Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities

Hennepin County had the highest traffic fatalities of 87 counties in 2021, at 74. Stevens County had the lowest, at 0. The median was 3 and the figure for Minnesota was 488. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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Median387 counties
Minnesota488History

Map of counties, 2021

Aitkin County: 2 countAnoka County: 27 countBecker County: 5 countBeltrami County: 8 countBenton County: 5 countBig Stone County: 0 countBlue Earth County: 2 countBrown County: 0 countCarlton County: 7 countCarver County: 13 countCass County: 12 countChippewa County: 3 countChisago County: 12 countClay County: 3 countClearwater County: 3 countCook County: 0 countCottonwood County: 0 countCrow Wing County: 11 countDakota County: 18 countDodge County: 3 countDouglas County: 13 countFaribault County: 3 countFillmore County: 2 countFreeborn County: 1 countGoodhue County: 8 countGrant County: 1 countHennepin County: 74 countHouston County: 2 countHubbard County: 1 countIsanti County: 4 countItasca County: 8 countJackson County: 4 countKanabec County: 4 countKandiyohi County: 6 countKittson County: 0 countKoochiching County: 0 countLac qui Parle County: 0 countLake County: 3 countLake of the Woods County: 1 countLe Sueur County: 8 countLincoln County: 0 countLyon County: 2 countMcLeod County: 7 countMahnomen County: 1 countMarshall County: 1 countMartin County: 1 countMeeker County: 1 countMille Lacs County: 5 countMorrison County: 8 countMower County: 4 countMurray County: 3 countNicollet County: 5 countNobles County: 0 countNorman County: 0 countOlmsted County: 6 countOtter Tail County: 9 countPennington County: 2 countPine County: 7 countPipestone County: 1 countPolk County: 3 countPope County: 2 countRamsey County: 36 countRed Lake County: 2 countRedwood County: 1 countRenville County: 2 countRice County: 5 countRock County: 2 countRoseau County: 1 countSt. Louis County: 19 countScott County: 6 countSherburne County: 6 countSibley County: 2 countStearns County: 18 countSteele County: 0 countStevens County: 0 countSwift County: 1 countTodd County: 4 countTraverse County: 1 countWabasha County: 2 countWadena County: 4 countWaseca County: 1 countWashington County: 10 countWatonwan County: 1 countWilkin County: 1 countWinona County: 3 countWright County: 14 countYellow Medicine County: 1 count
  • Under 1
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  • 8 and over
count, 2021. 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, 2021

Hennepin County: 74 countHennepin County74Ramsey County: 36 countRamsey County36Anoka County: 27 countAnoka County27St. Louis County: 19 countSt. Louis County19Dakota County: 18 countDakota County18Stearns County: 18 countStearns County18Wright County: 14 countWright County14Carver County: 13 countCarver County13Douglas County: 13 countDouglas County13Cass County: 12 countCass County12Chisago County: 12 countChisago County12Crow Wing County: 11 countCrow Wing County11Washington County: 10 countWashington County10Otter Tail County: 9 countOtter Tail County9Beltrami County: 8 countBeltrami County8Goodhue County: 8 countGoodhue County8Itasca County: 8 countItasca County8Le Sueur County: 8 countLe Sueur County8Morrison County: 8 countMorrison County8Carlton County: 7 countCarlton County7McLeod County: 7 countMcLeod County7Pine County: 7 countPine County7Kandiyohi County: 6 countKandiyohi County6Olmsted County: 6 countOlmsted County6Scott County: 6 countScott County6Sherburne County: 6 countSherburne County6Becker County: 5 countBecker County5Benton County: 5 countBenton County5Mille Lacs County: 5 countMille Lacs County5Nicollet County: 5 countNicollet County5Rice County: 5 countRice County5Isanti County: 4 countIsanti County4Jackson County: 4 countJackson County4Kanabec County: 4 countKanabec County4Mower County: 4 countMower County4Todd County: 4 countTodd County4Wadena County: 4 countWadena County4Chippewa County: 3 countChippewa County3Clay County: 3 countClay County3Clearwater County: 3 countClearwater County3Hennepin County: 74 countHennepin County74Ramsey County: 36 countRamsey County36Anoka County: 27 countAnoka County27St. Louis County: 19 countSt. Louis County19Dakota County: 18 countDakota County18Stearns County: 18 countStearns County18Wright County: 14 countWright County14Carver County: 13 countCarver County13Douglas County: 13 countDouglas County13Cass County: 12 countCass County12Chisago County: 12 countChisago County12Crow Wing County: 11 countCrow Wing County11Washington County: 10 countWashington County10Otter Tail County: 9 countOtter Tail County9Beltrami County: 8 countBeltrami County8Goodhue County: 8 countGoodhue County8Itasca County: 8 countItasca County8Le Sueur County: 8 countLe Sueur County8Morrison County: 8 countMorrison County8Carlton County: 7 countCarlton County7McLeod County: 7 countMcLeod County7Pine County: 7 countPine County7Kandiyohi County: 6 countKandiyohi County6Olmsted County: 6 countOlmsted County6Scott County: 6 countScott County6Sherburne County: 6 countSherburne County6Becker County: 5 countBecker County5Benton County: 5 countBenton County5Mille Lacs County: 5 countMille Lacs County5Nicollet County: 5 countNicollet County5Rice County: 5 countRice County5Isanti County: 4 countIsanti County4Jackson County: 4 countJackson County4Kanabec County: 4 countKanabec County4Mower County: 4 countMower County4Todd County: 4 countTodd County4Wadena County: 4 countWadena County4Chippewa County: 3 countChippewa County3Clay County: 3 countClay County3Clearwater County: 3 countClearwater 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

