Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Fond du Lac is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C overall, ranked 327th of 357 in Wisconsin, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is cost of living: a typical home costs about $263K, 3.5 years of the Fond du Lac metro’s $74K median household income. Its lowest everyday mark is in safety: its police reported 179 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 77% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 24 places on the National Register. 44% of working residents work locally in Fond du Lac, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 8.2% and U.S. towns at 8%. Its National Register listings include Octagon House and Chicago and Northwestern Railroad Depot. On walkability, just 66 of Wisconsin’s 879 towns do better.
Where Fond du Lac beats most towns.
Its 24 National Register listings are more than in 95% of Wisconsin towns with a listing.
Census counts: 5,460 in 1860, 44,678 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1827 and 4 maps from 1910 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Fond du Lac is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Fond du Lac, 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 Fond du Lac.
Fond du Lac is healthier than towns with similar incomes and is safe by national standards but not by Wisconsin’s.
Trails total 18 miles in 23 parks and preserves. Fond du Lac’s concentration of trails is 0.9 miles per square mile. The biggest park or preserve is Lakeside Park West, at 255 acres.
| Fond du Lac | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.9 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.6% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Gottfried Prairie and Arboretum | 1.2 mi | 75 |
| 2. Ledgeview Center | 0.8 mi | 34 |
| 3. Lakeside Park West | 0.2 mi | 255 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The public schools here belong to the Fond du Lac School District. Below: Three of its 23 schools, each with why it was picked. 6 public schools serve Fond du Lac, with 2,032 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sabish MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 445 | C |
| Fond du Lac HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,917 | B− |
| Lakeshore ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 354 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
At 33.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 93% of Wisconsin’s graded towns. Reported crimes rose from 840 to 982 over the last three FBI years, a rise beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
For Fond du Lac, the violent crime rate is 4 per 1,000 residents. The level of property crime here is 18.1 per 1,000 residents.
| Fond du Lac | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 18.1 per 1,000 residents | 6.3 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
42% of Fond du Lac’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by cold waves at 26%. On expected storm and flood damage, Fond du Lac sits below 69% of U.S. communities. Paid flood insurance claims locally since 1979: 382.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical rent for Fond du Lac comes to $913 a month. Zillow values the typical Fond du Lac home at about $263,000, up 4.6% in a year, 22% below the Wisconsin typical home. 58% of Fond du Lac households own their home.
| Fond du Lac | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 58% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $913 a month | $1,080 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 45% | 39% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
In July, afternoons reach 82°; in January, nights fall to 10°, and about 38 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
12% of residents live below the poverty line in Fond du Lac. Jobs in Fond du Lac grew by 2,136 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 30,124. Its average commute comes in at 19 minutes. Half the trips to work are shorter than 10 miles.
| Fond du Lac | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $88,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 6.3% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 9.2% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 9,474 U.S. towns with household incomes like Fond du Lac’s, it is healthier than 62%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
The share of adults 18 to 64 in Fond du Lac who have no health insurance: 9.4%. Among adults here, 30% get no exercise outside work and 31% sleep under 7 hours.
| Fond du Lac | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 45% | 38% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 26% | 25% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 36% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 24% | 23% |
| What stands out | Fond du Lac | WI |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with obesity | 44.5% | 37.7% |
| More uninsured adults | 9.4% | 8% |
| Fewer adults getting cholesterol checked | 83.9% | 85.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Fond du Lac. Close and well known come first.
17 mi LakeLake Winnebago
23 mi Park & preserveKettle Moraine State Forest
16 mi MuseumEAA Aviation Museum
17 mi MuseumWade House Historic Site
37 mi Theme parkBlue Harbor Resort
36 mi MuseumJohn Michael Kohler Arts CenterLake Winnebago: self, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Kettle Moraine State Forest: self, CC BY-SA 2.5 · EAA Aviation Museum: self, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Wade House Historic Site: Royalbroil, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Blue Harbor Resort: self, CC BY-SA 2.5 · John Michael Kohler Arts Center: self, CC BY-SA 2.5
2 within 15 miles of the center of Fond du Lac
About 5 of every 100 Fond du Lac residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Wisconsin.
2 colleges in town.
24 places in Fond du Lac on the National Register of Historic Places.
38 notable people were born in Fond du Lac.
City in Wisconsin, United States
Fond du Lac ( ) is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is at the southern end of Lake Winnebago and had a population of 44,678 at the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the Fond du Lac metropolitan statistical area, which includes all of Fond du Lac County and had 104,154 residents in 2020.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Fond du Lac.
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fond du Lac | #327 | C | B | C− | C | C+ |
| Fond du Lac | #278 | C+ | C+ | — | C | B− |
| Taycheedah | #243 | B− | B− | — | C+ | B |
| Empire | #232 | B− | B− | — | C+ | B− |
| Friendship | #288 | C+ | B− | — | C | B− |
| North Fond du Lac | #339 | C− | B− | B | C | C |
Fond du Lac, Taycheedah, Empire and Friendship report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Fond du Lac with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Fond du Lac grades C overall, better than 28% of U.S. towns and #327 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades C+ for health, C− for safety and C for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a C−.
38 notable people were born here, including King Camp Gillette and Travis Diener.
