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Radon in St. Cloud, Minnesota

St. Cloud lies in 3 counties, in EPA Zones 1 and 2; 79.6% of it is in Stearns County, where 46.7% of 366 reported tests (2023) were at or above 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so the only way to know your home's level is to test it.

Data checked By Radon411Methodology

How to test this homeFind a certified tester

  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    46.7%

    12.1 pts above MN

    Stearns
    46.7%
    Minnesota
    34.6%

    Stearns, 27th of 62 in MN, 2023

  • Median result

    3.7pCi/L

    Below action level

    Stearns
    3.7 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of Stearns's tests, 2023

  • Highest county

    46.7%

    Stearns

    Stearns
    46.7%
    Sherburne
    21.7%

    3 counties, 3 with 30+ tests, 2023

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 1

    Highest potential

    1. Zone 1
    2. 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    Stearns; Sherburne Zone 1, Benton Zone 2

  • Tests reported

    366

    In Stearns

    Stearns
    366
    Sherburne
    351

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2023

Read a result for St. Cloud

Starts at Stearns County's median, 3.7 pCi/L

3.7pCi/L

EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.

EPA’s reading of 3.7 pCi/L

Between 2 and 4 pCi/L

  1. Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
  2. 2 to 4consider a fix
  3. 4 and aboveEPA says fix it

This result is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends considering a fix when the level is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. Stearns County's median reported result, 2023.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

St. Cloud, What is published

What is published for St. Cloud

Information:

Every figure for St. Cloud is a county's

Radon data is published by county, not by city, and St. Cloud reaches into 3 counties: Stearns County, Sherburne County and Benton County. Each has its own EPA zone and its own CDC test figures, set side by side below and each labelled with its county. Only a test tells you about one home.

St. Cloud covers 40 square miles of land across 3 counties: 79.6% in Stearns County, 12.0% in Sherburne County and 8.4% in Benton County. About 72,647 people live there, 1,816 to the square mile.

St. Cloud, Counties

St. Cloud's counties, side by side

Measured

Each county's own EPA zone and its own published CDC figures for 2023, the newest period any of them has. A county without a figure for that period is shown without one, never with a figure from another year.

  • Stearns County
    EPA zone
    Zone 1: Highest predicted potential
    At or above 4 pCi/L
    46.7%
    Median result
    3.7 pCi/L
    Tests reported
    366 tests
    Annual years on file
    10
  • Sherburne County
    EPA zone
    Zone 1: Highest predicted potential
    At or above 4 pCi/L
    21.7%
    Median result
    1.8 pCi/L
    Tests reported
    351 tests
    Annual years on file
    10
  • Benton County
    EPA zone
    Zone 2: Moderate predicted potential
    At or above 4 pCi/L
    23.3%
    Median result
    2.2 pCi/L
    Tests reported
    43 tests
    Annual years on file
    10
The counties St. Cloud lies in, each with its own EPA zone and its own published CDC figures for 2023
CountyEPA zoneReported tests at or above 4 pCi/LMedian reported resultTests reportedAnnual years on file
Stearns CountyZone 1: Highest predicted potential46.7%3.7 pCi/L366 tests10
Sherburne CountyZone 1: Highest predicted potential21.7%1.8 pCi/L351 tests10
Benton CountyZone 2: Moderate predicted potential23.3%2.2 pCi/L43 tests10

St. Cloud spans 3 counties, each with its own EPA zone and its own CDC figure: Stearns County (Zone 1, 46.7% of 366 tests), Sherburne County (Zone 1, 21.7% of 351 tests) and Benton County (Zone 2, 23.3% of 43 tests).

Stearns County ranks 27th of 62 Minnesota counties with 30 or more tests for that period, 12.1 points above the 34.6% pooled across Minnesota's counties, 13.3 points above the national pool of 33.4%. Of the city's other counties, Sherburne County reported 21.7% and Benton County reported 23.3%.

Measured from the middle of St. Cloud, the nearest counties with a CDC figure for 2023 are Wright County (27 miles, 42.4% of 552 tests), Meeker County (33 miles, 49.2% of 59 tests) and Morrison County (33 miles, 35.5% of 62 tests). Across the 8 nearest, the share at or above 4 pCi/L runs from 19.3% to 65.1%; the farthest of them, Hennepin County, is 50 miles away at 32.0%.

No business in the directory gives St. Cloud as its address; the Minnesota list covers it. Minnesota's other cities with a page of their own: Minneapolis, St. Paul, Plymouth and Duluth.

Against Minnesota and its other counties

Radon test figures for the counties St. Cloud lies in
CountyShare of St. CloudTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianMinnesota, pooledRank in the stateEPA zone
Stearns County79.6%36646.7%3.7 pCi/L34.6%27 of 62Zone 1
Sherburne County12.0%35121.7%1.8 pCi/L34.6%57 of 62Zone 1
Benton County8.4%4323.3%2.2 pCi/L34.6%55 of 62Zone 2

Shares of tests people chose to run and report, by county (2023); the state's is its counties' counts added up, calculated by Radon411. Only a test measures a home.