RankCounties2021
count
Change on 2020
1Hennepin County74+60.9%
2Ramsey County36+89.5%
3Anoka County27+58.8%
4St. Louis County19-5%
5Dakota County18+5.9%
5Stearns County18+50%
7Wright County14+75%
8Carver County13+160%
8Douglas County13+160%
10Cass County12+71.4%
10Chisago County12+100%
12Crow Wing County11+83.3%
13Washington County10+42.9%
14Otter Tail County90%
15Beltrami County8+60%
15Goodhue County8+100%
15Itasca County80%
15Le Sueur County8+300%
15Morrison County8+60%
20Carlton County7+133.3%
20McLeod County7+133.3%
20Pine County7+75%
23Kandiyohi County6+100%
23Olmsted County6-53.8%
23Scott County6-14.3%
23Sherburne County6-60%
27Becker County5-37.5%
27Benton County5+66.7%
27Mille Lacs County5+150%
27Nicollet County50%
27Rice County5-37.5%
32Isanti County4-50%
32Jackson County4n/a
32Kanabec County40%
32Mower County4+100%
32Todd County40%
32Wadena County4n/a
38Chippewa County3n/a
38Clay County3-57.1%
38Clearwater County3+200%
38Dodge County30%
38Faribault County3-25%
38Lake County3+50%
38Murray County3n/a
38Polk County3+50%
38Winona County3+50%
47Aitkin County2-33.3%
47Blue Earth County2-50%
47Fillmore County20%
47Houston County2+100%
47Lyon County2+100%
47Pennington County20%
47Pope County2+100%
47Red Lake County2n/a
47Renville County2-33.3%
47Rock County2n/a
47Sibley County2+100%
47Wabasha County2-60%
59Freeborn County1-75%
59Grant County10%
59Hubbard County1-50%
59Lake of the Woods County1n/a
59Mahnomen County1n/a
59Marshall County1-50%
59Martin County1-66.7%
59Meeker County1-50%
59Pipestone County1n/a
59Redwood County10%
59Roseau County10%
59Swift County1-75%
59Traverse County1n/a
59Waseca County1n/a
59Watonwan County1-66.7%
59Wilkin County1-50%
59Yellow Medicine County1-66.7%
76Big Stone County0-100%
76Brown County0n/a
76Cook County0-100%
76Cottonwood County0-100%
76Kittson County0n/a
76Koochiching County0-100%
76Lac qui Parle County0-100%
76Lincoln County0-100%
76Nobles County0-100%
76Norman County0-100%
76Steele County0-100%
76Stevens 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/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.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, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.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, 2021. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 24 June 2026, https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2021. 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, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2021.

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, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{national_counties_in_minnesota_by_2021,
  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, 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2021. 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/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.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, 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/06/24
PB  - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://static.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/downloads/FARS/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/traffic-fatalities/minnesota-counties?period=2021.
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/2021/National/FARS2021NationalCSV.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Rank Counties in Minnesota by traffic fatalities using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest traffic fatalities?

Hennepin County, with 74 in 2021, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Which county has the lowest traffic fatalities?

Stevens County, with 0 in 2021.

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