Side-by-side relocation research with housing, income, commute, career, lifestyle, and friction signals. Green marks the strongest metric in each row; red marks the weakest.
Madison, WI
Home
$429,253
Rent
$1,697/mo
Income
$78,050
Pop.
285,300
Career
97
Remote
51
Waukesha, WI
Home
$419,399
Rent
$1,543/mo
Income
$83,837
Pop.
71,461
Career
80
Remote
44
Wausau, WI
Home
$243,982
Rent
$1,007/mo
Income
$64,389
Pop.
40,262
Career
76
Remote
42
| Metric | Madison, WI | Waukesha, WI | Wausau, WI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 285,300 | 71,461 | 40,262 |
| Population growth / yr | +1.4% | +0.1% | +0.2% |
| Median home value | $429,253 | $419,399 | $243,982 |
| Median rent | $1,697/mo | $1,543/mo | $1,007/mo |
| Median household income | $78,050 | $83,837 | $64,389 |
| Home value YoY | +2.2% | +5.4% | +8.7% |
| 5-year home CAGR | +5.8% | +6.5% | +8.3% |
| Off 5-year peak | -0.0% | +0.0% | +0.0% |
| Momentum score | 71 | 73 | 79 |
| Career fit | 97 | 80 | 76 |
| Remote-work fit | 51 | 44 | 42 |
| Average commute | 21 min | 23 min | 17 min |
| Traffic friction | 33 | 34 | 21 |
| Public transit gap | 63 | 96 | 95 |
| Outdoors fit | 33 | 33 | 33 |
| Dating scene proxy | 66 | 37 | 27 |
Best-fit read
- Wausau, WI tends to score better for lower purchase budget.
- Wausau, WI tends to score better for lower rent.
- Waukesha, WI tends to score better for higher local income.
- Madison, WI tends to score better for career momentum.
- Madison, WI tends to score better for remote-work fit.
Use this next
Open the city profiles for neighborhood, market, and state context, or build a custom comparison with different cities.