Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Elkhorn is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades A− overall, 116th of 357 graded towns in Wisconsin, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is incomes: the median household earns $78K. It also does better than most on safety: crime is low: it reports less per resident than 78% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $343K for a typical one and 4.3 times the Whitewater area’s $81K median household income. Elkhorn has 7 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Edward Elderkin House and Elkhorn Band Shell (Additional Documentation). Elkhorn's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 87% of U.S. towns. 55% of households are owner-occupiers in Elkhorn, below both the Wisconsin town median (74%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%).
Where Elkhorn beats most towns.
Joseph P. Webster House
Census counts: 42 in 1850, 10,247 in 2020. The archive holds 11 old photos and papers going back to 1836 and 4 maps from 1893 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Elkhorn is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Elkhorn, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Elkhorn.
Of the losses FEMA expects in Elkhorn, 35% come from inland flooding and 23% from cold waves. Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 88% of U.S. communities. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Elkhorn after 4 declared disasters, most recently in 2011.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The largest public high school is Elkhorn Area High, with 953 students. Three of the 7 schools are below, and why each made the list. Its public schools are run by the Elkhorn Area School District.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elkhorn Area MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 659 | B− |
| Elkhorn Area HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 953 | B |
| Jackson ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 485 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
For Elkhorn, the rate of thefts and burglaries is 4.5 per 1,000 residents. The level of violent crime locally is 1.1 per 1,000 residents.
| Elkhorn | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.5 per 1,000 residents | 6.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.1 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Across 7 parks and preserves: 3.1 miles of trail. The biggest park or preserve is Babe Mann Park, at 51 acres.
| Elkhorn | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.3% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sunset Park | 0.4 mi | 27 |
| 2. Babe Mann Park | — | 51 |
| 3. Harris Park | 0.2 mi | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
In Elkhorn, just over a fifth of adults binge drink. 30% of adults locally have high blood pressure; 32% sleep under 7 hours.
| Elkhorn | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 20% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 33% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 32% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 76% | 78% | 79% |
| What stands out | Elkhorn | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 3% | 3.4% |
| More adults seeing a dentist | 70.3% | 67.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
July afternoons average 82.4°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 87% of Wisconsin places with climate records; January nights average 12.6°.
The January low for Elkhorn comes to 13°F. About 34 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Elkhorn | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 13°F | 11°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Just 16% of Elkhorn’s working residents have a job in town. Jobs based in Elkhorn grew to 6,214 in 2023, 1,226 more than in 2013. Also worth knowing: the town’s mean commuting time is 21 minutes. The top destinations are Delavan (7%), Madison (6%) and Lake Geneva (5%).
| Elkhorn | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 8.2% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 10% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.6% | 6.3% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
No age group stands out against Wisconsin: all are within 4 points. For Elkhorn, the median age is 37.6 years. This Wisconsin town has lost 2.1% of its people since 2020, down to 10,045 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. Here, 30% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree, against 33% in Wisconsin as a whole.
| Elkhorn | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 37.6 years | 42.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 20% | 18% |
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.
| Elkhorn | WI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.3% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.8% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.8% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.5% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12% | 11.8% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13% | 13.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.8% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.8% | 7.3% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.9% | 6.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 28.6% | 29.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.5% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.9% | 11.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 21.9% | 22% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.2% | 11.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Zillow values the typical Elkhorn home at about $343,000, up 2% in a year, close to the Wisconsin typical home. On the market locally: a median 39 days to sell. Bidding over the asking price: 57% of homes sold in the town.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
None within 15 miles of Elkhorn; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Elkhorn residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
7 places in Elkhorn on the National Register of Historic Places.
12 notable people were born in Elkhorn.
City in Wisconsin, United States
Elkhorn is a city in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Milwaukee. As of the 2020 census, it was home to 10,247 people, up from 10,084 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Elkhorn.
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elkhorn | #116 | A− | C+ | A− | B | B+ |
| Sugar Creek | #138 | A− | B− | — | B− | B+ |
| Geneva | #85 | A− | C− | A+ | B+ | B+ |
| Lafayette | — | — | C | — | B | B+ |
| Delavan | #213 | B | B− | A− | C | B |
Lafayette has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Sugar Creek and Lafayette report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Elkhorn with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Elkhorn grades A− overall, better than 80% of U.S. towns and #116 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades B+ for health, A− for safety and B for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
12 notable people were born here, including Buddy Melges and John Raleigh.
