The book's checklist
- Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 10.4% below the U.S. average in the parts of Wisconsin outside metro areas.
- More house for the moneyA typical home costs 4.2 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
- A safer neighborhood63 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 3.9 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 7.3 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
- Schools in town6 public schools: 3 elementary, 1 middle, 1 high school and 1 other.
- A hospital close byFort Memorial Hospital in Fort Atkinson, about 8 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
- Within reach of a big cityMilwaukee is about 42 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 Whitewater 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.
What kind of town
College town. About 42% of residents are college students, with University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in town. Concerts, sports and good food all year, and a big employer that rarely closes. Expect higher home prices close to campus.
The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.
For a lifetime
Homes and money
- Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
- $229,400U.S.: $332,700
- Home prices since then
- Up 25%Walworth County, 2022 to 2025
- Typical rent, with utilities
- $1,041 a monthU.S.: $1,413
- Typical household income
- $54,969U.S.: $80,734
- Homes owned by the people living in them
- 32%U.S.: 65%
- Typical property tax bill
- $3,869 a yearWisconsin: $3,792
- Homes built before 1940
- 12%U.S.: 12%
- Homes built since 2010
- 9%U.S.: 11%
- Vacation and seasonal homes
- 1%U.S.: 3%
- Everyday prices
- 89.6U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Wisconsin outside metro areas)
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 25% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Wisconsin outside metro areas, not Whitewater 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
- 16,0382020: 16,134
- Median age
- 22.1 yearsU.S.: 38.9
- Age 65 and older
- 10%U.S.: 17%
- Under 18
- 11%U.S.: 22%
- Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
- 35%U.S.: 36%
- Moved here from another county or state in the past year
- 27%U.S.: 6%
- College students
- 42%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 (29%); retail (17%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (17%)
- Unemployment rate
- 5%U.S.: 5%
- Average commute
- 17 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
- Work from home
- 9%U.S.: 15%
- Below the poverty line
- 27%U.S.: 12%
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Health care
Nearest emergency room: Fort Memorial Hospital, Fort Atkinson, WI, about 8 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 4 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
6 public schools in Whitewater, run by Whitewater Unified School District.
Colleges in or next to town: University of Wisconsin-Whitewater (10,000 to 19,999 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
- 65%U.S.: 76%
- Homes with any internet subscription
- 76%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
- 12°F
- July average high
- 82°F
- Days 90°F or hotter
- 9 a year
- Nights at or below freezing
- 152 a year
- Rain and melted snow
- 36.2 inches a year
- Snow
- 34 inches a year
- Elevation
- 810 feet
Weather station: Whitewater (1 mile 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: Fort Memorial Hospital, Janesville, Milwaukee.
Walworth County is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 4, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).
For a day
8 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Main Street Historic District.
National Park Service sites within about an hour:
- Ice Age National Scenic Trail47 miles
Campus life. Check University of Wisconsin-Whitewater's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.
Read about Whitewater's history on Wikipedia.
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
- Palmyra, WI1,700 people, 8 miles
- Fort Atkinson, WI12,400 people, 8 miles
- Milton, WI6,000 people, 11 miles
- Jefferson, WI7,800 people, 12 miles
- Eagle, WI2,100 people, 14 miles
- Elkhorn, WI10,000 people, 15 miles
Smaller places
- Hebron, WI (unincorporated)344 people, 6 miles
- Lake Lorraine, WI (unincorporated)284 people, 7 miles
- Turtle Lake, WI (unincorporated)327 people, 8 miles
- Lauderdale Lakes, WI (unincorporated)1,469 people, 9 miles
- Lake Koshkonong, WI (unincorporated)1,010 people, 11 miles
- Rome, WI (unincorporated)620 people, 11 miles
- Sullivan, WI663 people, 14 miles
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
- 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
- FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
- 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
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
- U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
- National Park Service, park unit boundaries
- USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
- 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.