Apple Valley vs Inver Grove Heights, MN: How They Compare

Apple Valley and Inver Grove Heights are both in Dakota County. Apple Valley had an estimated 55,248 residents in 2025 compared with 36,873 in Inver Grove Heights, but Inver Grove Heights covers more land, about 27.9 square miles compared with 16.9. Apple Valley has Cedar Avenue and the METRO Red Line, and Inver Grove Heights has Highway 52 to Interstate 494 and the Mississippi River on its eastern edge.

Apple Valley's residential neighborhoods began in 1955. In 1963 builder Orrin Thompson named several plats Apple Valley, and the city became a statutory city in 1974. Neighborhoods date from the mid-1950s onward, so home age, updates, and lot layout vary from one street to the next.

Inver Grove Heights was created as a city in 1965, and its homes span many decades of styles. Housing ranges from apartments to large-lot homes, and newer developments are still adding homes. The Mississippi River forms the city's eastern edge, and lakes, ponds, and wetlands cover many areas, so we check this for any home.

The Census survey for 2020 to 2024 put the median owner-occupied home value at $370,400 in Apple Valley and $363,400 in Inver Grove Heights. Owners occupy 73.4 percent of homes in Apple Valley and 76.9 percent in Inver Grove Heights. Those survey figures are not today's sale prices, so we pull recent sales for the homes you are considering.

If you want a bus rapid transit line north to the Mall of America, Apple Valley has three METRO Red Line stations. If you want rolling hills, a wide range of lot sizes, or the Mississippi River Greenway trail, Inver Grove Heights is worth a look. Both cities have neighborhoods from several decades, so we compare each home.

We help buyers compare both, home by home. Send us a message or call (651) 661-4770.

You can read more on our Apple Valley page and our Inver Grove Heights page.