The counties around St. Cloud

By distance from the middle of St. Cloud; counties with 30 or more tests.

Nearest counties to St. Cloud with 30 or more tests
CountyDistanceTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Wright County27 mi55242.4%3.4 pCi/L
Meeker County33 mi5949.2%3.9 pCi/L
Morrison County33 mi6235.5%3.0 pCi/L
Isanti County43 mi6622.7%2.0 pCi/L
Kandiyohi County48 mi10665.1%5.3 pCi/L
Anoka County48 mi88019.3%1.9 pCi/L
McLeod County49 mi13155.7%4.7 pCi/L
Hennepin County50 mi6,54532.0%2.7 pCi/L

The median reported pre-mitigation result for 2023 was 3.7 pCi/L in Stearns County, 1.8 pCi/L in Sherburne County and 2.2 pCi/L in Benton County.

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones, by county. Measured: CDC tracking data, by county, 2023.

St. Cloud, Geology

The ground under St. Cloud

Predicted

Most of the ground under St. Cloud is one class on USGS's geologic map: 97.5% of its land is high radon potential, with 2.5% moderate. 97.5% of it lies in the area the map calls Central Lowland-Till Prairie, to which USGS gives a radon index of 14, in the high band (12 to 17).

USGS's geologic areas under St. Cloud
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Central Lowland-Till PrairieSilty and clayey till derived from shale and sandstone.High1497.5%
Superior Upland/Central Lowland-Western Lake SectionGlacial deposits derived primarily from volcanic rock.Moderate102.5%

Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.

St. Cloud beside its counties and Minnesota

St. Cloud sits on more high-potential ground than Stearns County as a whole: 97.5% of the city against 78.5% of the county. St. Cloud has more high-potential ground than Minnesota as a whole: 97.5% of its land against 61.1%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: St. Cloud, the counties it lies in and Minnesota
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
St. CloudBy countyNone2.5%97.5%
Stearns CountyZone 1None21.5%78.5%
Sherburne CountyZone 1None1.5%98.5%
Benton CountyZone 2None91.6%8.4%
Minnesota87 counties, pooled by land areaVariesNone38.9%61.1%

The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.

St. Cloud, Homes

Homes in St. Cloud

St. Cloud has 29,575 homes, and many share a building: 38% are in buildings of five or more, 51% are detached houses, against 69% across Stearns County. Half of its homes were built before 1980, close to Stearns County's 1984: 23% date from before 1960 and 25% from 2000 or later. Most occupied homes here are rented: owners live in 49% (Stearns County: 68%). A tenant can run a test; a fix is the landlord's to make.

Homes in St. Cloud, Stearns County, Minnesota, 2019 to 2023
HomesSt. CloudStearns CountyMinnesota
Housing units29,57566,2112,519,538
Detached houses51%69%66%
In buildings of 5 or more38%22%19%
Mobile homes1%2%3%
Built before 196023%21%29%
Built since 200025%27%22%
Middle year built198019841978
Owner-occupied49%68%72%

Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.

Local help

St. Cloud, Local resources

Local resources for St. Cloud

Who to ask in Minnesota: its radon program, test kits and professionals.

The program's own words on licensing and disclosure are on the Minnesota page.

What it means

St. Cloud, Questions

Questions about radon in St. Cloud

What radon zone is St. Cloud in?

A zone line runs through St. Cloud: Stearns County and Sherburne County in Zone 1 and Benton County in Zone 2. 79.6% of the city's land is in Stearns County, so Zone 1 covers most addresses. Which zone applies depends on the county an address is in.

What are radon levels in St. Cloud?

High results are ordinary around St. Cloud: 46.7% of the 366 tests reported from Stearns County for 2023 were at or above 4 pCi/L, the level at which EPA says to fix a home. The median reported result was 3.7 pCi/L. Sherburne County reported 21.7% of 351 tests and Benton County reported 23.3% of 43 tests; the counties are kept apart.

Should I test my home in St. Cloud?

Yes. Stearns County reported about 171 of its 366 tests at or above 4 pCi/L. That is above Minnesota's pooled 34.6%, and ranks Stearns County 27th of the 62 Minnesota counties with 30 or more tests. Which homes they were, no map can say. How to test a home.

What ground is St. Cloud built on, as far as radon goes?

USGS's geologic map puts all of St. Cloud on one named area, "Central Lowland-Till Prairie", rated high for radon potential, radon index 14.

Is radon higher in the counties around St. Cloud?

It depends which way you go. 3 of the 8 nearest counties with a figure report a larger share than Stearns County's 46.7% and 5 a smaller one: from Anoka County (19.3%, 48 miles off) to Kandiyohi County (65.1%, 48 miles off).

The answers use the published figures of Stearns County, Sherburne County and Benton County, the counties St. Cloud lies in.

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