City · Vilas County, Wisconsin

Eagle River, Wisconsin

Eagle River is a city in Vilas County, Wisconsin. It has 1,528 residents. Eagle River, Wisconsin has a quality-of-life score of 84 out of 100 (very high), ranking #2,463 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Wisconsin it ranks #193 of 396 cities and towns. It ranks best on restaurants and bars (high), violent crime rate (low) and rent-burdened households (low). It ranks worst on comfortable days (low), public EV charging ports (low) and distance to an airport (high).

84Very high

Quality-of-life score: #2,463 of 15,651 cities and towns
Wisconsin: #193 of 396 in WI
Population: 1,528 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 469.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 5521625

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety85#2,410/15,637
Economy29#11,026/15,631
Housing96#660/14,977
Health42#9,058/15,609
Healthcare70#4,716/15,650
Environment96#587/15,453
Education71#4,540/15,649
Infrastructure30#10,980/15,650
Community100#22/15,651
Leisure & amenities93#1,059/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Eagle River, Wisconsin ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Vilas County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Restaurants and bars · high40.0 /10k
100/100Wisconsin 12.7 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsVilas County value
Violent crime rate · low18 /100k
100/100Wisconsin 240 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationVilas County value
Rent-burdened households · low26.1%
100/100Wisconsin 43.7%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Mammography screening · high61.0%
99/100Wisconsin 53.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVilas County value
Hot days · low1 days
98/100Wisconsin 4 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationVilas County value
New homes permitted · high36.0 /1k
98/100Wisconsin 4.4 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data

Weaknesses

Comfortable days · low21.7%
2/100Wisconsin 24.0%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationVilas County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Wisconsin 4.0 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyVilas County value
Distance to an airport · high129 mi
4/100Wisconsin 37 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauVilas County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high147 mi
5/100Wisconsin 40 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauVilas County value
Average weekly wage · low$909
6/100Wisconsin $1,272United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsVilas County value
Injury deaths · high131 /100k
9/100Wisconsin 101 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVilas County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,626 (2015-2019) → 1,528 (2020-2024)
−6%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
9.2 /1k (2021) → 36.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+292%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
53.1% (2015-2019) → 26.1% (2020-2024)
−27 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$31,154 (2015-2019) → $55,179 (2020-2024)
+77%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateImproving
25.6% (2015-2019) → 14.4% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
31.3% (2015-2019) → 21.2% (2020-2024)
−10 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Eagle River, Wisconsin improved on 3 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 7 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved3

Household income+77%$31,154 → $55,179
Rent burden−27 points53.1% → 26.1%
Rent / income−10 points31.3% → 21.2%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Eagle River, Wisconsin between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	13.6 min2015-2019	18.2 min2020-2024	+4.6 min	Within the margin of error	11%
Bachelor's degree or higher	23.3%2015-2019	23.4%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	28%
Broadband subscriptions	78.5%2015-2019	83.7%2020-2024	+5.3 points	Within the margin of error	33%
Effective property tax rate	1.32%2015-2019	0.98%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	79%
High school diploma or higher	88.6%2015-2019	94.1%2020-2024	+5.5 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Home price to income ratio	3.7×2015-2019	3.9×2020-2024	+0.1×	Within the margin of error	71%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4782015-2019	0.4072020-2024	−0.071	Within the margin of error	91%
Median household income	$31,1542015-2019	$55,1792020-2024	+77%	Improved	96%
Rent as share of income	31.3%2015-2019	21.2%2020-2024	−10 points	Improved	93%
Rent-burdened households	53.1%2015-2019	26.1%2020-2024	−27 points	Improved	97%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Eagle River, Wisconsin five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Eagle River, Wisconsin in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Eagle River, Wisconsin itself moved +18.3 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,528 residents (±225)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

732 households (±94)

Eagle River, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Under $25k14%†104
$25k–50k28%203
$50k–75k23%†172

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

732 households (±94)

Eagle River, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Own49%356
Rent51%376

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

644 workers (±132)

Eagle River, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Drive alone62%397
Carpool7.6%†49
Public transit0.6%†4

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Vilas County, the county holding most of Eagle River's residents.

Vilas County has 961 employer establishments, 403 for every 10,000 residents (1.62× the US rate of 248; 1.65× Wisconsin's), with 5,887 paid employees at an average annual pay of $41,294. The Census Bureau also counts 2,598 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 961; 2,598 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 403; US 248 · Wisconsin 244
Paid employees: 5,887
Average annual pay: $41,294; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Vilas County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	109	45.8	2.49×More than typical	879	$25,813	11
Specialty trade contractors	102	42.8	2.77×More than typical	237	$55,549	323
Full-service restaurants	83	34.8	4.54×More than typical	707	$25,686	6
Construction of buildings	59	24.8	3.28×More than typical	260	$52,231	198
Traveler accommodation	51	21.4	11.9×More than typical	751	$36,228	53
Services to buildings and dwellings	49	20.6	3.05×More than typical	146	$60,384	250
Landscaping services	32	13.4	3.83×More than typical	105	$68,010	85
Lessors of real estate	32	13.4	1.09×About typical	84	$37,976	339
Building equipment contractors	30	12.6	2.09×More than typical	117	$56,410	47
Other specialty trade contractors	29	12.2	4.85×More than typical	44	$67,659	107
Ambulatory health care services	27	11.3	0.54×Fewer than typical	140	$72,486	59
Religious organizations	27	11.3	2.04×More than typical	105	$20,314	—

Rank places for an industry Open Vilas County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 23,822 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $1,214 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Eagle River, Wisconsin: $0.79 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1,214; −75% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.79; US $1,994
Sole-source: 88%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Forest Service$1,07288%
Defense Logistics Agency$14212%

Top recipients

THE LIGHTHOUSE FOR THE BLIND$1,07288%
TOM J RIDDLE INC$14212%
GOLAT & ENGEL CUSTOM GRAVEL CRUSHING INC$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

3.1KFY2017
2.2KFY2018
3.8KFY2019
12.6KFY2020
7.5KFY2021
757.5FY2022
6.6KFY2023
3KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Paint, coating, and adhesive manufacturing · 3255$1,07288%
Hardware manufacturing · 3325$14212%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Eagle River, Wisconsin, so they do not add up across cities.

Eagle River, Wisconsin's figures are part of those of Vilas County, WI ($380.3K in FY2026), never added to them: 0.3% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Eagle River is mostly in Vilas County.

See federal money in Vilas County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Eagle River, Wisconsin is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Thomas P. TiffanyR-WI-7 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 10.4%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Vilas County94100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Vilas County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/5521625

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends