Rank: 11
Code: Green
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)
Swift County: Almost there
Swift County ranks 11 for broadband access and 64 for digital equity out of 87 counties. They have hovered between 97-99 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up since 2019. They have 117 households without access to broadband at that speed. 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. Estimates indicate that it will cost $1.1 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 |
| Swift | 6.2 | 4,693 | 97.5 | 117 | $ 1,091,122.50 |
Swift County will benefit from TDS deploying fiber to 3,700 properties in Kandiyohi, Stearns, Renville and Swift Counties.
Swift County’s partnership with Federated Telephone, supported by a MN State grant, has provided nearly ubiquitous coverage. Swift has also been working with the Blandin Foundation as Blandin Broadband Community.
They are so close; they have earned the green code. Hopefully the TDS deployment will reach the last few homes they need to connect.
Broadband Access:
| 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
| 100/20 (2026 goal) | 97.5 | 99.5 | 99.5 | 99.6 | 64.15 | 30.41 |
| 25/3 (2022 goal) | 97.91 | 99.54 | 99.54 | 99.64 | 99.64 | 78.95 |
Digital Equity:
Swift County ranks 64 out of 87 for digital equity. (See full Digital Equity Profile)
Swift County ranks 23 out of 87 for computer ownership. 93.2 percent of homes have a computer of device as compared to statewide ownership of 95.5 percent.
Past grants:
- 2015 – Federated Telephone Cooperative – Swift County FTTP 2015 – Grant award: $4,950,000
- 2015 – MVTV Wireless Middle Mile – Grant award: $808,080
Checklist:
- Find more articles on broadband in Swift County (http://tinyurl.com/zfptnnz)
- 100/20 Mbps ranking: 11 (down 6)
- Has worked with Blandin: yes
- Has received a MN Broadband grant: yes
- Household density: 6.2
Det 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 