TainterWI
A town of 2,690, settled in 1880.
What should you know before moving to Tainter?
Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 97% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades C, 322nd among Wisconsin's 357 graded towns. Its weakest subject is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 75% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Only 78 of Wisconsin’s 879 towns score lower on history. Tainter’s January low is 5°F, below both Wisconsin’s towns (11°F) and U.S. towns (22°F). The biggest place to walk is Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area, 400 acres with 6.6 miles of trail.
Tainter has grown 17% since 2010
2,319 counted in 2010 and 2,643 in 2020; an estimated 2,690 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How Tainter grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far Tainter is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Tainter: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tainter, 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Tainter.
Tainter sends most of its workers to Menomonie and beyond and owes part of its health edge to its incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Wisconsin (mostly inland flooding).
| Tainter | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.5% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area | 6.6 mi | 400 |
| 2. Red Cedar River Savanna State Natural Area | — | 259 |
| 3. Russian Slough | 0.1 mi | 68 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Most working residents commute out of Tainter
Tainter has 191 jobs for its 1,272 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Tainter for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Tainter grew to 191 in 2023, 45 more than in 2013. Tainter’s median household income is $103,000.
| Tainter | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $103,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.3% | 8.4% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.2% | 6.3% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
In Tainter, the FEMA risk score runs higher than in the typical Wisconsin or U.S. town
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 97% of Wisconsin towns, with expected losses of about $1,686 per resident a year; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
Only 10 of the 362 Wisconsin towns we compare have a higher FEMA risk score than Tainter.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Tainter has snowy winters and pleasant summers
Tainter has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 5° and about 41 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Fewer young adults than Wisconsin overall
Adults 18 to 34 are 17% of residents (22% statewide); children under 18 are 26% of residents (21% statewide). 41% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Tainter. Tainter has grown 2.2% since 2020, to 2,690 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Tainter | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 26% | 21% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 41% | 32% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 22% | 20% | 18% |
| Median age | 39 years | 42.1 years | 40.5 years |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
42% women, 58% men
About 136 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3.1 points). Across Wisconsin, 49.9% of residents are women.
| Tainter | WI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13.8% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.4% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.1% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.9% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.2% | 12.7% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.4% | 11.8% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.7% | 13.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.2% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.3% | 7.3% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.4% | 6.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 21.9% | 29.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.9% | 19.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.4% | 11.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 25.7% | 22% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.7% | 11.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,700, single groups can be off by several points
On CDC estimates, Tainter is healthier than 58% of U.S. towns
Against the 8,173 U.S. towns with household incomes like Tainter’s, it is less healthy than 65%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
Tainter tracks Wisconsin closely on all 32 CDC measures. 40% of Tainter adults have obesity.
| Tainter | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 38% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 30% | 33% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 32% | 36% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Everything we know about Tainter
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Tainter
About 6 of every 100 Tainter residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Wisconsin.
98% of working residents leave Tainter for work
Where Tainter’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Tainter’s neighbors
4 towns share a border with Tainter.
| Town | WI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tainter | #322 | C | C | — | B | B |
| Colfax | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Tainter Lake | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sherman | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Otter Creek | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Tainter reports no FBI crime data of its own. Colfax, Tainter Lake, Sherman and Otter Creek aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Tainter with a neighbor →
Questions about Tainter
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Tainter, WI a good place to live?
Tainter grades C overall, better than 31% of U.S. towns and #322 of 357 in Wisconsin. It grades B for health and B for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Tainter, 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.