Wright County is a county in Minnesota, United States, on the Mississippi River northwest of the Twin Cities. It had a population of 141,337 at the 2020 census and covers 714 square miles (1,850 km2), of which 661 square miles are land and 53 square miles are water, centred near 45°10′N 93°55′W.
Buffalo is the county seat; its postal code is 55313. The county holds 17 cities and 18 townships, plus a handful of unincorporated communities, and sits in the Central time zone (FIPS code 27171).
Towns & Villages in Wright County
Wright County has 17 incorporated cities — several straddling into neighboring Hennepin County — and about a dozen unincorporated communities scattered through its 18 townships. Populations below are the 2020 census counts for incorporated places; unincorporated communities have no separate census figure and are marked with —.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | City · seat | Buffalo | 18,168 | 55313 |
| Otsego | City | — | 19,966 | — |
| St. Michael | City | — | 18,235 | 55376 |
| Monticello | City | Monticello | 14,455 | 55362 |
| Albertville | City | — | 7,896 | 55301 |
| Delano | City | — | — | 55328 |
| Annandale | City | — | — | 55302 |
| Cokato | City | Cokato | — | 55321 |
| Maple Lake | City | Maple Lake | — | 55358 |
| Howard Lake | City | — | — | 55349 |
| Clearwater | City | Clearwater | — | 55320 |
| Montrose | City | — | — | 55363 |
| Rockford | City | Rockford | — | 55373 |
| Waverly | City | — | — | 55390 |
| Hanover | City | — | — | 55341 |
| South Haven | City | — | — | 55382 |
| Dayton | City | — | — | — |
| Albion Center | Unincorp. | Albion | — | — |
| Albright | Unincorp. | Albion | — | — |
| West Albion | Unincorp. | Albion | — | — |
| Enfield | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| French Lake | Unincorp. | French Lake | — | — |
| Hasty | Unincorp. | Franklin | — | — |
| Highland | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Knapp | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Oster | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Rassat | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Rice Lake | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Smith Lake | Unincorp. | — | — | — |
| Stockholm | Unincorp. | Stockholm | — | — |
Dayton, Hanover and Rockford each straddle the Hennepin County line, so a share of each city’s population and address range is technically outside Wright County. Otsego, despite being the county’s largest city by 2020 population, has no ZIP code of its own on record here and is served by post offices in adjoining communities — that figure is omitted rather than guessed. Several older mobile-home park sites once carried on local lists (Buffalo Manor East, Eastview, Elm Grove, Kjellbergs, Pleasant Terrace, Pulaski, River Terrace, Riverbend, Twelve Hi, West Side and Country Village Mobile Estates) are private developments rather than census-recognized places and are not repeated in the table above.
Townships
Wright County’s 18 civil townships are unincorporated but hold their own elected boards; 2020 population figures by township are not published in the source used for this profile, so the Pop. column is left blank rather than estimated.
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | — | Buffalo (city, separate) |
| Albion | — | Albion Center, Albright, West Albion |
| Chatham | — | — |
| Clearwater | — | near Clearwater city |
| Cokato | — | near Cokato city |
| Corinna | — | — |
| Franklin | — | Hasty |
| French Lake | — | French Lake |
| Maple Lake | — | near Maple Lake city |
| Marysville | — | — |
| Middleville | — | — |
| Monticello | — | near Monticello city |
| Rockford | — | near Rockford city |
| Silver Creek | — | — |
| Southside | — | — |
| Stockholm | — | Stockholm |
| Victor | — | — |
| Woodland | — | — |
ZIP Codes
- 55313 — Buffalo (also serves surrounding Buffalo Township)
- 55362 — Monticello
- 55376 — Saint Michael
- 55301 — Albertville
- 55328 — Delano
- 55302 — Annandale
- 55320 — Clearwater
- 55373 — Rockford
- 55363 — Montrose
- 55321 — Cokato
- 55358 — Maple Lake
- 55382 — South Haven
- 55341 — Hanover
- 55349 — Howard Lake
- 55390 — Waverly
Otsego, Dayton and the smaller unincorporated communities do not carry a distinct ZIP code confirmed for this profile and are covered by the post offices listed above or by neighboring counties’ codes.
