Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With a B+ overall, Oconomowoc is better than nearly three quarters of U.S. towns. It ranks 145th of 357 in Wisconsin. Where it does best is incomes: the median household earns $115K. Schools are another plus — its schools outperform 88% of the state's. The trade-off is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $466K, 6 years of the Milwaukee metro’s $78K median household income. The town has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Okauchee House and Walter L. Peck House. The biggest park or preserve is Pondview Park, at 39 acres.
Figures: incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · National Register of Historic Places · OpenStreetMap.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Oconomowoc is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for jobs and income (better than 96% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 14%), so the B+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Where Oconomowoc beats most towns.
Census counts: 699 in 1860, 18,203 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1872 and 4 maps from 1892 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Oconomowoc’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Ordered by what stands out in Oconomowoc.
Oconomowoc owes part of its health edge to its incomes, pairs an A for schools with high home prices and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Wisconsin.
That grade comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $466K.
Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran School PrivateLargest elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 19 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
Against the 6,483 U.S. towns with household incomes like Oconomowoc’s, it is healthier than 65%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
11% of adults smoke cigarettes in Oconomowoc. The town beats the Wisconsin average on 15 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. Among adults in the town, 21% binge drink, above both the Wisconsin town median (20%) and the median of U.S. towns (16%). Two figures for adults in the town: 14% report frequent mental distress, 29% feel lonely.
| Oconomowoc | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 20% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 17% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 33% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 36% |
| What stands out | Oconomowoc | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.9% | 12.1% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.6% | 8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.9% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here grew from 957 in 2013 to 1,749.
Since 2013, Oconomowoc has added 792 jobs, to 1,749 in 2023. Most working residents leave Oconomowoc for work: only 4% work in town. Among workers in the town, 17% work from home, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 12% and U.S. towns at 11%. The top destinations are Milwaukee (11%), Oconomowoc (11%) and Waukesha (7%).
| Oconomowoc | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $115,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 17% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 4% | 6.4% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.8% | 8.4% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Oconomowoc Wwtp weather station records that 40 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 79% of Wisconsin places with climate records. July afternoons average 82°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 78% of Wisconsin places with climate records; January nights average 11.6°.
The typical July afternoon high for Oconomowoc comes to 82°F.
| Oconomowoc | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 12°F | 11°F | 22°F |
| July high | 82°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Trails total 5.8 miles in 5 parks and preserves. The trail network density in Oconomowoc is 0.2 miles per square mile.
| Oconomowoc | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.7% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pondview Park | — | 39 |
| 2. Nature Hill Preserve | 0.2 mi | 16 |
| 3. Okauchee Lions Park | — | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Among 188 Wisconsin towns, just 7 have a lower rate of thefts and burglaries than Oconomowoc. Oconomowoc's reported crime rate is well below Wisconsin's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. No violent crimes were reported in 2023.
| Oconomowoc | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2023) | 1.2 per 1,000 residents | 8.9 | 13.1 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2023) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 1.3 | 1.8 |
FBI crime data, 2023 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in just over half of U.S. communities. The national flood insurance program has paid one claim in Oconomowoc since 2008.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Who provides power, water and the rest in Oconomowoc, 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.
3 within 15 miles of the center of Oconomowoc
About 4 of every 100 Oconomowoc residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Wisconsin.
15 notable people were born in Oconomowoc.
City in Wisconsin, United States
Oconomowoc ( ə-KON-ə-mə-wok) is a city in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 18,203 at the 2020 census. The city is next to the Village of Lac La Belle and near the village of Oconomowoc Lake.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Oconomowoc.
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oconomowoc | #145 | B+ | D | — | A | A− |
| Oconomowoc | #62 | A | D | A | A | A− |
| Lac La Belle | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Okauchee Lake | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Oconomowoc Lake | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Merton | #94 | A− | D | — | A+ | A |
| Ixonia | #56 | A | B− | — | A− | B+ |
| Ashippun | #150 | B+ | C | — | A | B+ |
Oconomowoc, Merton, Ixonia and Ashippun report no FBI crime data of their own. Lac La Belle, Okauchee Lake and Oconomowoc Lake aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Oconomowoc with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Oconomowoc grades B+ overall, better than 74% of U.S. towns and #145 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades A− for health and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
15 notable people were born here, including Jane Wiedlin and Darrell Foss.
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