State hospital quality · CMS Hospital Compare

Hospitals in Minnesota

Minnesota has 136 Medicare-certified hospitals averaging 3.8 of 5 CMS stars - above the 3.1-star national average, with 9 earning the full five stars.

136
Hospitals: 3.8★
Avg rating: 9
Five-star: 117
With ER

The state picture

Across 136 Medicare-certified hospitals, Minnesota averages 3.8 of 5 CMS stars - above the 3.1-star national average, and 9 facilities earn the top five-star rating.

3.8 / 5
state average (above 3.1 national): 9
five-star hospitals: 117
with an emergency department: 136
Medicare-certified hospitals

CMS star ratings are composite quality scores; 41 of 136 Minnesota hospitals had enough reporting volume to receive one. Not medical advice.

5★

9
4★

18
3★

11
2★

3
1★

0

What this shows 9 Minnesota hospitals reach five stars; the state's 3.8-star average sits above the 3.1-star national mark.

What the Data Shows About Hospitals in Minnesota

Minnesota has 136 Medicare-certified hospitals tracked by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare program. Of these, 117 facilities operate an emergency department, an important signal for communities that rely on nearby acute-care access. The statewide average CMS overall star rating is 3.8 out of 5, calculated across hospitals with enough reporting volume to generate a composite rating.

At the top of the quality distribution, 9 hospitals have earned the highest 5-star CMS overall rating in Minnesota. The single highest-rated facility in the state registry is Buffalo Hospital in Buffalo, currently listed at 5/5 stars. Star ratings are composite scores built from mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience (HCAHPS), and timely & effective care domains, so a single number conceals meaningful per-domain variation that matters for specific procedures.

Showing 136 of 136 hospitals on this page (page 3 of 3). Hospital quality varies materially within a state, urban academic centers, rural critical-access hospitals, and specialty facilities report against different baselines, so comparing individual facility profiles before choosing planned care is more useful than relying on the statewide average alone. All figures reflect the CMS Hospital Compare release from 2026-05-15, and nothing on this page is medical advice, consult a qualified clinician before making care decisions.

136

Hospitals

3.8

Avg Rating

Five-Star

117

With ER

Top-Rated in Minnesota

Highest CMS star ratings among Medicare-certified hospitals in Minnesota.

🥇1 Buffalo Hospital Buffalo, MN · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
🥈2 Essentia Health St Joseph's Medical Center Brainerd, MN · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
🥉3 Lake Region Healthcare Corporation Fergus Falls, MN · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
4 M Health Fairview Woodwinds Hospital Woodbury, MN · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
5 Mayo Clinic Health System - Albert Lea and Austin Albert Lea, MN · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
6 Mayo Clinic Health System - Mankato Mankato, MN · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★

Compare Buffalo Hospital vs Essentia Health St Joseph's Medical Center →

All Hospitals

Showing 101–136 of 136 hospitals

Hospital	City	Type	Rating	ER
Pipestone County Medical Center Pipestone	Pipestone	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Prairie Ridge Hospital and Health Services Elbow Lake	Elbow Lake	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Rainy Lake Medical Center International Falls	International Falls	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Range Regional Health Services Hibbing	Hibbing	Acute Care Hospitals	N/A	No
Red Lake Hospital Redlake	Redlake	Acute Care Hospitals	N/A	No
Regions Hospital Saint Paul	Saint Paul	Acute Care Hospitals	4	Yes
Ridgeview Medical Center Waconia	Waconia	Acute Care Hospitals	5	Yes
Ridgeview Sibley Medical Center Arlington	Arlington	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
River's Edge Hospital & Clinic St Peter	St Peter	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Riverview Hospital Crookston	Crookston	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Riverwood Healthcare Center Aitkin	Aitkin	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Bagley Medical Center Bagley	Bagley	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Behavioral Health Center Thief River Falls	Thief River Falls	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Sanford Bemidji Medical Center Bemidji	Bemidji	Acute Care Hospitals	4	Yes
Sanford Canby Medical Center Canby	Canby	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Jackson Medical Center Jackson	Jackson	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Luverne Medical Center Luverne	Luverne	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Thief River Falls Medical Center Thief River Falls	Thief River Falls	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Tracy Medical Center Tracy	Tracy	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Westbrook Medical Center Westbrook	Westbrook	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Sanford Wheaton Medical Center Wheaton	Wheaton	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	No
Sanford Worthington Medical Center Worthington	Worthington	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Sleepy Eye Medical Center Sleepy Eye	Sleepy Eye	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
St Cloud Hospital Saint Cloud	Saint Cloud	Acute Care Hospitals	4	Yes
St Cloud VA Medical Center St. Cloud	St. Cloud	Acute Care - Veterans Administration	N/A	No
St Elizabeth Medical Center Wabasha	Wabasha	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
St Francis Medical Center Breckenridge	Breckenridge	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
St Francis Regional Medical Center Shakopee	Shakopee	Acute Care Hospitals	4	Yes
St Gabriels Hospital Little Falls	Little Falls	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
St Josephs Area Health Services Park Rapids	Park Rapids	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
St Lukes Hospital Duluth	Duluth	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Stevens Community Medical Center Morris	Morris	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
United Hospital District Blue Earth	Blue Earth	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Welia Health Mora	Mora	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Windom Area Health Windom	Windom	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Winona Health Services Winona	Winona	Acute Care Hospitals	2	Yes

Hospital Quality in Minnesota

Minnesota has 136 Medicare-certified hospitals tracked by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Of these, 9 have earned the highest 5-star overall quality rating, reflecting strong performance across mortality, safety of care, readmission rates, patient experience, and timely and effective care measures.

The average CMS star rating across Minnesota hospitals is 3.8. 117 facilities have emergency departments, an important factor for communities that depend on nearby acute care. Hospital quality can vary significantly within a state, so comparing individual facility ratings before choosing care is recommended.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best hospital in Minnesota? ▼

The highest-rated hospital in Minnesota is Buffalo Hospital in Buffalo with a CMS star rating of 5/5. There are 9 five-star hospitals in the state out of 136 Medicare-certified facilities.

How are hospitals rated? ▼

CMS rates hospitals on a 1-to-5 star scale based on quality measures including mortality, safety, patient experience, readmission rates, and timely care. In Minnesota, the average star rating is 3.8 across rated hospitals.

How many hospitals are in Minnesota? ▼

Minnesota has 136 Medicare-certified hospitals, of which 117 have emergency departments. 9 hospitals have earned the highest 5-star CMS rating.

Data from CMS Hospital Compare; patient-experience scores from the HCAHPS survey. Last refreshed: 2026-05-15. About PlainHospital and our data sources

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Compiled byPlainHospital Editorial, Hospital Quality Editorial Team

Every figure on PlainHospital is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.