Geography
Wright County sits on rolling glacial moraine in east-central Minnesota, dotted with hundreds of small lakes and drained toward the Mississippi River, which forms part of its northeastern boundary near Monticello and Clearwater. The South Fork Crow River crosses the county’s western half through Cokato, Howard Lake and Delano before joining the Mississippi downstream. Roughly 7 percent of the county’s area is water.
Wright County borders Sherburne County to the northeast, Hennepin County to the east, Carver County to the southeast, McLeod County to the southwest, Meeker County to the west, and Stearns County to the northwest.
Demographics
Wright County had 141,337 residents at the 2020 census, making it the tenth most populous county in Minnesota and, over the preceding decade, its fastest-growing. Otsego (19,966) and St. Michael (18,235) are its two largest communities, both having grown rapidly as outer suburbs of the Twin Cities; Buffalo, the seat, follows closely at 18,168. Median household income in the county runs above the Minnesota median of $85,086, reflecting its commuter-suburb economy, though a county-specific figure is not cited here without a verified source. With 661 square miles of land, the county’s overall density works out to roughly 214 people per square mile, though that average masks a sharp divide between the dense eastern cities near the Twin Cities and the sparser farm townships to the west.
Economy & Local Life
The eastern third of the county, along the Interstate 94 and U.S. 12 corridors, functions as a Twin Cities commuter belt built on retail, health care and light manufacturing; Buffalo’s Buffalo Hospital and the CentraCare Monticello campus are among the larger local employers. Manufacturing has deep roots in Monticello, long home to a large Xcel Energy nuclear generating plant on the Mississippi River. Farther west, around Cokato, Maple Lake and Annandale, the local economy stays closer to its dairy- and grain-farming origins, with several small manufacturers and a strong lake-cabin and tourism trade drawing summer visitors to the county’s many lakes.
History
Wright County was organized on February 20, 1855, and named for Silas Wright, a former New York governor and U.S. senator. Monticello served as the first county seat before it moved to Buffalo in 1868. Early settlement drew heavily on German and Swedish immigrant farmers; the county’s population stood at 3,729 in 1860 and had grown to 13,775 by 1875 as rail lines reached its towns. In the twentieth century the county’s eastern edge shifted from farmland to Twin Cities suburb, a transition that accelerated sharply after Interstate 94 opened through Albertville, Monticello and St. Michael.
Getting There
- Minneapolis — 35 miles southeast
- St. Cloud — 25 miles northwest
- Minnetonka — 25 miles southeast
- Willmar — 45 miles southwest
Interstate 94 crosses the county’s eastern side through Albertville, St. Michael and Monticello; U.S. Highways 12 and 52 and Minnesota Highways 24, 25, 55 and 101 serve the rest of the county. The nearest major commercial airport is Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, about 40 miles southeast of Buffalo.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Wright County located?
It is in east-central Minnesota, on the Mississippi River northwest of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area.
What is the population of Wright County?
141,337 at the 2020 census, making it the state’s tenth most populous county.
How big is Wright County?
714 square miles (1,850 km2) total, of which 661 square miles are land.
What is the county seat of Wright County?
Buffalo is the county seat.
How many towns are in Wright County?
17 incorporated cities plus 18 townships and about a dozen unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Wright County?
Codes include 55313 (Buffalo), 55362 (Monticello), 55376 (St. Michael), 55301 (Albertville) and 55328 (Delano), among others listed above.
Which city is the largest in Wright County?
Otsego, with 19,966 residents at the 2020 census, edging out St. Michael and Buffalo.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Minnesota.