Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,288, settled in 1856. 61% more nonprofits per person than the typical Wisconsin town.
Trash & recyclingWest Salem is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades A− overall, 118th of 357 graded towns in Wisconsin, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its public schools beat 81% of Wisconsin towns on state tests and graduation. It also does better than most on health: CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 77% of the country. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $374K for a typical one and 5.1 times the La Crosse metro’s $73K median household income. 46% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in West Salem, where Wisconsin’s towns sit at 32% and U.S. towns at 29%. West Salem has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Hamlin Garland House and Palmer Brother's Octagons. West Salem's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 82% of U.S. towns.
Where West Salem beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| West Salem Elementary | PK–4 | 677 |
| Christ-St. John's Lutheran School | PK–8 | 94 |
| West Salem Middle | 5–8 | 534 |
4,799 counted in 2010 and 5,277 in 2020; an estimated 5,288 in 2025.
Growth has leveled off: within 1% of 2020, after 10% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Wisconsin), ordered by how far West Salem is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Hamlin Garland House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 432 in 1880, 5,277 in 2020. The archive holds 11 old photos and papers going back to 2009 and 5 maps from 1927 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in West Salem, 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 West Salem.
West Salem is safe by national standards but not by Wisconsin’s and has cooler summers than most of the country, though not than most of Wisconsin.
Its public schools are run by the West Salem School District. Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is West Salem High, with 603 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Salem ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 677 | B |
| West Salem HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 603 | B |
| West Salem MiddleTop results in townGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 534 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WI on state tests and graduation
14% of adults report frequent mental distress in West Salem. West Salem beats the Wisconsin average on 6 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 80% of adults had a checkup this year in West Salem.
| West Salem | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 17% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 80% | 78% | 79% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | West Salem | WI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.1% | 12.1% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.7% | 8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.8% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 78% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in West Salem since 2019.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
July afternoons average 82.5°: cooler than most of the country, but hotter than 90% of Wisconsin places with climate records; January nights average 8.1°.
West Salem has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. West Salem’s January low is 8°F. About 43 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| West Salem | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 8°F | 11°F | 22°F |
| July high | 83°F | 82°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave West Salem for work: only 15% work in town. The average trip to work in West Salem is 20 minutes. Jobs based in West Salem grew to 2,965 in 2023, 161 more than in 2013.
| West Salem | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 8.2% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $97,000 | $87,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 8.6% | 6.3% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 14.7 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 53% of Wisconsin’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 61 to 34 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Typical home values rose 5.8% in the year to September 2026.
| West Salem | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 78% | 74% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,283 a month | $1,076 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
0.5 miles of trail in 7 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Neshonoc South county park, at 63 acres.
| West Salem | Wisconsin towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.1% | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Neshonoc South county park | — | 63 |
| 2. Lewis Point Park | — | 14 |
| 3. Village Park | — | 5 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
3 within 15 miles of the center of West Salem
About 5 of every 100 West Salem residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Wisconsin.
3 notable people were born in West Salem.
Village in Wisconsin, United States
West Salem is a village in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, along the La Crosse River. It is part of the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,277 as of the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. It grades A− for health, B for safety and A− for schools.
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 Hamlin Garland and Harry W. Griswold.
