Upper Mississippi River 9-Foot Channel, Lock & Dam No. 4
Alma’s story
Alma in pictures
The archive holds 1 old photo or paper and 3 maps from 1924 on.
Explore the history →AlmaWI
A town of 1,040. 28% more nonprofits per person than the typical Wisconsin town.
Population
1,040
2025 Census estimate · +0% since 2020
Median home value
$217K
Census ACS
Household income
$76K
median
Median age
51.3
years
Jobs based here
226
A commuter town
Is Alma a good place to live?
The best of Alma’s subject grades is an A for civic life; the weakest is a D for walkability. Alma’s average trip to work is 36 minutes, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 22 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Only 23 of Wisconsin’s 879 towns score lower on walkability. Alma's schools rank behind 78% of the state's. 15% of the land in Alma is conserved, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 3.8% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. The biggest place to walk is Jackson County Forest, 5,412 acres with 1.5 miles of trail. On civic life, just 57 of Wisconsin’s 869 towns do better. Alma has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Alma stand out
Where Alma beats most towns.
Small town
1,040 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
Garden ValleyAdamsAlma CenterDewhurstHixtonMentorHewettAlma
How Alma grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Alma is from typical.
WalkabilityEPA walkability 4.6 of 20; 3.1% of households have no car; 0% of workers walk, bike or ride transitDOpen →SchoolsC−Open →HealthBlack River Memorial Hospital 9.6 miles awayCOpen →Cost of livingTypical home $217K, 3.2 years of the county’s $68K median household incomeBOpen →Jobs & income$76K median household incomeC+Open →Hazard riskinland flooding tops the listB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors3 miles of trailsBOpen →HistoryC+Open →Civic life4.9 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsAOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Alma: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Alma, and how to reach them.
PowerJackson Electric CoopEIAHIFLD · EIA
WaterMerrillan Waterworks1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Alma’s trash rules yet
SchoolsAlma Center School DistrictBlack River Falls School District2 districts serve Alma; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn Wisconsin you can register online until 20 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 20 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereTown of Alma ClerkThe town itself; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2025
ZIP codes54754, 54611, 54615, 5474654754 53% · 54611 28% · 54615 17% · 54746 2%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Alma.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C+
Alma has 0.4 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Alma for work: only 12% work in town. Jobs based in Alma grew to 226 in 2023, 84 more than in 2013. 6.9% of workers work from home in Alma.
12%work in town
| Alma | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 6.9% | 12% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 12% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $76,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 7.2% | 6.4% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Alma12%
Black River Falls18%
Brockway9%
La Crosse3%
Whitehall2%
14 mi
median commute distance
226
jobs based in Alma
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
D
Walkability grade: more walkable than 5% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthC
Alma is less healthy than 70% of U.S. towns
Alma beats the Wisconsin average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 12. 17% of Alma adults smoke cigarettes.
30%healthier than U.S. townsCHealth Grade
| Alma | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 33% | 35% |
32 measures vs. Wisconsin
0 better20 too close to call12 worse
| What stands out | Alma | WI |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.6% | 9.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.3% | 6.5% |
| More smokers | 17.3% | 13.6% |
Black River Memorial Hospital
9.6 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
Alma has snowy winters and pleasant summers
Alma has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Alma’s July high is 81°F.
41″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter10–27°
Spring33–55°
Summer57–79°
Fall37–57°
Oct 1
typical first frost
May 10
typical last frost
+1.9°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
OutdoorsB
Alma has set aside 15.2% of its land for conservation
3.2 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. The trail density in Alma is 0.1 miles per square mile.
15.2%conserved
15.2%
conserved · 5,606 of 36,886 acres
3.2 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Jackson County Forest | 1.5 mi | 5,412 |
| 2. Clark County Forest | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
Moderate risk in Alma, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 50% of U.S. communities. Since 2000, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Alma.
50risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesTornadoes
5
paid flood claims since 2000
3
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Alma
17pages on Alma
The big questions
Out and about
The story
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Alma; the nearest are
Chippewa Valley Technical CollegeCommunity college · Public · Eau Claire40.3 mi$4,844 in-state tuitionUniversity of Wisconsin-Eau ClaireUniversity or college · Public · Eau Claire40.3 mi$9,642 in-state tuition
About 1 of every 100 Alma residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
A commuter town
88% of working residents leave Alma for work
Where Alma’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
226jobs based in Alma
12%of working residents work in town
14 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Alma
Town in Wisconsin, United States
Alma is a town in Jackson County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,033 at the 2020 census. The Village of Alma Center is located within the town. The ghost town of Wrightsville was also located in the town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 58 sq mi
- Elevation
- 991 ft
Questions about Alma
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Alma, WI a good place to live?
28% more nonprofits per person than the typical Wisconsin town.
Is Alma, WI expensive?
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.