The Oakfield Cottage, 1910
Fox Lake’s story
Fox Lake in pictures
Census counts: 1,178 in 1860, 1,604 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1910 and 2 maps from 1955 on.
Explore the history →
Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
2,550
2025 Census estimate · −1.5% since 2020
Median home value
$364K
Census ACS
Household income
$93K
median
Median age
48.1
years
Jobs based here
221
A commuter town
TownGrade
C
#324 of 357 in WI
Is Fox Lake a good place to live?
Fox Lake grades C overall, 324th among Wisconsin's 357 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. The median household earns $93K and natural-hazard risk is low. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $364K for a typical one and 4.8 times the Beaver Dam area’s $76K median household income. 10% of residents are under 18 in Fox Lake, below both Wisconsin’s towns (21%) and U.S. towns (22%). On walkability, just 84 of Wisconsin’s 879 towns do worse.
What makes Fox Lake stand out
Where Fox Lake beats most towns.
A commuter town
97% of working residents leave Fox Lake for work
Where Fox Lake’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
221jobs based in Fox Lake
3%of working residents work in town
27 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Fox Lake grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Fox Lake is from typical.
WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.6 of 20; 0% of households have no car; 0% of workers walk, bike or ride transitDOpen →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 21% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listA−Open →Jobs & incomeA−Open →Cost of livingCOpen →HealthWaupun Memorial Hospital 10.2 miles awayC+Open →SchoolsB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors1 mile of trail; 7% conserved landC+Open →History1 notable person born hereC+Open →Civic life2.7 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsC−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 Fox Lake: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Fox Lake, and how to reach them.
PowerWisconsin Power & Light18.5¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterFox Lake Correctional Institution water system1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
InternetProviders and speedsData pending · D4
Trash & dumpThursdayTrash dayTown site
SchoolsWaupun School DistrictRandolph School District2 districts serve Fox Lake; 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 Fox Lake ClerkThe town itself; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2023
ZIP codes53933, 5395653933 85% · 53956 13%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 Fox Lake.
Fox Lake is a second-home town and sends most of its workers to Beaver Dam and beyond, but it trails even towns with similar incomes on health.
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A−
Low risk in Fox Lake, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 79% of U.S. communities.
21risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesTornadoes
3
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
47%of WI districts it outscoresB−School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| DOC: Fox Lake Correctional InstitutionLargest public high schoolGrades 12 | Grades 12 | – | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A−
Most working residents commute out of Fox Lake
Fox Lake has 221 jobs for its 860 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here fell from 699 in 2013 to 221.
Most working residents leave Fox Lake for work: only 3% work in town. Jobs based in Fox Lake fell to 221 in 2023, 478 fewer than in 2013. 3.5% of Fox Lake residents live below the poverty line.
3%work in town
| Fox Lake | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 3.5% | 6.4% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.5% | 8.4% | 8% |
| Median household income | $93,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In Fox Lake3%
Beaver Dam10%
Madison10%
Fox Lake8%
Fond du Lac4%
27 mi
median commute distance
221
jobs based in Fox Lake
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
D
Walkability grade: more walkable than 11% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
Fox Lake has snowy winters and pleasant summers
Fox Lake has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Fox Lake’s July high is 82°F.
43″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter13–29°
Spring34–55°
Summer58–79°
Fall38–58°
Oct 2
typical first frost
May 8
typical last frost
+1.1°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
#283for trails in WI
7.3%
conserved · 1,778 of 24,467 acres
1.2 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Clausen Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
HealthC+
Health in Fox Lake trails 56% of U.S. towns
Against the 9,619 U.S. towns with household incomes like Fox Lake’s, it is less healthy than 73%, so it trails even them.
Fox Lake beats the Wisconsin average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 42% of adults have obesity in Fox Lake.
44%healthier than U.S. townsC+Health Grade
| Fox Lake | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 38% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 26% | 25% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
32 measures vs. Wisconsin
0 better30 too close to call2 worse
| What stands out | Fox Lake | WI |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 16% | 13.6% |
| Fewer adults seeing a dentist | 63.8% | 67.1% |
Waupun Memorial Hospital
10.2 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
19th
percentile among WI towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Fox Lake
19pages on Fox Lake
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Fox Lake; the nearest are
Ripon CollegeUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Ripon18.3 mi$51,900 tuitionMoraine Park Technical CollegeCommunity college · Public · Fond du Lac29.4 mi$4,819 in-state tuitionUniversity of Wisconsin-OshkoshUniversity or college · Public · Oshkosh35.9 mi$8,532 in-state tuition
About 4 of every 100 Fox Lake residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
About Fox Lake
City in Wisconsin, United States
Fox Lake is a city in Dodge County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,604 at the 2020 census. The city is located within the Town of Fox Lake.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.6 sq mi
- ZIP code
- 53933
- Area code
- 920
Fox Lake’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Fox Lake.
RandolphRandolphTrentonMackfordWestfordFox Lake
How the neighbors grade
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fox Lake | #324 | C | C | — | B− | C+ |
| Randolph · Randolph | — | — | A− | — | C | B− |
| Trenton | — | — | B | — | B− | B− |
| Mackford | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Westford | — | — | C+ | — | C+ | B− |
Randolph, Trenton and Westford have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Fox Lake, Randolph, Trenton and Westford report no FBI crime data of their own. Mackford isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Randolph and Randolph are one community, graded once. Compare Fox Lake with a neighbor →
Questions about Fox Lake
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Fox Lake, WI a good place to live?
Fox Lake grades C overall, better than 30% of U.S. towns and #324 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades C+ for health and B− for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Is Fox Lake, 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.