Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities

Hennepin County had the highest traffic fatalities of 87 counties in 2018, at 57. Traverse County had the lowest, at 0. The median was 2 and the figure for Minnesota was 381. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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Median287 counties
Minnesota381History

Map of counties, 2018

Aitkin County: 5 countAnoka County: 28 countBecker County: 8 countBeltrami County: 5 countBenton County: 3 countBig Stone County: 0 countBlue Earth County: 2 countBrown County: 4 countCarlton County: 3 countCarver County: 7 countCass County: 6 countChippewa County: 2 countChisago County: 7 countClay County: 4 countClearwater County: 0 countCook County: 0 countCottonwood County: 1 countCrow Wing County: 13 countDakota County: 17 countDodge County: 6 countDouglas County: 2 countFaribault County: 1 countFillmore County: 6 countFreeborn County: 0 countGoodhue County: 8 countGrant County: 0 countHennepin County: 57 countHouston County: 2 countHubbard County: 1 countIsanti County: 6 countItasca County: 5 countJackson County: 0 countKanabec County: 2 countKandiyohi County: 3 countKittson County: 1 countKoochiching County: 1 countLac qui Parle County: 0 countLake County: 1 countLake of the Woods County: 0 countLe Sueur County: 1 countLincoln County: 0 countLyon County: 3 countMcLeod County: 6 countMahnomen County: 0 countMarshall County: 4 countMartin County: 2 countMeeker County: 4 countMille Lacs County: 5 countMorrison County: 6 countMower County: 2 countMurray County: 0 countNicollet County: 1 countNobles County: 3 countNorman County: 1 countOlmsted County: 7 countOtter Tail County: 4 countPennington County: 0 countPine County: 4 countPipestone County: 0 countPolk County: 3 countPope County: 0 countRamsey County: 17 countRed Lake County: 1 countRedwood County: 2 countRenville County: 3 countRice County: 2 countRock County: 0 countRoseau County: 2 countSt. Louis County: 18 countScott County: 10 countSherburne County: 11 countSibley County: 0 countStearns County: 16 countSteele County: 1 countStevens County: 0 countSwift County: 1 countTodd County: 0 countTraverse County: 0 countWabasha County: 3 countWadena County: 3 countWaseca County: 1 countWashington County: 5 countWatonwan County: 2 countWilkin County: 1 countWinona County: 4 countWright County: 4 countYellow Medicine County: 1 count
  • Under 1
  • 1 to 2
  • 2 to 4
  • 4 to 6
  • 6 and over
count, 2018. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2018

