ForestWI
A town of 351, settled in 1855.
Is Forest a good place to live?
27% of residents are 65 or older in Forest, above both the Wisconsin town median (20%) and the median of U.S. towns (18%). Forest has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
What makes Forest stand out
Where Forest beats most towns.
351 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Forest: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Forest, 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Forest.
A job hub: Forest has 2.1 jobs for every working resident and draws in 274 commuters
The median commute is under 29 miles. Employers in Forest added 255 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 281. For most workers, Forest is a place to come home to: only 5% work in town. The average commute for Forest comes to 26 minutes, above Wisconsin’s towns (22 minutes) and close to U.S. towns (25 minutes).
| Forest | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $68,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.3% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 8.4% | 6.4% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Fewer young adults than Wisconsin overall
Among adults 25 and older in Forest, 36% hold a bachelor’s degree or more. The town has grown 2.6% since 2020, to 351 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. The midpoint age for Forest comes to 45.7 years.
| Forest | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 45.7 years | 42.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 36% | 32% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
41% women, 59% men
About 143 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±6.4 points). Across Wisconsin, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Forest | WI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.5% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.4% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.5% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 17.3% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 17% | 11.8% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 8.6% | 13.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 19.5% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.2% | 7.3% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.5% | 6.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.3% | 29.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 16.7% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 17.1% | 11.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 21.1% | 22% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.3% | 11.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 400, single groups can be off by several points
The biggest natural risk in Forest is inland flooding, at a high overall level
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 68% of U.S. communities. Of the losses FEMA expects in Forest, 59% come from inland flooding and 16% from cold waves.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
How healthy Forest is
In Forest, 15% of adults report frequent physical distress. For adults here, the share who get no exercise outside work is 31%.
| Forest | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 17% | 19% |
| What stands out | Forest | WI |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.3% | 9.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 9% | 6.5% |
| More smokers | 17.7% | 13.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Forest has set aside 1.8% of its land for conservation
Count the trails in 1 park or preserve and they come to 1.0 miles. Forest has one park or preserve, 4 acres in all.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Viola County Park | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Forest
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Forest; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Forest residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
Every workday, about 274 people come to Forest for work
Where Forest’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Forest
Town in Wisconsin, United States
Forest is a town in Richland County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 333 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated communities of Ash Ridge and Tunnelville are located partially in the town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 36 sq mi
- Elevation
- 846 ft
- Area code
- 608
Questions about Forest
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Forest, WI a good place to live?
Forest has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.