Fargo, ND-MN Metro Area

The Fargo, ND-MN metro area is made up of 2 counties in North Dakota and Minnesota: Cass and Clay. About 269,528 people lived there on July 1, 2025 (Census estimate), 7.9% more than in April 2020.

Clay County, centralCass County, centralFargo
2 counties in North Dakota and Minnesota
Population, July 2025
269,528 7.9% more than in April 2020
Type
Metropolitan statistical area
Counties
2, both central
Land area
2,810 sq mi (7,278 km²)
Time zone
Central TimeUTC-06:00 in January; UTC-05:00 in July
States
North Dakota, Minnesota
Combined statistical area
Fargo-Wahpeton, ND-MN
CBSA code
22020

Counties in the Fargo, ND-MN metro area, largest first

CountyRolePopulation, July 2025Share of the area
Cass CountyNorth DakotaCentral201,79474.9%
Clay CountyMinnesotaCentral67,73425.1%

A central county holds the area’s core, an urban area of at least 50,000 people. This area has no outlying counties: no neighboring county sends enough commuters to join it. A county belongs to one metro or micro area at most, and it counts whole, countryside included.

Principal city

  1. Fargo131,627 people

OMB names the area after its largest principal cities. A principal city is the area’s largest city, plus any other city that is very large or a big job center, and smaller ones with at least as many jobs as working residents (2020 Census and commuting figures). People counts are American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates.

Part of the Fargo-Wahpeton, ND-MN combined statistical area

OMB joins neighboring metro and micro areas into a combined statistical area when enough people commute between them. The other area in this one is

  1. Wahpeton, ND-MN Micro Area23,019 people

Bordering metro and micro areas, nearest first

Areas with a county on this area’s edge. Distances are straight lines between the areas’ largest cities.

  1. Wahpeton, ND-MN Micro Area42 mi south
  2. Detroit Lakes, MN Micro Area47 mi east
  3. Fergus Falls, MN Micro Area54 mi southeast

Before using this answer on a form

A metro or micro area is a statistical area that OMB draws for federal statistics. It is not a city, a local government or a mailing address, and it is not a measure of urban and rural: whole counties count, rural parts included. Programs that use metro areas, such as housing income limits or wage rates, can use their own version of these lists; check the program’s own list for an address.

Find the metro area where you are now, find your county, or see every metro and micro area by population.

See this area on Census.gov ↗