City · La Crosse County, Wisconsin

La Crosse, Wisconsin

La Crosse is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, part of the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN metro area. It has 51,356 residents. La Crosse, Wisconsin has a quality-of-life score of 83 out of 100 (very high), ranking #2,594 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Wisconsin it ranks #198 of 396 cities and towns. It ranks best on mammography screening (high), primary care physicians (high) and flu vaccinations (high). It ranks worst on child care cost burden (high), distance to an airport (high) and new business applications (low).

83Very high

Quality-of-life score: #2,594 of 15,651 cities and towns
Wisconsin: #198 of 396 in WI
Population: 51,356 (2020-2024)
Land area: 22 mi²
Density: 2,365.8 /mi²
FIPS code: 5540775

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.

Safety60#6,211/15,637
Economy22#12,259/15,631
Housing57#6,495/14,977
Health45#8,651/15,609
Healthcare96#584/15,650
Environment98#361/15,453
Education87#2,073/15,649
Infrastructure60#6,311/15,650
Community95#799/15,651
Leisure & amenities85#2,406/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where La Crosse, Wisconsin ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “La Crosse 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

Mammography screening · high62.0%
99/100Wisconsin 53.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLa Crosse County value
Primary care physicians · high144 /100k
99/100Wisconsin 82 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLa Crosse County value
Flu vaccinations · high59.0%
98/100Wisconsin 50.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLa Crosse County value
Average commute time · low15.9 min
97/100Wisconsin 22.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
High school diploma or higher · high96.1%
96/100Wisconsin 93.6%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Distance to an Amtrak station · low5 mi
96/100Wisconsin 40 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauLa Crosse County value

Weaknesses

Child care cost burden · high41.4%
5/100Wisconsin 30.9%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLa Crosse County value
Distance to an airport · high106 mi
9/100Wisconsin 37 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauLa Crosse County value
New business applications · low8.3 /1k
9/100Wisconsin 12.0 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauLa Crosse County value
Poverty rate · high21.4%
11/100Wisconsin 10.3%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Effective property tax rate · high1.81%
11/100Wisconsin 1.32%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Property crime rate · high1,987 /100k
14/100Wisconsin 1,017 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationLa Crosse County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
1.9 /1k (2021) → 0.3 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−85%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
81.6% (2015-2019) → 88.4% (2020-2024)
+6.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$45,233 (2015-2019) → $55,866 (2020-2024)
+24%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Home price to income ratioWorsening
3.2× (2015-2019) → 3.8× (2020-2024)
+19%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
50.3% (2015-2019) → 47.2% (2020-2024)
−3.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
93.9% (2015-2019) → 96.1% (2020-2024)
+2.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

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, La Crosse, Wisconsin improved on 3 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 11 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

Property tax−0.5 points2.30% → 1.81%
Broadband+6.7 points81.6% → 88.4%
Household income+24%$45,233 → $55,866

Declined1

Price / income+0.6×3.2× → 3.8×

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of La Crosse, Wisconsin between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.8 min2015-2019	15.9 min2020-2024	+0.1 min	Within the margin of error	46%
Bachelor's degree or higher	35.5%2015-2019	34.9%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Within the margin of error	24%
Broadband subscriptions	81.6%2015-2019	88.4%2020-2024	+6.7 points	Improved	42%
Child poverty rate	15.2%2015-2019	14.3%2020-2024	−0.9 points	Within the margin of error	50%
Effective property tax rate	2.30%2015-2019	1.81%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Improved	90%
High school diploma or higher	93.9%2015-2019	96.1%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	3.8×2020-2024	+0.6×	Declined	41%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4812015-2019	0.4542020-2024	−0.026	Within the margin of error	72%
Median household income	$45,2332015-2019	$55,8662020-2024	+24%	Improved	41%
Poverty rate	23.0%2015-2019	21.4%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	59%
Public transit commuters	1.6%2015-2019	1.8%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	97%
Rent as share of income	30.2%2015-2019	28.9%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	65%
Rent-burdened households	50.3%2015-2019	47.2%2020-2024	−3.2 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Unemployment rate	4.3%2015-2019	3.7%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	6.2%2015-2019	5.9%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	50%

“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 La Crosse, Wisconsin five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of La Crosse, 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, La Crosse, Wisconsin itself moved +2.6 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

51,356 residents (±92)

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

22,965 households (±550)

La Crosse, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Under $25k20%4,651
$25k–50k25%5,726
$50k–75k19%4,381

Homes

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

Owners and renters

22,965 households (±550)

La Crosse, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Own46%10,594
Rent54%12,371

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

27,638 workers (±917)

La Crosse, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Drive alone69%19,035
Carpool8.0%2,221
Public transit1.8%†497

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN

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 La Crosse County, the county holding most of La Crosse's residents.

