You’ve seen these lists before. Best places to live in Wisconsin. Best suburbs in Wisconsin. Best counties in Wisconsin.
Etc., etc., etc.
But they all focus on major cities and towns in the Badger State, and no one pays attention to the little guy.
Well, that’s all about to change as we put together a list of the superb small towns in Wisconsin based on numbers–not opinions or hearsay.
We’ll dive right into our methodology in the next section, but first, we thought you might want to know which places in Wisconsin ranked the best based on Saturday Night Science.
$198,750 median income · 1.3% unemployment
$153,542 median income · 1.6% unemployment
$105,145 median income · 0.9% unemployment
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$148,403 median income · 0.6% unemployment
$160,096 median income · 2.7% unemployment
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$142,955 median income · 0.9% unemployment
$131,170 median income · 1.3% unemployment
$101,049 median income · 0.7% unemployment
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$152,798 median income · 0.9% unemployment
$121,667 median income · 2.6% unemployment
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Wisconsin’s statewide median.
Wisconsin statewide median: $77,485
Wisconsin statewide median: $330,171
Wisconsin statewide median: 3.2%
On the map
Where Wisconsin’s best small towns are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Determined The Coolest Towns In Wisconsin
We threw a lot of criteria at this report to get the best, most complete results of the best small towns in Wisconsin possible.
Using the most recent data from the Census’s 2020-2024 American Community Survey, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Saturday Night Science, this is the criteria we used:
- Population Density (Higher is better)
- Lowest Unemployment Rates
- Housing costs (Higher is better. More demand.)
- Adjusted Median Income (Higher is better)
- Highly Educated Adults (Higher is better)
- Insurance Rates (Higher is better)
- Commute Times (Lower is better)
We looked at places with populations lower than 5,000 people and greater than 1,000, of which there were many – 234 to be exact.
We then ranked each place in each category with scores from 1 to 234, averaged them out, and the lowest scores went to our Best Small Towns in Wisconsin. Top of that list — Maple Bluff.
This is our eleventh time ranking the best small places to live in Wisconsin.
The full plate
Best Small Towns In Wisconsin
Click any column to sort. Search by town name.
| Rank | Town | Population | Median Income | Median Home Value | Unemployment Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maple Bluff | 1,329 | $198,750 | $1,006,701 | 1.3% |
| 2 | Shorewood Hills | 2,149 | $153,542 | $1,166,799 | 1.6% |
| 3 | Cross Plains | 4,107 | $105,145 | $504,941 | 0.9% |
| 4 | Nashotah | 1,354 | $148,403 | $714,596 | 0.6% |
| 5 | Bayside | 4,329 | $160,096 | $548,316 | 2.7% |
| 6 | Wind Point | 1,531 | $142,955 | $416,700 | 0.9% |
| 7 | Okauchee Lake | 4,733 | $131,170 | $616,361 | 1.3% |
| 8 | Prairie du Sac | 4,382 | $101,049 | $416,060 | 0.7% |
| 9 | North Prairie | 2,385 | $152,798 | $484,308 | 0.9% |
| 10 | Butte des Morts | 1,064 | $121,667 | $500,646 | 2.6% |
| 11 | Combined Locks | 3,622 | $93,490 | $342,966 | 5.3% |
| 12 | Lodi | 3,204 | $117,584 | $459,917 | 3.9% |
