City · Monroe County, Wisconsin

Tomah, Wisconsin

Tomah is a city in Monroe County, Wisconsin, part of the Sparta, WI metro area. It has 9,532 residents. Tomah, Wisconsin has a quality-of-life score of 57 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,714 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Wisconsin it ranks #370 of 396 cities and towns. It ranks best on preventable hospital stays (low), hospital quality rating (high) and mammography screening (high). It ranks worst on adult obesity (high), pharmacies (low) and arts, entertainment and recreation (low).

57Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,714 of 15,651 cities and towns
Wisconsin: #370 of 396 in WI
Population: 9,532 (2020-2024)
Land area: 8 mi²
Density: 1,210.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 5580075

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.

Safety65#5,515/15,637
Economy20#12,449/15,631
Housing76#3,612/14,977
Health36#9,947/15,609
Healthcare65#5,451/15,650
Environment78#3,389/15,453
Education45#8,601/15,649
Infrastructure43#8,948/15,650
Community65#5,555/15,651
Leisure & amenities47#8,286/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Preventable hospital stays · low1,241 /100k
99/100Wisconsin 2,596 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMonroe County value
Hospital quality rating · high5.0
98/100Wisconsin 3.8United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMonroe County value
Mammography screening · high59.0%
98/100Wisconsin 53.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMonroe County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low93 min
98/100Wisconsin 140 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMonroe County value
Restaurants and bars · high14.0 /10k
93/100Wisconsin 12.7 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMonroe County value
Average commute time · low16.9 min
93/100Wisconsin 22.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Adult obesity · high44.8%
5/100Wisconsin 39.2%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Pharmacies · low0.9 /10k
10/100Wisconsin 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMonroe County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · low2.2 /10k
13/100Wisconsin 4.8 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMonroe County value
Days with unhealthy air · high3.0%
14/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMonroe County value
Distance to an airport · high86 mi
15/100Wisconsin 37 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauMonroe County value
Median household income · low$51,274
17/100Wisconsin $77,557United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013

Trends

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

Child poverty rateWorsening
5.4% (2015-2019) → 29.6% (2020-2024)
+24 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
79.1% (2015-2019) → 88.2% (2020-2024)
+9.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.3× (2015-2019) → 3.4× (2020-2024)
+45%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Poverty rateWorsening
8.8% (2015-2019) → 16.7% (2020-2024)
+7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
35.8% (2015-2019) → 43.5% (2020-2024)
+7.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
23.0% (2015-2019) → 27.7% (2020-2024)
+4.7 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, Tomah, Wisconsin improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 4. 8 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.

Improved2

Property tax−0.6 points2.09% → 1.49%
Broadband+9.1 points79.1% → 88.2%

Declined4

Child poverty+24 points5.4% → 29.6%
Poverty+7.9 points8.8% → 16.7%
Inequality+0.0530.397 → 0.450
Price / income+1.1×2.3× → 3.4×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Tomah, Wisconsin between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.1 min2015-2019	16.9 min2020-2024	+1.8 min	Within the margin of error	29%
Bachelor's degree or higher	23.9%2015-2019	24.2%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	29%
Broadband subscriptions	79.1%2015-2019	88.2%2020-2024	+9.1 points	Improved	55%
Child poverty rate	5.4%2015-2019	29.6%2020-2024	+24 points	Declined	3%
Effective property tax rate	2.09%2015-2019	1.49%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Improved	94%
High school diploma or higher	92.7%2015-2019	90.7%2020-2024	−2 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	3.4×2020-2024	+1.1×	Declined	20%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3972015-2019	0.4502020-2024	+0.053	Declined	15%
Median household income	$51,5202015-2019	$51,2742020-2024	−0.5%	Within the margin of error	7%
Poverty rate	8.8%2015-2019	16.7%2020-2024	+7.9 points	Declined	7%
Rent as share of income	23.0%2015-2019	27.7%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Within the margin of error	24%
Rent-burdened households	35.8%2015-2019	43.5%2020-2024	+7.7 points	Within the margin of error	29%
Unemployment rate	4.1%2015-2019	4.3%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	45%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	6.8%2015-2019	6.3%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Within the margin of error	53%

“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 Tomah, Wisconsin five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Tomah, 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, Tomah, Wisconsin itself moved −15.3 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

9,532 residents (±33)

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

4,453 households (±235)

Tomah, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Under $25k20%905
$25k–50k27%1,190
$50k–75k19%861

Homes

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

Owners and renters

4,453 households (±235)

Tomah, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Own55%2,457
Rent45%1,996

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+9.7 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

4,415 workers (±401)

Tomah, Wisconsin
Wisconsin share

Drive alone87%3,852
Carpool5.2%†231
Public transit0.0%0

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 Sparta, WI

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 Monroe County, the county holding most of Tomah's residents.

Monroe County has 967 employer establishments, 209 for every 10,000 residents (0.84× the US rate of 248; 0.86× Wisconsin's), with 16,790 paid employees at an average annual pay of $57,206. The Census Bureau also counts 2,792 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 967; 2,792 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 209; US 248 · Wisconsin 244
Paid employees: 16,790
Average annual pay: $57,206; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	76	16.4	1.06×About typical	466	$81,966	253
Restaurants and other eating places	68	14.7	0.80×About typical	1,140	$17,306	4
Truck transportation	46	9.9	1.97×More than typical	952	$67,471	101
Ambulatory health care services	43	9.3	0.45×Fewer than typical	627	$72,526	59
Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)	37	8	6.60×More than typical	208	$13,635	8
Religious organizations	35	7.6	1.36×More than typical	247	$20,567	—
Full-service restaurants	34	7.4	0.96×About typical	346	$16,364	—
Building equipment contractors	33	7.1	1.19×About typical	173	$63,665	41
Lessors of real estate	27	5.8	0.47×Fewer than typical	97	$48,443	313
Gasoline stations	25	5.4	1.67×More than typical	438	$28,655	3
Limited-service restaurants	25	5.4	0.67×Fewer than typical	657	$18,699	—
Insurance agencies and brokerages	24	5.2	1.18×About typical	66	$72,091	32

Rank places for an industry Open Monroe County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 46,246 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 $495.4K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Tomah, Wisconsin: $51.97 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $495.4K; −24% vs FY2025
Per resident: $51.97; US $1,994
Sole-source: 19%; US 30%
Single offer: 26%; 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$493.4K99.6%
Department of the Army$2,0510.4%

Top recipients

U.S. VET GENERAL CONTRACTING, LLC$77.2K16%
RICHARD GROUP LLC$75K15%
PENN CONSTRUCTION GROUP, INCORPORATED$59.3K12%
VETERANS FIRE AND LIFE SAFETY CORPORATION$29.5K6.0%
BLUE PACIFIC JV LLC$27.9K5.6%

Spending by fiscal year

839.2KFY2017
1.1MFY2018
740.7KFY2019
718.7KFY2020
1.5MFY2021
3.1MFY2022
1.3MFY2023
1.4M

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonresidential building construction · 2362$199.9K40%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$79.6K16%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$52.9K11%
Computer systems design and related services · 5415$24.6K5.0%
Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$21.3K4.3%

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 Tomah, Wisconsin, so they do not add up across cities.

Tomah, Wisconsin's figures are part of those of Monroe County, WI ($85.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.6% of that total.

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

See federal money in Monroe 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.

Tomah, Wisconsin is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Monroe County74100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Sparta, WI71

Other cities and towns in Monroe 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/5580075

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends