Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities

Hennepin County had the highest traffic fatalities of 87 counties in 2020, at 46. Waseca County had the lowest, at 0. The median was 3 and the figure for Minnesota was 394. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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Median387 counties
Minnesota394History

Map of counties, 2020

Aitkin County: 3 countAnoka County: 17 countBecker County: 8 countBeltrami County: 5 countBenton County: 3 countBig Stone County: 2 countBlue Earth County: 4 countBrown County: 0 countCarlton County: 3 countCarver County: 5 countCass County: 7 countChippewa County: 0 countChisago County: 6 countClay County: 7 countClearwater County: 1 countCook County: 2 countCottonwood County: 3 countCrow Wing County: 6 countDakota County: 17 countDodge County: 3 countDouglas County: 5 countFaribault County: 4 countFillmore County: 2 countFreeborn County: 4 countGoodhue County: 4 countGrant County: 1 countHennepin County: 46 countHouston County: 1 countHubbard County: 2 countIsanti County: 8 countItasca County: 8 countJackson County: 0 countKanabec County: 4 countKandiyohi County: 3 countKittson County: 0 countKoochiching County: 3 countLac qui Parle County: 1 countLake County: 2 countLake of the Woods County: 0 countLe Sueur County: 2 countLincoln County: 1 countLyon County: 1 countMcLeod County: 3 countMahnomen County: 0 countMarshall County: 2 countMartin County: 3 countMeeker County: 2 countMille Lacs County: 2 countMorrison County: 5 countMower County: 2 countMurray County: 0 countNicollet County: 5 countNobles County: 3 countNorman County: 2 countOlmsted County: 13 countOtter Tail County: 9 countPennington County: 2 countPine County: 4 countPipestone County: 0 countPolk County: 2 countPope County: 1 countRamsey County: 19 countRed Lake County: 0 countRedwood County: 1 countRenville County: 3 countRice County: 8 countRock County: 0 countRoseau County: 1 countSt. Louis County: 20 countScott County: 7 countSherburne County: 15 countSibley County: 1 countStearns County: 12 countSteele County: 4 countStevens County: 1 countSwift County: 4 countTodd County: 4 countTraverse County: 0 countWabasha County: 5 countWadena County: 0 countWaseca County: 0 countWashington County: 7 countWatonwan County: 3 countWilkin County: 2 countWinona County: 2 countWright County: 8 countYellow Medicine County: 3 count
  • Under 1
  • 1 to 2
  • 2 to 3
  • 3 to 4
  • 4 to 7
  • 7 and over
count, 2020. 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, 2020

Hennepin County: 46 countHennepin County46St. Louis County: 20 countSt. Louis County20Ramsey County: 19 countRamsey County19Anoka County: 17 countAnoka County17Dakota County: 17 countDakota County17Sherburne County: 15 countSherburne County15Olmsted County: 13 countOlmsted County13Stearns County: 12 countStearns County12Otter Tail County: 9 countOtter Tail County9Becker County: 8 countBecker County8Isanti County: 8 countIsanti County8Itasca County: 8 countItasca County8Rice County: 8 countRice County8Wright County: 8 countWright County8Cass County: 7 countCass County7Clay County: 7 countClay County7Scott County: 7 countScott County7Washington County: 7 countWashington County7Chisago County: 6 countChisago County6Crow Wing County: 6 countCrow Wing County6Beltrami County: 5 countBeltrami County5Carver County: 5 countCarver County5Douglas County: 5 countDouglas County5Morrison County: 5 countMorrison County5Nicollet County: 5 countNicollet County5Wabasha County: 5 countWabasha County5Blue Earth County: 4 countBlue Earth County4Faribault County: 4 countFaribault County4Freeborn County: 4 countFreeborn County4Goodhue County: 4 countGoodhue County4Kanabec County: 4 countKanabec County4Pine County: 4 countPine County4Steele County: 4 countSteele County4Swift County: 4 countSwift County4Todd County: 4 countTodd County4Aitkin County: 3 countAitkin County3Benton County: 3 countBenton County3Carlton County: 3 countCarlton County3Cottonwood County: 3 countCottonwood County3Dodge County: 3 countDodge County3Hennepin County: 46 countHennepin County46St. Louis County: 20 countSt. Louis County20Ramsey County: 19 countRamsey County19Anoka County: 17 countAnoka County17Dakota County: 17 countDakota County17Sherburne County: 15 countSherburne County15Olmsted County: 13 countOlmsted County13Stearns County: 12 countStearns County12Otter Tail County: 9 countOtter Tail County9Becker County: 8 countBecker County8Isanti County: 8 countIsanti County8Itasca County: 8 countItasca County8Rice County: 8 countRice County8Wright County: 8 countWright County8Cass County: 7 countCass County7Clay County: 7 countClay County7Scott County: 7 countScott County7Washington County: 7 countWashington County7Chisago County: 6 countChisago County6Crow Wing County: 6 countCrow Wing County6Beltrami County: 5 countBeltrami County5Carver County: 5 countCarver County5Douglas County: 5 countDouglas County5Morrison County: 5 countMorrison County5Nicollet County: 5 countNicollet County5Wabasha County: 5 countWabasha County5Blue Earth County: 4 countBlue Earth County4Faribault County: 4 countFaribault County4Freeborn County: 4 countFreeborn County4Goodhue County: 4 countGoodhue County4Kanabec County: 4 countKanabec County4Pine County: 4 countPine County4Steele County: 4 countSteele County4Swift County: 4 countSwift County4Todd County: 4 countTodd County4Aitkin County: 3 countAitkin County3Benton County: 3 countBenton County3Carlton County: 3 countCarlton County3Cottonwood County: 3 countCottonwood County3Dodge County: 3 countDodge 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