| 13 | Kohler | 2,175 | $135,833 | $439,379 | 4.1% |
| 14 | Belleville | 2,579 | $88,304 | $362,644 | 0.9% |
| 15 | Dane | 1,067 | $108,375 | $503,412 | 0.5% |
| 16 | Thiensville | 3,299 | $95,685 | $405,030 | 0.6% |
| 17 | Merton | 3,550 | $173,913 | $713,368 | 1.9% |
| 18 | North Hudson | 3,819 | $122,647 | $403,225 | 3.7% |
| 19 | Sherwood | 3,252 | $109,524 | $435,107 | 0.9% |
| 20 | Johnson Creek | 3,362 | $100,685 | $409,481 | 0.3% |
| 21 | Brooklyn | 1,408 | $108,929 | $488,394 | 3.3% |
| 22 | Oakfield | 1,182 | $91,172 | $332,404 | 0.0% |
| 23 | Deerfield | 2,541 | $91,029 | $417,784 | 0.4% |
| 24 | River Hills | 1,632 | $204,427 | $924,409 | 1.4% |
| 25 | Dousman | 2,479 | $96,513 | $486,213 | 1.0% |
| 26 | Wright | 3,322 | $93,125 | $353,587 | 1.6% |
| 27 | Lannon | 1,482 | $83,889 | $500,555 | 1.5% |
| 28 | Eagle | 2,054 | $112,083 | $522,005 | 1.6% |
| 29 | Spring Green | 1,397 | $87,344 | $372,111 | 3.1% |
| 30 | Marathon City | 1,422 | $89,519 | $245,553 | 0.4% |
| 31 | Sauk City | 3,483 | $91,042 | $355,463 | 2.9% |
| 32 | Lake Wissota | 3,184 | $105,150 | $414,541 | 7.8% |
| 33 | Ixonia | 2,684 | $93,359 | $461,426 | 2.3% |
| 34 | Howards Grove | 3,223 | $78,333 | $352,690 | 1.5% |
| 35 | Wales | 2,902 | $109,024 | $545,118 | 4.3% |
| 36 | Lake Camelot | 1,162 | $95,125 | $385,179 | 0.0% |
| 37 | Elkhart Lake | 1,092 | $94,250 | $470,516 | 9.9% |
| 38 | St. Peter | 1,413 | $137,604 | $445,762 | 2.6% |
| 39 | Winneconne | 2,511 | $82,411 | $333,602 | 2.7% |
| 40 | Prescott | 4,503 | $74,412 | $396,930 | 3.1% |
| 41 | Cuba City | 2,007 | $74,571 | $253,586 | 0.4% |
| 42 | Seymour | 1,531 | $95,139 | $298,690 | 0.8% |
| 43 | Denmark | 2,558 | $75,714 | $372,096 | 1.1% |
| 44 | Newburg | 1,287 | $78,214 | $340,831 | 1.3% |
| 45 | Cedar Grove | 2,402 | $84,344 | $317,501 | 1.4% |
| 46 | Poynette | 2,678 | $93,500 | $400,486 | 0.0% |
| 47 | Big Bend | 1,291 | $134,615 | $392,364 | 0.6% |
| 48 | Oostburg | 3,058 | $87,857 | $304,542 | 2.3% |
| 49 | Baldwin | 4,342 | $77,179 | $340,419 | 0.3% |
| 50 | Eagle Lake | 1,037 | $95,625 | $336,242 | 1.2% |
| 51 | Bangor | 1,517 | $81,250 | $324,991 | 2.7% |
| 52 | Mineral Point | 2,559 | $81,000 | $316,499 | 0.8% |
| 53 | Black Earth | 1,736 | $75,625 | $381,353 | 3.7% |
| 54 | Lancaster | 3,976 | $84,302 | $220,677 | 1.8% |
| 55 | Random Lake | 1,575 | $89,601 | $325,383 | 3.5% |
| 56 | Luxemburg | 2,737 | $77,500 | $349,659 | 1.9% |
| 57 | Rochester | 3,764 | $107,038 | $407,596 | 1.0% |
| 58 | Seymour | 3,570 | $80,602 | $298,690 | 3.2% |
| 59 | Fredonia | 2,448 | $99,013 | $406,081 | 3.5% |
| 60 | Brice Prairie | 1,782 | $94,408 | $368,330 | 1.4% |
| 61 | Barneveld | 1,416 | $113,542 | $353,339 | 2.8% |
| 62 | Pulaski | 4,006 | $71,473 | $372,677 | 1.1% |
| 63 | Whiting | 1,493 | $73,063 | $291,447 | 2.6% |
| 64 | East Troy | 4,978 | $79,669 | $475,622 | 1.9% |
| 65 | Amherst | 1,113 | $64,922 | $354,741 | 0.8% |
| 66 | Kewaunee | 2,806 | $82,028 | $281,792 | 0.3% |
| 67 | Mazomanie | 1,694 | $86,023 | $386,145 | 1.7% |
| 68 | Williams Bay | 2,981 | $84,113 | $534,739 | 2.4% |
| 69 | Belgium | 2,488 | $74,886 | $402,313 | 5.2% |
| 70 | New Glarus | 2,172 | $101,098 | $351,112 | 6.3% |
| 71 | Cambridge | 1,617 | $87,917 | $367,473 | 2.7% |
| 72 | Viroqua | 4,471 | $67,438 | $269,218 | 2.9% |
| 73 | Powers Lake | 1,278 | $83,750 | $421,670 | 2.5% |
| 74 | Kekoskee | 1,067 | $96,944 | $377,993 | 3.2% |
| 75 | Delavan Lake | 2,757 | $83,550 | $440,435 | 2.4% |
| 76 | Marshall | 3,778 | $85,942 | $360,314 | 2.2% |
| 77 | Kiel | 3,943 | $75,953 | $266,023 | 2.1% |
| 78 | Sister Bay | 1,044 | $71,169 | $509,171 | 0.7% |
| 79 | King | 1,399 | $84,183 | $180,758 | 0.0% |
| 80 | Chilton | 4,049 | $82,923 | $305,342 | 1.2% |
| 81 | Cleveland | 1,676 | $82,589 | $269,254 | 0.7% |
| 82 | Paddock Lake | 2,947 | $87,800 | $315,551 | 2.5% |
| 83 | Ellsworth | 3,349 | $87,857 | $334,193 | 0.8% |
| 84 | Lauderdale Lakes | 1,469 | $74,313 | $468,682 | 2.5% |
| 85 | Tainter Lake | 2,609 | $105,781 | $371,427 | 4.0% |
| 86 | Campbellsport | 1,973 | $80,040 | $368,399 | 1.3% |
| 87 | Amery | 2,959 | $59,219 | $334,165 | 1.0% |
| 88 | Hortonville | 3,256 | $82,063 | $321,105 | 0.7% |
| 89 | Saukville | 4,267 | $79,730 | $399,946 | 3.7% |
| 90 | Bloomer | 3,673 | $58,106 | $292,013 | 2.7% |
| 91 | Omro | 3,642 | $62,000 | $283,077 | 2.0% |
| 92 | Shell Lake | 1,459 | $57,500 | $310,284 | 0.5% |
| 93 | Bohners Lake | 2,460 | $76,359 | $330,543 | 6.9% |
| 94 | Fontana-on-Geneva Lake | 1,737 | $106,750 | $709,403 | 3.3% |
| 95 | Lake Wazeecha | 2,850 | $93,346 | $271,075 | 3.1% |
| 96 | Galesville | 1,742 | $71,429 | $311,158 | 0.0% |
| 97 | Mosinee | 4,498 | $73,479 | $300,543 | 0.0% |
| 98 | New Holstein | 3,075 | $59,667 | $221,394 | 0.6% |
| 99 | Trempealeau | 1,864 | $79,254 | $341,418 | 2.1% |
| 100 | Clinton | 2,041 | $72,019 | $294,826 | 4.2% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024 via Saturday Night Science. 234 Wisconsin towns between 1,000 and 5,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: Science Can Tackle Any Issue, Even Small Ones
We said it once, and we’ll say it again — this list: it’s just science. We did the research, crunched the numbers, and it turns out these small towns in Wisconsin are the best in which to live.
And who can argue with that?
The best small towns in Wisconsin are Maple Bluff, Shorewood Hills, Cross Plains, Nashotah, Bayside, Wind Point, Okauchee Lake, Prairie du Sac, North Prairie, and Butte des Morts. Not sold on Wisconsin? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Small Towns In Wisconsin FAQs
What is the best small town to live in Wisconsin?
Maple Bluff is the best small town in Wisconsin for 2026. The median household income there is $198,750 and the median home costs $1,006,701. Shorewood Hills and Cross Plains round out the top three.
What are the best small towns in Wisconsin?
The best small towns in Wisconsin are Maple Bluff, Shorewood Hills, Cross Plains, Nashotah, Bayside, Wind Point, Okauchee Lake, Prairie du Sac, North Prairie, and Butte des Morts. We ranked all 234 Wisconsin towns with between 1,000 and 5,000 residents.
What counts as a small town?
For this ranking, a small town is any Wisconsin place with between 1,000 and 5,000 residents. 234 towns fit that window this year.
How do you rank the best small towns in Wisconsin?
Each town is scored on density, unemployment, housing costs, income, education, insurance coverage, and commute times, using Census American Community Survey data. The town with the best average across all of it, Maple Bluff, takes the top spot.
How much does a home cost in Maple Bluff?
The median home in Maple Bluff runs $1,006,701, against $330,171 across Wisconsin as a whole. Pair that with a $198,750 median household income, and you can see why it ranks so well.
