Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For a city of 286,233, Madison does unevenly: it grades C+, 289th of 357 graded towns in Wisconsin. It is healthier than 86% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $78K. The trade-off: the typical home is worth about $424K, 4.8 years of the Madison metro’s $89K median household income. 59% of working residents work locally in Madison, above both the Wisconsin town median (8.2%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). Few places in the country are easier to get around without a car. Its National Register listings include University of Wisconsin Arboretum and Harold C. Bradley House.
Where Madison beats most towns.
University of Wisconsin Arboretum| College | Students |
|---|---|
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | 48,189 |
| Madison Area Technical College | 10,300 |
| Edgewood College | 1,669 |
University of Wisconsin Arboretum is one of 9 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier. Its 143 National Register listings are more than in any other Wisconsin town with a listing.
Census counts: 172 in 1840, 269,840 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1846 and 6 maps from 1890 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Madison is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 99% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 11%), so the C+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Madison. Close and well known come first.
in town Stadium & arenaCamp Randall Stadium
in town Stadium & arenaKohl Center
in town Zoo & aquariumHenry Vilas Zoo
in town GardenOlbrich Botanical Gardens
in town MuseumOverture Center for the Arts
28 mi Park & preserveIce Age TrailCamp Randall Stadium: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Kohl Center: Pbrown111 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Henry Vilas Zoo: Corey Coyle, CC BY 3.0 · Olbrich Botanical Gardens: Chief-O at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Overture Center for the Arts: Chief-O of English Wikipedia, Public domain · Ice Age Trail: MDuchek, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Madison, 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 Madison.
Madison draws workers from Sun Prairie and beyond, is safe by national standards but not by Wisconsin’s and has a shorter frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Wisconsin.
Walkers can cover 155 miles of trail in 260 parks and preserves. University of Wisconsin Arboretum, at 996 acres with 12.7 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. The density of trails in Madison is 1.5 miles per square mile.
| Madison | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.5 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 9.6% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. University of Wisconsin Arboretum | 12.7 mi | 996 |
| 2. Lakeshore Nature Preserve | 10.7 mi | 299 |
| 3. Elver Park | 7.8 mi | 250 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Each of its 7 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its C, Middleton highest at A.
Of its 82 schools, three are listed below, each with the reason. The public schools here belong to the Madison Metropolitan School District. Public school enrollment here: 3,218 students across 6 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 790 | A+ |
| West HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,222 | A |
| Randall Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 320 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
212,092 jobs are based in Madison, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
Jobs in Madison grew by 25,176 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 212,092. 16% of residents live below the poverty line locally. The top destinations are Verona (6%), Middleton (5%) and Fitchburg (3%). Its mean commuting time is 19 minutes.
| Madison | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 21% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 6.3% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $78,000 | $88,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Wisconsin is heart disease: 4.2% of its 225,745 adults have heart disease, against 6.6% statewide.
Among 357 Wisconsin towns, just 6 have a lower share of adults who had a checkup this year than Madison. For adults locally, the share who have diabetes is 7.4%. Against the Wisconsin average, Madison comes out ahead on 14 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 4.
| Madison | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 33% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 72% | 78% | 79% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 7.4% | 11% | 12% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 20% | 16% |
| What stands out | Madison | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 4.2% | 6.6% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 17% | 26.6% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 8.3% | 6.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Federal aid has come to Madison households in 8 declared disasters; the latest was in 2018. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 86% of U.S. communities. Also worth knowing: since 1978, Madison has seen 31 flood insurance claims paid out.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 30.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 90% of Wisconsin’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 7,229 to 6,022 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The property offense rate for Madison comes to 18.8 per 1,000 residents. The violent crime rate for Madison comes to 2.1 per 1,000 residents.
| Madison | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 18.8 per 1,000 residents | 6.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.1 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its typical home is the least expensive on its borders; Monona is next at $473K. The median property tax bill is $6,541, against $3,792 across Wisconsin, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
In Madison, 50% of renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent. Zillow values the typical Madison home at about $425,000, up 2.5% in a year, 26% above the Wisconsin typical home. For Madison, the median rent is $1,413 a month.
| Madison | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 46% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,413 a month | $1,076 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 50% | 39% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The Charmany Farm weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 169 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 76% of Wisconsin places with climate records. The Charmany Farm weather station records that about 7 days a year reach 90°: fewer than most of the country, but more than 83% of Wisconsin places with climate records.
For Madison, the peak summer temperature is 83°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
4 within 15 miles of the center of Madison
College town 18 of every 100 Madison residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
4 colleges in town.
143 places in Madison on the National Register of Historic Places.
35 notable people were born in Madison.
Capital of Wisconsin, United States
Madison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the second-most populous city in the state (after Milwaukee), with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 census. The Madison metropolitan area has an estimated 708,000 residents. With a downtown centrally located on an isthmus between Lakes Mendota and Monona, the city also encompasses Lake Wingra. Madison was founded in 1836, and is named after American Founding Father and President James Madison. Madison is the county seat of Dane County. As the state capital, Madison is home to government chambers, including the Wisconsin State Capitol. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the flagship campus of the University …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
10 towns share a border with Madison.
All 5 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its C+; Monona (B−) is closest.
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison | #289 | C+ | D | C | C | A |
| Burke | #49 | A | C+ | — | B+ | A |
| Blooming Grove | — | — | B | — | B+ | A |
| Westport | #74 | A | C | — | A | A |
| Monona | #234 | B− | C− | C− | B | A |
| Fitchburg | #154 | B+ | D | C+ | B+ | A |
| Middleton | #63 | A | D | B | A | A |
| Verona | — | — | C− | — | B+ | A+ |
Blooming Grove and Verona have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Burke, Blooming Grove, Westport and Verona report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Madison with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Madison grades C+ overall, better than 42% of U.S. towns and #289 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades A for health, C for safety and C for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
35 notable people were born here, including John Bardeen and Thornton Wilder.
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