Rank: 44
Code: Yellow
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)
Nobles County: steady progress but needs to continue
Nobles County ranks 44 for broadband access and 48 for digital equity out of 87 counties. They have hovered around 80-81 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up since 2018. There is a slight dip in access this year but it is within a margin of error and may simply reflect a more granular look at access. They have 5527 households without access to broadband at that speed. Estimates indicate that it will cost $51.4 million to get to ubiquitous broadband in the county.
| County | Housing Unit Density | Number of Housing Units | 100/20 Mbps | houses unserved | Cost to close the gap |
| Nobles | 11.6 | 8,394 | 80.27 | 1656 | $ 15,402,066.66 |
Nobles County was a Blandin Broadband Community (BBC); they have deployed lots of broadband adoption programs. They have benefited from past MN Border to Border grants. But they have been hung up at 81 percent since 2019.
Nobles County has shown their commitment to broadband; last fall (2022) they committed $4 million to Lismore Cooperative Telephone’s Fiber to the Home project as they apply for federal funding. Because of that commitment, Nobles County retains their yellow code.
Broadband Access:
| 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
| 100/20 (2026 goal) | 80.27 | 81.24 | 81.24 | 77.66 | 77.18 | 59.25 |
| 25/3 (2022 goal) | 83.1 | 83.71 | 83.54 | 80.89 | 79.24 | 75.69 |
Digital Equity:
Nobles County ranks 69 out of 87 for digital equity. (See full Digital Equity Profile)
Nobles County ranks 48 out of 87 for computer ownership. 90.6 percent of homes have a computer of device as compared to statewide ownership of 95.5 percent.
Past grants
- 2016 LISMORE COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE NOBLES COUNTY BROADBAND – GRANT: $2,944,578
- 2015 – MVTV Wireless Middle Mile – Grant award: $808,080
Checklist:
- Find more articles on broadband in Nobles County (http://tinyurl.com/j52xvxu)
- 100/20 Mbps ranking: 44 (down 5)
- Has worked with Blandin: yes
- Has received a MN Broadband grant: yes
- Household density: 11.6
I am doing the annual look at broadband in each county – based on maps from the Office of Broadband Development and news gathered from the last year. I’m looking at progress toward the 2022 (25 Mbps down and 3 Mbps up) and 2026 (100 Mbps down and 20 Mbps up) and will code each:
- Red (yikes)
- Yellow (warning)
- Green (good shape)
Blandin on Broadband 