 8 | Harvey | 1,720 | 1.8% | $118,000 | $42,368 |
| 9 | Grafton | 4,128 | 2.7% | $153,800 | $60,184 |
| 10 | Oakes | 2,046 | 3.2% | $160,100 | $64,750 |
| 11 | Hettinger | 1,141 | 3.8% | $112,600 | $50,750 |
| 12 | Crosby | 1,116 | 3.8% | $111,800 | $80,000 |
| 13 | Cavalier | 1,304 | 9.7% | $155,500 | $57,188 |
| 14 | Rugby | 2,555 | 0.8% | $147,800 | $50,580 |
| 15 | Bowman | 1,523 | 3.3% | $181,300 | $70,859 |
| 16 | Park River | 1,483 | 1.5% | $118,600 | $76,080 |
| 17 | Stanley | 2,089 | 3.9% | $241,300 | $105,893 |
| 18 | Lisbon | 2,262 | 3.6% | $185,700 | $61,953 |
| 19 | Kenmare | 1,027 | 1.9% | $122,000 | $64,167 |
| 20 | Hazen | 2,509 | 2.9% | $189,300 | $72,094 |
| 21 | Cando | 1,199 | 1.9% | $149,300 | $49,375 |
| 22 | Carrington | 2,171 | 0.1% | $141,800 | $65,469 |
| 23 | Garrison | 1,456 | 1.4% | $181,800 | $68,646 |
| 24 | Langdon | 1,835 | 0.3% | $130,400 | $63,664 |
| 25 | Washburn | 1,434 | 0.4% | $226,200 | $75,729 |
| 26 | Grand Forks Afb | 2,072 | 3.7% | $1,000 | $72,279 |
| 27 | Minot Afb | 4,904 | 5.5% | $1,000 | $65,571 |
| 28 | Beulah | 3,058 | 0.7% | $194,300 | $84,417 |
| 29 | Bottineau | 2,063 | 1.6% | $165,300 | $70,882 |
| 30 | Burlington | 1,169 | 4.9% | $237,800 | $95,216 |
| 31 | Casselton | 2,640 | 1.2% | $297,500 | $68,472 |
| 32 | Larimore | 1,262 | 1.8% | $180,200 | $78,846 |
| 33 | Hillsboro | 1,643 | 3.1% | $180,800 | $77,844 |
| 34 | Mapleton | 1,243 | 1.6% | $285,500 | $116,364 |
| 35 | Surrey | 1,672 | 3.2% | $302,200 | $105,125 |
| 36 | Horace | 3,964 | 0.6% | $444,600 | $145,801 |
| 37 | Lincoln | 4,309 | 1.8% | $259,400 | $83,387 |
| 38 | Thompson | 1,092 | 0.2% | $274,000 | $110,909 |
I’m not trying to be mean or anything, or am saying that you’re 100% wrong, but I can personally say that Tappen should NOT be on that list. I’ve lived near Tappen my entire life, and while some things might not be perfect, it certainly is far from being a bad town. The people that live there are friendly. If anything happens to someone we know, the whole community comes together to support them. From the school to the gas station, things in Tappen are good!
My Family is from Tappen and I don’t think it should be on this list. Just because it is small does not mean it is bad. We do lots of fun things like harvest fest and lots of others. So take Tappen of this list. And Medina
It’s worth noting that the appearance of a town on this list only means that it is within the population parameters. There are 179 such towns. Of those 179, these are the worst 100 by the standards they used to rank these towns.