La Crosse County has 3,151 employer establishments, 261 for every 10,000 residents (1.05× the US rate of 248; 1.07× Wisconsin's), with 66,633 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,291. The Census Bureau also counts 7,633 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,151; 7,633 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 261; US 248 · Wisconsin 244
Paid employees: 66,633
Average annual pay: $56,291; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	224	18.6	1.01×About typical	5,083	$18,034	18
Specialty trade contractors	211	17.5	1.13×About typical	1,911	$68,061	462
Ambulatory health care services	205	17	0.81×About typical	5,157	$93,810	321
Lessors of real estate	143	11.8	0.96×About typical	448	$47,920	932
Limited-service restaurants	95	7.9	0.98×About typical	1,894	$18,778	9
Services to buildings and dwellings	92	7.6	1.13×About typical	1,041	$52,073	328
Full-service restaurants	91	7.5	0.98×About typical	2,605	$18,603	8
Construction of buildings	90	7.5	0.99×About typical	710	$72,317	249
Offices of other health practitioners	87	7.2	1.19×About typical	579	$44,197	178
Religious organizations	84	7	1.25×More than typical	1,015	$26,433	—
Building equipment contractors	80	6.6	1.10×About typical	958	$76,185	62
Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)	79	6.5	5.40×More than typical	686	$14,472	8

Rank places for an industry Open La Crosse County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 120,719 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 $366.6M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in La Crosse, Wisconsin: $7,138 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $366.6M; −24% vs FY2025
Per resident: $7,138; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.2%; US 30%
Single offer: 8.3%; 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

Department of Veterans Affairs$351.6M96%
Food and Drug Administration$5.7M1.6%
Defense Health Agency$2.1M0.6%
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention$2M0.6%
Agricultural Marketing Service$1.6M0.4%
Defense Logistics Agency$1.1M0.3%
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources$1.1M0.3%
U.S. Geological Survey$873.6K0.2%

Top recipients

OPTUMSERVE HEALTH SERVICES, INC.$356M97%
THE LEWIN GROUP, INC.$6.6M1.8%
GREAT LAKES CHEESE CO INC$1.6M0.4%
ORC INDUSTRIES, INC.$1M0.3%
DS DESIGNS LLC$306.1K0.1%
AUNJERIKA BELL

Spending by fiscal year

49.7MFY2017
85.1MFY2018
90.1MFY2019
89.8MFY2020
148MFY2021
137.8MFY2022
139.4MFY2023
1.8B

Top industries (NAICS)

Offices of physicians · 6211$353.7M96%
Data processing, hosting, and related services · 5182$5.7M1.6%
Outpatient care centers · 6214$2M0.6%
Dairy product manufacturing · 3115$1.6M0.4%
Cut and sew apparel manufacturing · 3152$1M0.3%
Management, scientific, and technical consulting services · 5416

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in La Crosse, Wisconsin

BEST 3 TASK ORDER; HEALTH CARE DATA SOURCES FOR SURVEILLANCE OF BIOLOGICS. EO 14398$7.8M
THE LEWIN GROUP, INC.· La Crosse County, WI· Professional services· Sep 25, 2026 – Sep 25, 2026· 75F40126F19002
PROJECTS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE: COMMUNITY COLLABORATIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM CCE AND LIVING WELL GRANT PROGRAM EVALUATION$3.5M
THE LEWIN GROUP, INC.· La Crosse County, WI· Professional services· Sep 30, 2022 – Aug 10, 2026· 75P00122F37008
DISABILITY EMPLOYMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER (DETAC) 2.0$1.3M
THE LEWIN GROUP, INC.· La Crosse County, WI· Professional services· Sep 29, 2025 – Aug 14, 2026· 75P00125F80134

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 La Crosse, Wisconsin, so they do not add up across cities.

La Crosse, Wisconsin's figures are part of those of La Crosse County, WI ($1.9B in FY2026), never added to them: 19% of that total.

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

See federal money in La Crosse 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.

La Crosse, Wisconsin is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Derrick Van OrdenR-WI-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 8.3%

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.

La Crosse County96100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN95

Other cities and towns in La Crosse 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/5540775

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends