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Place dossier plate
SheetWI-MADISON-WI · Madison, WI 275,568 pop · income 58th pct · 125 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Madison
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Madison on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Buffalo · lowest
48,050
Buffalo · lowest
48,050 median HH income
39.6% of the leader · rank #1
Whitewater · near
76,974
Whitewater · near
76,974 median HH income
63.4% of the leader · rank #2
Madison · this city
76,983
Madison · this city
76,983 median HH income
63.4% of the leader · rank #3
Excelsior Est… · near
76,985
Excelsior Est… · near
76,985 median HH income
63.4% of the leader · rank #4
Glasgow · near
76,985
Glasgow · near
76,985 median HH income
63.4% of the leader · rank #5
Bellwood · near
76,990
Bellwood · near
76,990 median HH income
63.4% of the leader · rank #6
Gilbert · highest
121,351
Gilbert · highest
121,351 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Madison on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 275,568.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Madison - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Madison places in the 58th percentile for household income and the 29th percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
58th
percentile, household income
71st
percentile, home value
29th
percentile, median rent
29th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Madison, WI
275,568 people live in Madison, Wisconsin - a mid-sized U.S. city by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. The typical household in Madison brings in $76,983 a year, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 6.6%. Typical homes in Madison are valued around $346,900, and the median resident age is 31.8 years. 59.2% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 68.6% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 2,812 residential building permits were authorized in Madison (Building Boom), up 70% from five years earlier, per Census BPS data. Crime here tracks close to the national norm: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 2120.9 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, near the national average (agency reporting is voluntary, so this measures reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Living costs in Wisconsin run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Wisconsin scores 94.1 (Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,097 per month statewide. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Wisconsin's average monthly utility costs around $225 (state average). The average commute for Madison workers runs 15.9 minutes, with 57.6% driving alone and 18.2% working from home. Natural-hazard exposure scores 59.1 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Moderate).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Madison's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from comparison shortlist to population change to housing and income to work and mobility to reported crime to within-city variation to schools and households; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Madison, city-specific coverage includes within-city Census tract profiles, annual population history, commute-mode shares, local building permits, FBI reported-crime rates, matched public-school count.
All six city-specific enrichment layers used by this profile are present.
Question 1
Which cities make useful reference points for Madison?
Within Wisconsin, the closest population matches are Green Bay (106,585 residents, $62,546 income); Kenosha (99,147 residents, $68,532 income); Racine (77,155 residents, $55,705 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Chula Vista, CA (275,030 residents); Buffalo, NY (276,397 residents); Chandler, AZ (278,123 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +11,382 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +4.1% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 2,812 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
How far does income reach against housing in Madison?
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 4.5 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 6.6%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median. That flags a question for comparison, not a verdict: tenure, household composition, financing costs, and the age of the ACS estimate can all change what a resident actually pays.
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
PlainCities matches 125 Census tracts to this city.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Work and mobility
What does the journey to work look like in Madison?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 57.6%. The reported mean trip to work is 15.9 minutes.
Public transit
5.8%
Work from home
18.2%
Drive alone
57.6%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 158,679 workers age 16+.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Madison?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 2120.9 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, near the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 7% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Property rate
1865.0
Violent rate
256.0
Total reported rate
2120.9
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
The NCES join finds 57 public schools within the city match. 59.2% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
Matched public schools
57
Bachelor's degree+
59.2%
Poverty estimate
6.6%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
Above median income · poverty 6.6% (Below-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
94.1 (US=100)
Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, Wisconsin average
C+
City profile score · Madison, WI
60/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Bachelor's+ share A+
59.2%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Cost of living B-
94.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Household income C
$76,983
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Poverty rate C
6.6%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime F
256 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Madison profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Bachelor's+ share: 91/100 (A+) · 59.2%
Cost of living: 68/100 (B-) · 94.1 index
Household income: 56/100 (C) · $76,983
Poverty rate: 55/100 (C) · 6.6%
Violent crime: 39/100 (F) · 256 /100k
Where Madison sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Madison's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Madison highlighted among 13 peers.Read the chart values
Madison, WI (this city): home $346,900, crime 2,121/100k
Chula Vista, CA : home $697,400, crime 1,508/100k
Buffalo, NY : home $152,300, crime 4,516/100k
Chandler, AZ : home $469,800, crime 1,638/100k
Gilbert, AZ : home $518,600, crime 1,100/100k
North Las Vegas, NV : home $372,300, crime 2,350/100k
Reno, NV : home $498,600, crime 2,975/100k
Green Bay, WI : home $191,500, crime 1,807/100k
Kenosha, WI : home $210,500, crime 1,152/100k
Racine, WI : home $158,100, crime 1,495/100k
Appleton, WI : home $211,500, crime 1,549/100k
Waukesha, WI : home $286,600, crime 989/100k
Eau Claire, WI : home $228,000, crime 2,068/100k
How does Madison compare to other US cities?
Madison measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income58% higher than other cities
Home value71% pricier than other cities
Median rent29% pricier than other cities
Safety29% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to Wisconsin alone, Madison ranks #178 of 202 Wisconsin cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Madison against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Wisconsin only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Wisconsin-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Madison near the bottom of Wisconsin's cities
Among the 761 Wisconsin cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Madison ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Madison only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#272 of 753
64th percentile in Wisconsin
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 761
0th percentile in Wisconsin
Median Home Value
#64 of 754
92nd percentile in Wisconsin
Poverty Rate
#315 of 761
58th percentile in Wisconsin
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#30 of 761
96th percentile in Wisconsin
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Wisconsin only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
58th percentile nationally for median household income · 29th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Madison's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Madison's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Madison's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$346,90029th percentilemore affordable than 29% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Madison's home-value-to-income ratio: 4.5×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#11,986 of 15,516
More affordable than 23% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#59 of 117
Large cities (200,000–999,999)
At 4.5×, Madison sits in the moderate band:
national rank #11,986 of 15,516 and #59 of 117large cities (200,000–999,999).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$76,983Madison, WI median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Madison, WI median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Madison, WI.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)59.2%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)6.6%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)68.6%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
275,568
Median Income
$76,983
Median Home Value
$346,900
Median Age
31.8
Poverty Rate
6.6%
Labor force participation
68.6%
Bachelor's Degree+
59.2%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
2120.9
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
256.0
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
1865.0
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
57
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Madison's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
274,851 residents
2021
271,089 residents
2022
277,322 residents
2023
280,941 residents
2024
284,278 residents
2025
286,233 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Building Boom
Total Permits (2024)
2,812
housing units authorized
Single-Family
250
detached homes
Multifamily
2,562
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
10.2
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
1,658
426
1,232
$325.7M
2020
2,185
406
1,779
$378.0M
2021
3,626
327
3,299
$554.8M
2022
2,360
314
2,046
$444.2M
2023
2,620
332
2,288
$443.6M
2024
2,812
250
2,562
$356.6M
Permit volume increased 70% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
15.9 minutes
Drive Alone
57.6%
Carpool
5.9%
Public Transit
5.8%
Walk
8.2%
Work from Home
18.2%
Other
4.3%
Based on 158,679 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Wisconsin statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $225
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Wisconsin at $225 (electricity about $100 , water and sewer about $45 ).
These are Wisconsin statewide averages, not a meter reading for Madison. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Wisconsin's BEA cost-of-living index is 94.1 (Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Madison is $1,097/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Wisconsin statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 59.1 / 100 (Moderate).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Wisconsin statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Madison sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Madison compares to similar-size Wisconsin cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.