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Alturas vs Winter Haven

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: street grid (15.5× in Winter Haven) and growth since 2010 (+47.7 pts in Winter Haven).

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Alturas, FLAn outdoors townFlorida · 4,581 people
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Winter Haven, FLHomes around $273KFlorida · 55,200 people
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $660 more a month in Winter Haven

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Alturas$960/mo
Typical home $166K (Census) · tax rate 0.65% · or rent about $1,017/mo · Housing →
Winter Haven$1,620/mo
Typical home $273K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.83% · or rent about $1,246/mo · Housing →

The difference: $660 a month, about $7,900 a year, between Winter Haven and Alturas.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Where they are

Alturas and Winter Haven share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

AlturasWinter HavenAlturasWinter Haven
Alturas ↔ Winter Haven14 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
121 Alturas residents work in Winter Haven (6.8% of its workers)
Work & commute in Alturas →
Report cards

Winter Haven places higher on 11 of 20 FL lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Florida ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
AlturasWinter Haven
Snow a year0″0″
January low50°F52°F
July high92°F93°F
Growing season (days)352d365d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)71st60th
Outdoors & history
AlturasWinter Haven
Conserved land8%1.5%
Settled—1884
National Register places17
Community
AlturasWinter Haven
Library hours a week—50 hrs
Colleges in town—1
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

AlturasWinter Haven
People
Population 4,581Lowest 55,200Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census -2.4%Lowest FL: +14.6% +45.3%Highest FL: +14.6%
Median age 34.7±7.5Lowest 19% below FL 40.1±2.4Highest 6% below FL
Winter Haven and Alturas are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 26.1%±5.1Highest FL: 19.5% 21.4%±1.9Lowest FL: 19.5%
Alturas and Winter Haven are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 18.6%±2.4Lowest FL: 21.3% 19.3%±1.5Highest FL: 21.3%
Winter Haven and Alturas are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 11.2%Lowest FL: 34.1% 22%Highest FL: 34.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.3%±1.3Lowest FL: 6.1% 5%±1.1Highest FL: 6.1%
Winter Haven and Alturas are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $70,231±$17kHighest 6% below FL $59,648±$4kLowest 20% below FL
Alturas and Winter Haven are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $165,800±$38kLowest 54% below FL $269,800±$11kHighest 25% below FL
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,017±$401Lowest 39% below FL $1,246±$80Highest 25% below FL
Winter Haven and Alturas are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,084Lowest 60% below FL $2,247Highest 18% below FL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 0%±33Lowest FL: 60.1% 62.3%±6.9Highest FL: 60.1%
Below poverty line 15.5%Lowest FL: 12.6% 16.4%Highest FL: 12.6%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 87.7%Highest FL: 67.6% 63.7%Lowest FL: 67.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 1990 2 yrs newer than FL 1990 2 yrs newer than FL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 30 minHighest 6% above FL 28 minLowest about the FL average
Work from home 4.3%±4.3Lowest FL: 15.7% 9.7%±2.1Highest FL: 15.7%
Winter Haven and Alturas are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 1.4%Lowest 13.3%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 20.3 miLowest 20.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.24Lowest 1.12Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Bartow (12%)Lakeland (10%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 7% work in Winter HavenFew work in Alturas
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 8%Highest 1.5%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 14.3 miLowest 17.4 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.2 miLowest 0.4 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0Lowest 8Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 3.3Lowest 51.3Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #198 of 488 in FL#388 of 488 in FL
School district POLKPOLK
High school in town None in townWinter Haven Senior High School
Students per teacherat that high school — 24.3
Florida average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Alturas neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Alturas’s Town Square.

Winter Haven neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Winter Haven’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Towns like Alturas

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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