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Compare towns

Onalaska vs Hamilton

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: street grid (26.8× in Onalaska) and jobs per worker (7.6× in Onalaska).

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Onalaska, WIAn outdoors townWisconsin · 19,348 people
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Hamilton, WIOne of the healthiest townsLa Crosse County · 2,668 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 · Where they are

Onalaska and Hamilton share a border

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

OnalaskaHamiltonOnalaskaHamilton
Onalaska ↔ Hamilton6.3 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
146 Hamilton residents work in Onalaska (13% of its workers)
Work & commute in Hamilton →
Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

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.

Onalaska$2,400/mo
Typical home $370K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.50% · or rent about $1,130/mo · Housing →
Hamilton$2,320/mo
Typical home $369K (Census) · tax rate 1.25% · or rent about $1,207/mo · Housing →

The difference: $80 a month, about $1,000 a year, between Onalaska and Hamilton.

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.

Report cards

Onalaska places higher on 15 of 19 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.

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
OnalaskaHamilton
Snow a year43″43″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)15th23rd
Outdoors & history
OnalaskaHamilton
Trails17 mi4 mi
Conserved land6.1%1.7%
Settled1851—
National Register places2—
Archive photos65
Community
OnalaskaHamilton
Library hours a week57 hrs—
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined10

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.

OnalaskaHamilton
People
Population 19,348Highest 2,668Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +6%Highest WI: +3.6% -0.3%Lowest WI: +3.6%
Median age 40.7±2Lowest about the WI average 42.6±3.8Highest 6% above WI
Hamilton and Onalaska are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 19.4%±2.6Lowest WI: 21.4% 25.1%±4.1Highest WI: 21.4%
Hamilton and Onalaska are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 20.4%±2.6Highest WI: 18.5% 17.8%±4.1Lowest WI: 18.5%
Onalaska and Hamilton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 41.7%Highest WI: 33.4% 37.6%Lowest WI: 33.4%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.9%±1.2 WI: 5.8% 3.9%±2.3 WI: 5.8%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $85,867±$5kLowest 11% above WI $112,500±$7kHighest 45% above WI
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $288,900±$16kLowest 8% above WI $368,800±$24kHighest 38% above WI
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,130±$104Lowest 4% above WI $1,207±$155Highest 11% above WI
Hamilton and Onalaska are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $4,326Lowest 14% above WI $4,604Highest 21% above WI
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 38.6%±9.3Highest WI: 43.7% 6.5%±25.5Lowest WI: 43.7%
Onalaska and Hamilton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 6%Highest WI: 10.6% 2.4%Lowest WI: 10.6%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 63.1%Lowest WI: 67.8% 90.8%Highest WI: 67.8%
Typical home builtmedian year 1991 16 yrs newer than WI 1991 16 yrs newer than WI
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 17 minLowest 22% below WI 21 minHighest 4% below WI
Work from home 10.9%±2.7Highest WI: 13.1% 10.3%±3.1Lowest WI: 13.1%
Onalaska and Hamilton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 18.1%Highest 0.7%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 5.8 miLowest 9.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.36Highest 0.18Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town La Crosse (45%)La Crosse (37%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Hamilton13% work in Onalaska
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 6.1%Highest 1.7%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 16.8 miHighest 4.4 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.5 miHighest 0.1 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 29Highest 5Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 59.0Highest 2.2Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #130 of 262 in WI—
School district Onalaska School District—
High school in town Onalaska High—
Students per teacherat that high school 13.9 —
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.

Onalaska neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

Welcoming New Neighbors

1 neighbor in Onalaska can answer.

Hamilton neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Hamilton’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Onalaska

Towns like Onalaska

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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