Population
18,718 residents
Census ACS 2023 - Wisconsin
City profile · Wisconsin · Census ACS 2023
Population, income, housing, safety, climate and schools for Marshfield - drawn straight from Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA, NCES, HUD and FEMA, refreshed on the 2024–2025 release cycle.
Marshfield - the verdict
Marshfield ranks in the 34th percentile for household income and the 51st percentile for safety nationally, out of every US city with at least 1,000 residents. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
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.
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 18,718 residents in Marshfield, a small town within Wisconsin. The typical household in Marshfield brings in $59,294 a year, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 7.0%. Marshfield's housing stock carries a median value of $169,900, and the median resident age is 43.1 years. Educational attainment runs 26.0% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 58.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 21 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Construction Slowdown), down 78% from five years earlier. Marshfield reports a comparatively low crime rate: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 1328.4 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, below 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. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $973 monthly. Monthly utility costs average around $225 across Wisconsin, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. The average commute for Marshfield workers runs 14.3 minutes, with 74.9% driving alone and 10.0% working from home. Natural-hazard exposure scores 75.9 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (High).
Population
18,718 residents
Census ACS 2023 - Wisconsin
Median Household Income
$59,294 /yr
Poverty 7.0%
Cost of Living Index (state)
94.1 (US=100)
Below Average - BEA RPP 2024, Wisconsin average
Marshfield measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at Wisconsin, Marshfield ranks #134 of 202 Wisconsin cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
For each metric we count every US city with population 1,000+ and a non-null value, then compute what share of them fall below Marshfield's value: round(cities-below ÷ total × 100). Safety is inverted (percentile = share of cities with a higher crime rate) so a higher number always means safer. The in-state rank narrows that same crime-rate comparison to only the cities PlainCities tracks in Wisconsin, breaking ties alphabetically. See the methodology page for the full source-to-figure lineage.
34th percentile nationally for median household income · 51st percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
How Marshfield's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$169,900 Among the most affordable more affordable than 66% of 15,600 US cities
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
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
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.
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
| Year | Total |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 94 |
| 2020 | 21 |
| 2021 | 15 |
| 2022 | 11 |
| 2023 | 6 |
| 2024 | 21 |
Permit volume decreased 78% from 2019 to 2024.
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Based on 8,853 workers 16 and over.
State-average estimates for Wisconsin - EIA 2023 residential energy data
Estimates reflect Wisconsin state averages. Actual costs vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Cost of living is a Wisconsin state average from BEA; rent and hazard risk are county-level figures from HUD and FEMA for the county Marshfield sits in
Population-matched peers from other states, closest to Marshfield's 18,718 residents (Census ACS 5-Year 2023).
Median-household-income-matched peers from other states, closest to Marshfield's $59,294 (Census ACS 5-Year 2023, table B19013).
City-level race and ethnicity, Census ACS 5-year 2023 (tables B02001, B03001), OMB Directive 15 categories.
Population + median household income, sourced from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 (population) and B19013 (median household income).
| City | Population | Median Household Income |
|---|---|---|
| Marshfield (this city) | 18,718 | $59,294 |
| Wisconsin Rapids | 18,756 | $54,116 |
| Onalaska | 18,909 | $84,898 |
| Fox Crossing | 18,960 | $74,423 |
Marshfield, WI counts 18,718 residents according to U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.
In Marshfield, the typical household earns $59,294 per year, based on Census ACS 2023 data.
BEA does not publish a city-level cost-of-living figure for Marshfield; the closest available measure is the Wisconsin state average, a cost of living index of 94.1 (U.S. average = 100), rated "Below Average" based on BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 data. Costs within Wisconsin vary by metro area.
Marshfield has a total crime rate of 1328.4 per 100,000 residents, which is below the national average. This reflects incidents reported to the FBI UCR program, not a definitive safety score -- agency reporting is voluntary and completeness varies by jurisdiction.
A typical home in Marshfield is worth $169,900, according to Census ACS 2023 estimates.
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.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES.
Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.