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Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Eau Claire is a small city of about 72,000 people in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin. It's the county seat. It has grown about 4% since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.7 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Minneapolis, is about 87 miles away as the crow flies.

County seatSmall city

Population
72,465
up 4.3% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$247,600
Eau Claire County prices up 20% since 2022
Household income
$67,395
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Eau Claire area
92.8
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Mayo Clinic Health System Eau Claire Hospital
To Minneapolis
87 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 7.2% below the U.S. average in the Eau Claire metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.7 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood123 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 17.7 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town24 public schools: 14 elementary, 4 middle, 3 high schools and 3 other.
  • A hospital close byMayo Clinic Health System Eau Claire Hospital is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityMinneapolis is about 87 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Eau Claire meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$247,600U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 20%Eau Claire County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,045 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$67,395U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
54%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,553 a yearWisconsin: $3,792
Homes built before 1940
17%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
9%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
92.8U.S. average = 100 (the Eau Claire metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 20% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Eau Claire metro area, not Eau Claire alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
72,4652020: 69,492
Median age
32.9 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
16%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
18%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
37%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
13%U.S.: 6%
College students
13%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (27%); retail (18%); manufacturing (11%)
Unemployment rate
3%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
17 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
12%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
14%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Mayo Clinic Health System Eau Claire Hospital, Eau Claire, WI, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 5 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

24 public schools in Eau Claire, run by Eau Claire Area School District and Altoona School District.

Colleges in or next to town: University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (10,000 to 19,999 students); Chippewa Valley Technical College (5,000 to 9,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Wisconsin's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
76%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
91%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
8°F
July average high
82°F
Days 90°F or hotter
8 a year
Nights at or below freezing
148 a year
Rain and melted snow
32.8 inches a year
Snow
54 inches a year
Elevation
874 feet

Weather station: Eau Claire 3SW (2 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: La Crosse, Minneapolis.

Eau Claire County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

64 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Confluence Commercial Historic District, the Eau Claire Park Company Addition Historic District, the Emery Street Bungalow District and the Randall Park Historic District.

Campus life. Check University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Eau Claire's history on Wikipedia.

Know Eau Claire?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Seymour, WI (unincorporated)1,531 people, 3 miles
  • Rock Falls, WI (unincorporated)169 people, 12 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.