Bird's eye view of Chetek, Wis, 1912
Chetek’s story
Chetek in pictures
Census counts: 406 in 1890, 2,172 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1912 and 2 maps from 1951 on.
Explore the history →
Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
1,756
2025 Census estimate · +2% since 2020
Median home value
$318K
Census ACS
Household income
$95K
median
Median age
54.9
years
Jobs based here
235
A commuter town
Is Chetek a good place to live?
Chetek’s best subject grades are a B+ for civic life and incomes. 32% of residents are 65 or older in Chetek, against 20% in Wisconsin’s towns and 18% across U.S. towns. The biggest park or preserve is Barron County Forest, at 111 acres. Chetek has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
A commuter town
98% of working residents leave Chetek for work
Where Chetek’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
235jobs based in Chetek
2%of working residents work in town
23 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Chetek grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Chetek is from typical.
Jobs & income$95K median household incomeB+Open →Cost of livingTypical home $318K, 4.8 years of the Rice Lake area’s $66K median household incomeC+Open →SchoolsBehind 58% of Wisconsin districts on tests and graduationC+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.9 of 20; 1.3% of households have no car; 4.4% of workers walk, bike or ride transitBOpen →HealthMayo Clinic Health System-Northland 12.4 miles awayC+Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 43% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors3 miles of trailsC+Open →History2 notable people born hereCOpen →Civic life4.5 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsB+Open →
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 Chetek: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chetek, and how to reach them.
PowerBarron Electric Coop16.0¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterChetek WaterworksNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet7 providers98% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpChetek recycling center / bins on Water StreetDrop-offTown site
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 Chetek ClerkThe town itself; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2023
ZIP codes54728, 54822, 5475754728 85% · 54822 11% · 54757 4%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 Chetek.
Who lives here
Older than Wisconsin overall
People 65 and older are 32% of residents (19% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 9% of residents (22% statewide). At 54.9 years, Chetek’s median age is above both the Wisconsin town median (42.1 years) and the median of U.S. towns (40.5 years). 16% of residents are under 18 in Chetek.
54.9median age · WI 40.2
| Chetek | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 54.9 years | 42.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 16% | 21% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 27% | 32% | 29% |
ChetekWisconsinUnited States
Ages · share of residents
21%
Education · adults 25 and older
No diploma3%
High school30%
Some college24%
Associate’s16%
Bachelor’s15%
Graduate12%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.7 points. Across Wisconsin, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Chetek | WI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.1% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.7% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.1% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.2% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 8.7% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 16.4% | 11.8% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 17.9% | 13.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 20.6% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 11.3% | 7.3% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3% | 6.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.8% | 29.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 24% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 16% | 11.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15.4% | 22% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11.8% | 11.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,800, single groups can be off by several points
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B+
Chetek has 0.3 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Chetek for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Chetek grew to 235 in 2023, 73 more than in 2013. 3.2% of Chetek residents live below the poverty line.
2%work in town
| Chetek | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 3.2% | 6.4% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.5% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $95,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In Chetek2%
Chetek15%
Rice Lake14%
Barron7%
Eau Claire7%
23 mi
median commute distance
235
jobs based in Chetek
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
B
Walkability grade: more walkable than 57% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
In Chetek, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers
Chetek has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Chetek is 80°F.
53″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter7–25°
Spring31–53°
Summer56–78°
Fall35–55°
Oct 2
typical first frost
May 8
typical last frost
+1.2°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HealthC+
Residents of Chetek are less healthy than 57% of U.S. towns
Chetek beats the Wisconsin average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 8.
43%healthier than U.S. townsC+Health Grade
| Chetek | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Wisconsin
2 better22 too close to call8 worse
| What stands out | Chetek | WI |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81.5% | 77.8% |
| More adults getting cholesterol checked | 87.8% | 85.9% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.6% | 6.6% |
Mayo Clinic Health System-Northland
12.4 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
Chetek faces a moderate natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 57% of U.S. communities.
43risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesTornadoes
3
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
OutdoorsC+
Conserved land covers 1% of Chetek
2.7 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. Chetek’s trail density is 0.1 miles per square mile.
1%conserved
| Chetek | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
1%
conserved · 214 of 21,341 acres
2.7 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Barron County Forest | — | 111 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Chetek
19pages on Chetek
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Chetek
About 1 of every 100 Chetek residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
About Chetek
City in Wisconsin, United States
Chetek is a city in Barron County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,172 at the 2020 census, down from 2,221 at the 2010 census. The city is partially within the Town of Chetek.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 3.1 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,050 ft
- ZIP code
- 54728
Chetek’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Chetek.
ChetekPrairie LakeRuskSumnerDovreChetek
How the neighbors grade
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chetek | — | — | C+ | — | C+ | C+ |
| Chetek | — | — | B | — | C+ | B− |
| Prairie Lake | — | — | C+ | — | B− | C+ |
| Rusk | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sumner | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dovre | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Chetek, Chetek and Prairie Lake have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Chetek, Chetek and Prairie Lake report no FBI crime data of their own. Rusk, Sumner and Dovre aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Chetek with a neighbor →
Questions about Chetek
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Chetek, 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 C+.