Point-in-time count

The Point-In-Time (PIT) Count is a yearly, nationwide count of people experiencing homelessness on one night in January. It includes people staying in shelters, transitional housing, or unsheltered settings. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires the count to take place during the last 10 days of January.

Hennepin County oversees the planning and operations of the count. Data from the count gives us a one-day snapshot of homelessness to compare from year to year.

2026

The 2026 count gathered information about people experiencing homelessness in emergency shelters and transitional housing programs in Hennepin County on the night of Wednesday, January 28. To preserve the safety of clients, volunteers and staff, Hennepin County did not conduct any 2026 unsheltered count activities.

Results

Sheltered count

We found 2,496 people staying in shelters and transitional housing programs, a 6% decrease compared to the sheltered count in 2025. This included:

• 1,342 people in families with children
• 1,138 single adults
• 16 unaccompanied minors

Decrease in homeless families brought down total number in shelter

This year’s largest decrease was a 12% reduction among sheltered people in families with children. This contributed to a 38% decrease among this population since 2024.

Our flexible family shelter network expands and contracts with demand, to further the county’s goal that no child sleeps outside. As we work to make family homelessness rare, brief and nonrecurring, we are increasingly helping families to prevent homelessness. W have also made tremendous strides in helping families to access shelter and then to transition as quickly as possible into permanent housing. In 2025, we and our partners helped 386 families transition from homelessness into housing.

3% more adults in shelter, more shelter capacity

The number of single adults in shelter increased slightly from 2025. Even with this year’s increase, this year’s number is 5% fewer than in 2024.

We and our partners increased single adult shelter capacity in 2025 and 2026, with the openings of three new shelters and increased beds elsewhere. Our total adult shelter capacity is now more than 1,000 beds, with capacity to expand for extreme weather.

Unsheltered count

HUD only requires a count every other year; some other communities do not conduct a PIT every year.

In 2025, our PIT count identified 427 people who were experiencing unsheltered homelessness. It was important to us during the federal immigration enforcement surge in January 2026 to prioritize the safety and well-being of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

It is difficult to make a 1-to-1 comparison from last year’s PIT count of unsheltered adults from 2025 to 2026 without an unsheltered count.

We and our partners use other data for real-time information to coordinate services for people experiencing unsheltered homelessness. Our work indicates a slight reduction in the number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness, compared to last year. We will conduct an unsheltered count again in 2027.