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La Crosse vs Onalaska

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: household income (+54% in Onalaska) and work in town (+35.7 pts in La Crosse).

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La Crosse, WIA history townWisconsin · 51,356 people
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Onalaska, WIAn outdoors townWisconsin · 19,348 people
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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.

La CrosseA history town
HistorySettled in 184242 places on the National Register Famous people67 notable peopleborn in La Crosse Outdoors#8 most trails in WI50 miles of trails across 51 parks and preserves All about La Crosse →
OnalaskaAn outdoors town
Outdoors#24 most trails in WI17 miles of trails across 29 parks and preserves Schools#130 for schools in WIof 262 towns Housing$370K typical home9% above the WI typical home All about Onalaska →
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.

Household income+54%
Households in Onalaska earn more
Onalaska $85,867La Crosse $55,866
Work in town+35.7 pts
More of La Crosse’s workers stay in town
La Crosse 53.8%Onalaska 18.1%
Trails3×
La Crosse has more miles of trail
La Crosse 49.8 miOnalaska 16.8 mi
Home values+38%
Homes cost more in Onalaska
Onalaska $288,900La Crosse $210,100
Median age10.2 yrs
Onalaska skews older
Onalaska 40.7La Crosse 30.5
In college+17.9 pts
La Crosse is more of a college town
La Crosse 21.8%Onalaska 3.9%
★ What stands out · Report cards

Onalaska places higher on 14 of 23 WI lists

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

Safety
DLa CrosseSafer than 11% of U.S. towns C+OnalaskaSafer than 38% of U.S. towns
Schools
C−La CrosseBetter than 23% of districts in the state B+OnalaskaBetter than 68% of districts in the state
Health
B−La CrosseHealthier than 49% of U.S. towns A−OnalaskaHealthier than 80% of U.S. towns
9La Crosse
14Onalaska

Lists won, of 23 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Lowest depressionHealth · 366 towns #366#78 Highest graduation rateSchools · 301 towns #253#25 Most new homesHousing · 294 towns #238#43 HealthiestHealth · 366 towns #278#92 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 366 towns #217#39 Rent easiest to affordCost of living · 99 towns #77#36 Fewest smokersHealth · 366 towns #181#35 Highest incomeIncome · 371 towns #342#198

Left end = #1 in Wisconsin. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of La Crosse’s rankings →

Monthly cost

A typical home costs $450 more a month in Onalaska

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.

La Crosse$1,950/mo
Typical home $288K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.83% · or rent about $1,010/mo · Housing →
Onalaska$2,400/mo
Typical home $370K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.50% · or rent about $1,130/mo · Housing →

The difference: $450 a month, about $5,400 a year, between Onalaska and La Crosse.

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

La Crosse and Onalaska share a border

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

La CrosseOnalaskaLa CrosseOnalaska
La Crosse ↔ Onalaska4.6 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
3,866 Onalaska residents work in La Crosse (44.8% of its workers)
2,114 La Crosse residents work in Onalaska (9.8% of its workers)
Work & commute in Onalaska →
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
La CrosseOnalaska
Snow a year43″43″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)22nd15th
Outdoors & history
La CrosseOnalaska
Trails50 mi17 mi
Conserved land11.4%6.1%
Settled18421851
National Register places422
Archive photos126
Famous people born here67—
Community
La CrosseOnalaska
Library hours a week56 hrs57 hrs
Colleges in town3—
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined01

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.

La CrosseOnalaska
People
Population 51,356Highest 19,348Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +2.7%Lowest WI: +3.6% +6%Highest WI: +3.6%
Median age 30.5±0.7Lowest 24% below WI 40.7±2Highest about the WI average
Kids under 18 14.6%±1.2Lowest WI: 21.4% 19.4%±2.6Highest WI: 21.4%
Age 65+ 17.1%±1.4Lowest WI: 18.5% 20.4%±2.6Highest WI: 18.5%
Onalaska and La Crosse are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 34.9%Lowest WI: 33.4% 41.7%Highest WI: 33.4%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 21.8%±1.5Highest WI: 5.8% 3.9%±1.2Lowest WI: 5.8%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $55,866±$3kLowest 28% below WI $85,867±$5kHighest 11% above WI
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $210,100±$7kLowest 21% below WI $288,900±$16kHighest 8% above WI
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,010±$39Lowest 7% below WI $1,130±$104Highest 4% above WI
Onalaska and La Crosse are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $3,854Lowest about the WI average $4,326Highest 14% above WI
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 47.2%±4.6Highest WI: 43.7% 38.6%±9.3Lowest WI: 43.7%
La Crosse and Onalaska are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 21.4%Highest WI: 10.6% 6%Lowest WI: 10.6%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 46.1%Lowest WI: 67.8% 63.1%Highest WI: 67.8%
Typical home builtmedian year 1965Lowest 10 yrs older than WI 1991Highest 16 yrs newer than WI
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 16 minLowest 28% below WI 17 minHighest 22% below WI
Work from home 11.9%±1.4Highest WI: 13.1% 10.9%±2.7Lowest WI: 13.1%
La Crosse and Onalaska are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 53.8%Highest 18.1%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 4.3 miLowest 5.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 2.05Highest 1.36Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Onalaska (10%)La Crosse (45%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 10% work in Onalaska45% work in La Crosse
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 11.4%Highest 6.1%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 49.8 miHighest 16.8 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 2.1 miHighest 1.5 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 51Highest 29Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 69.2Highest 59.0Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #215 of 262 in WI#130 of 262 in WI
School district La Crosse School DistrictOnalaska School District
High school in town Central HighOnalaska High
Students per teacherat that high school 13.0Lowest 13.9Highest
Wisconsin 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.

La Crosse neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to La Crosse’s Town Square.

Onalaska neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

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1 neighbor in Onalaska can answer.

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Bordering La Crosse

S
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Shelby4,724 people · $301K homes
M
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Medary1,514 people · $356K homes
C
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Campbell4,188 people · $207K homes
F
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French Island4,188 people · $207K homes

Towns like La Crosse

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Eau Claire70,322 people · $248K homes
S
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Stevens Point25,785 people · $195K homes
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Oshkosh66,729 people · $178K homes
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Wausau39,996 people · $168K homes
Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks Wisconsin towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

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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