Bismarck's 100-Mile Reach Captures 35.3% of North Dakota; 64.7% of the State Lives Outside

By SimpleMapLab·Published 13 May 2026·Rank #41 of 50 states·↑ All 50 states

Only 35.3% of North Dakota’s population lives within 100 miles of Bismarck. The state’s largest population centre — Fargo — sits 187 miles from the capital, far outside the 100-mile circle. North Dakota ranks #41 of 50 states for capital centrality, meaning 9 states have a less-misplaced capital.

A 100-mile geodesic radius around the Bismarck, ND state capitol overlaid on North Dakota. 35.3% of North Dakota's population lives inside the dashed ring.

35.3%

of North Dakota’s population within 100 miles of Bismarck

277 K

residents inside the radius (of 784 K statewide)

73 mi

from Bismarck to North Dakota’s population centroid

#41

of 50 states ranked by capital-to-population centrality

Open this radius in the map → /tools/map-radius-tool · Bismarck, ND · 100 mi
The link opens the SimpleMapLab Map Radius Tool with the 100-mile circle already drawn around the Bismarck capitol. Change the radius to 50, 250, or any value to compare different framings.

Why this happened

North Dakota is a "split" state by this measure: roughly half its residents live within an hour and a half of the capital, and roughly half live beyond. Bismarck's 100-mile reach captures Bismarck (~97K) and the surrounding counties, but stops well short of Fargo, which sits 187 miles away. The capital-to-population-centroid distance is 73 miles — a clear signal that political and demographic weight no longer share a single point on the map.

The biggest cities inside the 100-mile radius

The top 5 most-populous places (by aggregated ZIP code population) sitting inside the 100-mile circle around Bismarck. Cities are listed by total population captured by ZIP centroids in the dataset.

#	City	Population in radius
1	Bismarck	97,322
2	Minot	33,086
3	Dickinson	29,916
4	Mandan	29,479
5	Jamestown	17,998

The largest city outside the radius

North Dakota’s most-populous city outside the 100-mile circle is Fargo, sitting 187 miles from Bismarck. The aggregated population of Fargo’s ZIP codes alone — 133,701 residents — illustrates the gap between North Dakota’s political seat and its population centre.

How North Dakota compares

The states ranked closest to North Dakota on this metric. Click any to compare the radius breakdown directly.

#40 Missouri

Jefferson City · 43.8% pop. captured

#42 California

Sacramento · 31.0% pop. captured

#39 Tennessee

Nashville · 44.2% pop. captured

#43 Wyoming

Cheyenne · 27.9% pop. captured

#38 Montana

Helena · 45.1% pop. captured

Draw it yourself

Open the 100-mile circle around Bismarck →

The Map Radius Tool lets you change the radius (try 50 mi for an urban-suburban question or 250 mi for “a day’s drive”), drag the centre to compare Bismarck’s reach with that of Bismarck, or add a second circle for a side-by-side comparison.

Methodology (brief)

We took the lat/lng of the North Dakota state capitol building (46.8083°, -100.7837°) and drew a 100-mile geodesic radius. For every ZIP code in North Dakota, we tested whether the ZIP centroid falls inside; if so, its population counts. We then divide by North Dakota’s total population to produce the percentage. The full methodology for all 50 states is on the hub page.

Suggested citation: SimpleMapLab (2026). 100 Miles Around Bismarck: How Much of North Dakota Is Inside? Part of the State Capital Radius study. Retrieved from https://www.simplemaplab.com/studies/state-capital-radius/north-dakota. Licensed under CC-BY 4.0.