Hennepin County: 57 countHennepin County57Anoka County: 28 countAnoka County28St. Louis County: 18 countSt. Louis County18Dakota County: 17 countDakota County17Ramsey County: 17 countRamsey County17Stearns County: 16 countStearns County16Crow Wing County: 13 countCrow Wing County13Sherburne County: 11 countSherburne County11Scott County: 10 countScott County10Becker County: 8 countBecker County8Goodhue County: 8 countGoodhue County8Carver County: 7 countCarver County7Chisago County: 7 countChisago County7Olmsted County: 7 countOlmsted County7Cass County: 6 countCass County6Dodge County: 6 countDodge County6Fillmore County: 6 countFillmore County6Isanti County: 6 countIsanti County6McLeod County: 6 countMcLeod County6Morrison County: 6 countMorrison County6Aitkin County: 5 countAitkin County5Beltrami County: 5 countBeltrami County5Itasca County: 5 countItasca County5Mille Lacs County: 5 countMille Lacs County5Washington County: 5 countWashington County5Brown County: 4 countBrown County4Clay County: 4 countClay County4Marshall County: 4 countMarshall County4Meeker County: 4 countMeeker County4Otter Tail County: 4 countOtter Tail County4Pine County: 4 countPine County4Winona County: 4 countWinona County4Wright County: 4 countWright County4Benton County: 3 countBenton County3Carlton County: 3 countCarlton County3Kandiyohi County: 3 countKandiyohi County3Lyon County: 3 countLyon County3Nobles County: 3 countNobles County3Polk County: 3 countPolk County3Renville County: 3 countRenville County3Hennepin County: 57 countHennepin County57Anoka County: 28 countAnoka County28St. Louis County: 18 countSt. Louis County18Dakota County: 17 countDakota County17Ramsey County: 17 countRamsey County17Stearns County: 16 countStearns County16Crow Wing County: 13 countCrow Wing County13Sherburne County: 11 countSherburne County11Scott County: 10 countScott County10Becker County: 8 countBecker County8Goodhue County: 8 countGoodhue County8Carver County: 7 countCarver County7Chisago County: 7 countChisago County7Olmsted County: 7 countOlmsted County7Cass County: 6 countCass County6Dodge County: 6 countDodge County6Fillmore County: 6 countFillmore County6Isanti County: 6 countIsanti County6McLeod County: 6 countMcLeod County6Morrison County: 6 countMorrison County6Aitkin County: 5 countAitkin County5Beltrami County: 5 countBeltrami County5Itasca County: 5 countItasca County5Mille Lacs County: 5 countMille Lacs County5Washington County: 5 countWashington County5Brown County: 4 countBrown County4Clay County: 4 countClay County4Marshall County: 4 countMarshall County4Meeker County: 4 countMeeker County4Otter Tail County: 4 countOtter Tail County4Pine County: 4 countPine County4Winona County: 4 countWinona County4Wright County: 4 countWright County4Benton County: 3 countBenton County3Carlton County: 3 countCarlton County3Kandiyohi County: 3 countKandiyohi County3Lyon County: 3 countLyon County3Nobles County: 3 countNobles County3Polk County: 3 countPolk County3Renville County: 3 countRenville County3
count. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2018
count
Change on 2017
1Hennepin County57+26.7%
2Anoka County28+64.7%
3St. Louis County18+12.5%
4Dakota County17+54.5%
4Ramsey County17-10.5%
6Stearns County16+23.1%
7Crow Wing County13+333.3%
8Sherburne County110%
9Scott County10+25%
10Becker County8+60%
10Goodhue County8+60%
12Carver County7+600%
12Chisago County7-12.5%
12Olmsted County7+16.7%
15Cass County60%
15Dodge County6+500%
15Fillmore County6+500%
15Isanti County6+100%
15McLeod County6+100%
15Morrison County6+50%
21Aitkin County5+66.7%
21Beltrami County5+25%
21Itasca County50%
21Mille Lacs County5+66.7%
21Washington County5-28.6%
26Brown County4+100%
26Clay County40%
26Marshall County4n/a
26Meeker County4+100%
26Otter Tail County4-42.9%
26Pine County4-55.6%
26Winona County4-33.3%
26Wright County4-50%
34Benton County3-66.7%
34Carlton County3-50%
34Kandiyohi County3+200%
34Lyon County30%
34Nobles County3n/a
34Polk County3-25%
34Renville County3+50%
34Wabasha County3+50%
34Wadena County3+50%
43Blue Earth County2-71.4%
43Chippewa County2n/a
43Douglas County2-71.4%
43Houston County2-33.3%
43Kanabec County20%
43Martin County2-33.3%
43Mower County20%
43Redwood County2-75%
43Rice County2-50%
43Roseau County20%
43Watonwan County2+100%
54Cottonwood County1-50%
54Faribault County10%
54Hubbard County10%
54Kittson County1n/a
54Koochiching County10%
54Lake County1-75%
54Le Sueur County1-66.7%
54Nicollet County1n/a
54Norman County1n/a
54Red Lake County1n/a
54Steele County10%
54Swift County1-80%
54Waseca County1-50%
54Wilkin County1n/a
54Yellow Medicine County1-66.7%
69Big Stone County0-100%
69Clearwater County0-100%
69Cook County0n/a
69Freeborn County0-100%
69Grant County0-100%
69Jackson County0n/a
69Lac qui Parle County0n/a
69Lake of the Woods County0-100%
69Lincoln County0n/a
69Mahnomen County0n/a
69Murray County0n/a
69Pennington County0-100%
69Pipestone County0-100%
69Pope County0n/a
69Rock County0-100%
69Sibley County0-100%
69Stevens County0-100%
69Todd County0-100%
69Traverse County0n/a

Other periods

About this ranking

People killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes during the year. FARS counts people who die within 30 days of a crash involving a motor vehicle travelling on a public road, by the place of the crash, not of residence.

A police-based count of deaths. It differs from death certificate counts (CDC) and from the WHO road traffic death rate (road_traffic_death_rate), which is modelled for international comparison.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2026). Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash (Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities, 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip

MLA 9

Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash, Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities, 2018. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 24 June 2026, https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2018. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 2026. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities, 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2018.

Harvard

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (2026) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash, Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities, 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{national_counties_in_minnesota_by_2018,
  author = {{National Highway Traffic Safety Administration}},
  title = {{Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash: Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities, 2018}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2018. Publisher attribution: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
TI  - Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash: Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities, 2018
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/24
PB  - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2018.
N1  - Publisher attribution: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2018/National/FARS2018NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest traffic fatalities?

Hennepin County, with 57 in 2018, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Which county has the lowest traffic fatalities?

Traverse County, with 0 in 2018.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), national CSV files: people killed (sum of FATALS in accident.csv) by county of the crash. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Traffic fatalities: other rankings

Counties in Minnesota: more rankings