RankCounties2020
count
Change on 2019
1Hennepin County46+21.1%
2St. Louis County20+122.2%
3Ramsey County19-5%
4Anoka County17-5.6%
4Dakota County17-15%
6Sherburne County15+7.1%
7Olmsted County13-18.8%
8Stearns County12+50%
9Otter Tail County9+200%
10Becker County8+700%
10Isanti County8+14.3%
10Itasca County8+60%
10Rice County8+300%
10Wright County8+100%
15Cass County7+133.3%
15Clay County7+250%
15Scott County7-12.5%
15Washington County7-56.3%
19Chisago County60%
19Crow Wing County6-14.3%
21Beltrami County5-16.7%
21Carver County5-16.7%
21Douglas County5+66.7%
21Morrison County5+25%
21Nicollet County5+400%
21Wabasha County5+25%
27Blue Earth County40%
27Faribault County40%
27Freeborn County4+33.3%
27Goodhue County40%
27Kanabec County4-20%
27Pine County4-20%
27Steele County40%
27Swift County4+100%
27Todd County4+33.3%
36Aitkin County30%
36Benton County3+50%
36Carlton County3n/a
36Cottonwood County3+50%
36Dodge County30%
36Kandiyohi County3+200%
36Koochiching County3+200%
36Martin County3n/a
36McLeod County3+200%
36Nobles County3+50%
36Renville County3-40%
36Watonwan County3n/a
36Yellow Medicine County3n/a
49Big Stone County2+100%
49Cook County2n/a
49Fillmore County2-33.3%
49Hubbard County2-60%
49Lake County2n/a
49Le Sueur County20%
49Marshall County20%
49Meeker County20%
49Mille Lacs County2-50%
49Mower County2+100%
49Norman County2+100%
49Pennington County2+100%
49Polk County2-60%
49Wilkin County2-33.3%
49Winona County2-66.7%
64Clearwater County1-50%
64Grant County10%
64Houston County1-66.7%
64Lac qui Parle County1-50%
64Lincoln County10%
64Lyon County1-66.7%
64Pope County1n/a
64Redwood County1-50%
64Roseau County1n/a
64Sibley County1-75%
64Stevens County1-66.7%
75Brown County0-100%
75Chippewa County0-100%
75Jackson County0-100%
75Kittson County0n/a
75Lake of the Woods County0-100%
75Mahnomen County0-100%
75Murray County0n/a
75Pipestone County0-100%
75Red Lake County0n/a
75Rock County0-100%
75Traverse County0n/a
75Wadena County0-100%
75Waseca County0-100%

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/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.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, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.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, 2020. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 24 June 2026, https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2020. 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, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2020.

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, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{national_counties_in_minnesota_by_2020,
  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, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2020. 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/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.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, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/24
PB  - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2020.
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/2020/National/FARS2020NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest traffic fatalities?

Hennepin County, with 46 in 2020, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Which county has the lowest traffic fatalities?

Waseca County, with 0 in 2020.

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