Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Monona's standout: 21% of its land is conserved. Overall it grades B−, 234th of 357 graded towns in Wisconsin. It is healthier than 90% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $88K. Its weakest subject is cost of living: homes are expensive, about $473K for a typical one and 5.3 times the Madison metro’s $89K median household income. 21% of the land in Monona is conserved, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 3.8% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Only 34 of Wisconsin’s 879 towns score higher on walkability. Monona has 6 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Outlet Mound and Tompkins-Brindler Mound Group.
Where Monona beats most towns.
21.3% of the town is conserved land, across 18 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Monona is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,323 in 1940, 8,624 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 6 maps from 1890 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Monona. Close and well known come first.
4 mi Stadium & arenaCamp Randall Stadium
3 mi Stadium & arenaKohl Center
4 mi Zoo & aquariumHenry Vilas Zoo
33 mi Park & preserveIce Age Trail
3 mi GardenOlbrich Botanical Gardens
3 mi MuseumOverture Center for the ArtsCamp Randall Stadium: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Kohl Center: Pbrown111 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Henry Vilas Zoo: Corey Coyle, CC BY 3.0 · Ice Age Trail: MDuchek, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Olbrich Botanical Gardens: Chief-O at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Overture Center for the Arts: Chief-O of English Wikipedia, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Monona, 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 Monona.
Monona draws workers from Madison and beyond, is one of Wisconsin’s best towns for the outdoors and is safe by national standards but not by Wisconsin’s.
Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #3 of 362 in Wisconsin.
Monona’s concentration of trails comes in at 1.0 miles per square mile. Count the trails in 18 parks and preserves and they come to 3.4 miles. The biggest park or preserve is Monona Wetland Conservancy, at 241 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Edna Taylor Conservation Park | 1.4 mi | 22 |
| 2. Woodland Park | 0.9 mi | 18 |
| 3. Winnequah Park | 0.3 mi | 45 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Public schools: the Monona Grove School District. The largest public high school is Monona Grove High, with 1,170 students. Two of its 7 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winnequah SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 602 | B+ |
| Monona Grove HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,170 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
6,386 jobs are based in Monona, 1.5 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. 24.1% of workers work from home, against 13.1% across Wisconsin.
Among workers in Monona, 24% work remotely from home. Just 6% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. Since 2013, Monona has lost 1,562 jobs, to 6,386 in 2023. Its typical journey to work stands at 20 minutes, below both Wisconsin’s towns (22 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes).
| Monona | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 24% | 12% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 9.5% | 6.3% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.2% | 8.4% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Wisconsin is food insecurity: 7.8% of its 7,023 adults worry about having enough food, against 12.1% statewide.
The share of adults in Monona who binge drink: 19%. Against the Wisconsin average, Monona comes out ahead on 20 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 1. Two figures for adults in the town: 13% report frequent mental distress, 9.9% smoke cigarettes.
| Monona | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 32% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.9% | 14% | 14% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 30% | 33% |
| What stands out | Monona | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.8% | 12.1% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.8% | 9.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.7% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The median property tax bill is $7,359, against $3,792 across Wisconsin, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
54% of households live in a home they own in Monona. The typical Monona home is worth about $473,000, up 1.7% in a year, 40% above the Wisconsin typical home. Also worth knowing: the town’s median rent stands at $1,275 a month.
| Monona | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 54% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,275 a month | $1,076 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 34.1 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 93% of Wisconsin’s graded towns. Property crime runs at 26.4 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Wisconsin rate, most of it theft.
Among 182 Wisconsin towns, just 6 have a higher property offense rate than Monona. In Monona, the rate of reported violence is 1 per 1,000 residents.
| Monona | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 26.4 per 1,000 residents | 6.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Federal aid has come to Monona households in 7 declared disasters; the latest was in 2018. FEMA expects less storm and flood damage locally than in just over four fifths of U.S. communities. Of the losses FEMA expects in the town, 39% come from inland flooding and 29% from cold waves. Since 1993, 18 flood insurance claims have been paid out locally.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Madison Dane Rgnl Ap weather station, 6 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 160 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 76% of Wisconsin places with climate records. The Madison Dane Rgnl Ap weather station, 6 miles away, records that about 9 days a year reach 90°: fewer than most of the country, but more than 83% of Wisconsin places with climate records.
The range runs from 11° on a January night to 83° on a July afternoon, with about 52 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
4 within 15 miles of the center of Monona
About 3 of every 100 Monona residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
7,533 counted in 2010 and 8,624 in 2020; an estimated 8,664 in 2025.
Growth has leveled off: within 1% of 2020, after 14.5% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
City in Wisconsin, United States
Monona ( mih-NOH-nə) is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. A suburb of the state capital, Madison, the city lies on the southeastern shore of Lake Monona, from which it takes its name. The population was 8,624 at the 2020 census. Monona is almost entirely surrounded by the City of Madison, save for a few short borders with the unincorporated town of Blooming Grove.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Monona.
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monona | #234 | B− | C− | C− | B | A |
| Madison | #289 | C+ | D | C | C | A |
| Blooming Grove | — | — | B | — | B+ | A |
Blooming Grove has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Blooming Grove reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Monona with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Monona grades B− overall, better than 54% of U.S. towns and #234 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades A for health, C− for safety and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
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