Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. New Berlin grades A overall, ranked 52nd of 357 in Wisconsin. Natural-hazard risk is low. The median household earns $101K and its schools rank ahead of 90% of Wisconsin towns. What holds it back is price: homes are expensive, about $451K for a typical one and 5.8 times the Milwaukee metro’s $78K median household income. On health, just 54 of Wisconsin’s 874 towns do better. New Berlin has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Freewill Baptist Church and Gredler-Gramins House. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 72% of U.S. towns.
Where New Berlin beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Ronald Reagan Elementary | PK–6 | 669 |
| Elmwood Elementary | PK–6 | 567 |
| Poplar Creek Elementary | PK–6 | 514 |
| Widest gap | New Berlin | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.3% | 12.1% |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far New Berlin is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 15,788 in 1960, 40,451 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1858 and 5 maps from 1891 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around New Berlin. Close and well known come first.
12 mi Stadium & arenaFiserv Forum
13 mi MuseumMilwaukee Art Museum350K visitors a year
12 mi Stadium & arenaUW–Milwaukee Panther Arena
12 mi MuseumHarley-Davidson Museum300K visitors a year
12 mi MuseumNature & Culture Museum of Wisconsin
6 mi Zoo & aquariumMilwaukee County ZooFiserv Forum: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Milwaukee Art Museum: Michael Hicks (Mulad), CC BY 2.0 · UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena: Shadowlink1014, Public domain · Harley-Davidson Museum: Dori, CC BY-SA 3.0 us · Nature & Culture Museum of Wisconsin: The original uploader was Sulfur at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Milwaukee County Zoo: Awkwafaba, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in New Berlin, 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 New Berlin.
New Berlin has less food insecurity than most of Wisconsin, has seen reported crime fall by a third or more and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Wisconsin.
Its public schools are run by the New Berlin School District. Three of its 10 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ronald Reagan ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 669 | A+ |
| Eisenhower Middle/HighLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 1,095 | A |
| Elmwood ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 567 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 93% of U.S. communities. Since 1984, 42 flood insurance claims have been paid out in New Berlin.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its widest gap with Wisconsin is food insecurity: 7.3% of its 32,523 adults worry about having enough food, against 12.1% statewide.
13% of New Berlin adults report frequent mental distress, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 15% and U.S. towns at 17%. 29% of adults feel lonely in New Berlin. New Berlin beats the Wisconsin average on 18 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1.
| New Berlin | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 24% | 23% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 14% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 36% |
| What stands out | New Berlin | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.3% | 12.1% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 3.5% | 5.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.3% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
17 miles of trail in 19 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Minooka County Park, 360 acres with 3.4 miles of trail.
| New Berlin | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 4.9% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Minooka County Park | 3.4 mi | 360 |
| 2. John J Malone Park | 1.4 mi | 61 |
| 3. Pro Health Care Park | 1 mi | 25 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At $1,426 a month, New Berlin’s median rent is above both Wisconsin’s towns ($1,076 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Typical home values rose 5.2% in the year to September 2026.
| New Berlin | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,426 a month | $1,076 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 77% | 74% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Reported crimes fell from 448 to 265 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 19 reported in 2025, 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
New Berlin’s violent crime rate is 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
| New Berlin | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.5 per 1,000 residents | 1.1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.1 per 1,000 residents | 6.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Mt Mary College weather station, 9 miles away, records that 40 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 80% of Wisconsin places with climate records. July afternoons average 81.9°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 75% of Wisconsin places with climate records; January nights average 13°.
New Berlin has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The January low in New Berlin is 13°F.
| New Berlin | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 13°F | 11°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave New Berlin for work: only 10% work in town. Jobs based in New Berlin grew to 25,605 in 2023, 2,775 more than in 2013. 4.1% of New Berlin residents live below the poverty line.
| New Berlin | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 4.1% | 6.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $101,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 15% | 12% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
16 within 15 miles of the center of New Berlin
About 4 of every 100 New Berlin residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
4 places in New Berlin on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in New Berlin.
City in Wisconsin
New Berlin () is a city in eastern Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 40,451 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with New Berlin.
West Allis next door grades lower for schools (D to New Berlin’s A) and higher for cost of living (B− to C−).
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Berlin | #52 | A | C− | B+ | A | A |
| Muskego | #43 | A | C− | B+ | A+ | A |
| Brookfield | #40 | A | D | B+ | A | A |
| Waukesha | — | — | A | — | B− | — |
| Vernon | — | — | A− | — | A | — |
| West Allis | #308 | C+ | B− | C | D | B |
| Hales Corners | #54 | A | C− | B+ | A− | A− |
| Brookfield | #146 | B+ | D | — | A− | A |
Waukesha, Vernon and Brookfield report no FBI crime data of their own. Waukesha and Vernon aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare New Berlin with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. New Berlin grades A overall, better than 90% of U.S. towns and #52 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades A for health, B+ for safety and A 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−.
3 notable people were born here, including T. J. Bray and William Henry Seaman.
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