Janesville, Wisconsin

Area Profile

66,030 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Janesville, in Rock County.

63out of 100
Area Score
Top 35% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 16 sources
OpportunityTop 27% of 4,199 cities measured68
Schools2,758th of 4,162 cities measured37
GrowthTop 37% of 4,224 cities measured56
Housing affordabilityTop 14% of 4,218 cities measured80
Climate3,859th of 4,225 cities measured57
Physical resilienceTop 38% of 4,226 cities measured69
Access3,300th of 4,226 cities measured81
Economic stabilityTop 39% of 4,226 cities measured63
The quick read

Unemployment is 3.5% and median household income $73,446, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured.

In the public schools here, 35% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 12.8 students for every teacher.

Housing is more affordable relative to local incomes than in most cities measured: rent takes 27% of renter income and the median home is 2.5 times what its owners earn.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
66,030
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$73,446
Top 41% nationally
Density
1,906/sq mi
34.6 sq mi of land
Median age
40.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Wisconsin
Nearest major airport
MSN
35 mi · Dane County Rgnl/Truax Fld
Median home value
$223,400
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.5%, lower than in 81% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment grew 0.6% over the past year, to 34,016 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsRock County, WI’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$56,93921st percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftRock County, WI’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$59,21223rd percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$3,8262024 ACS 5-Year$73,446Top 41%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,4232024 ACS 5-Year$37,762Top 38%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year9.3%Top 44%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.9 min2024 ACS 5-Year23.4 minTop 32%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year27.3%Top 35%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year80.0%59th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202634,016Bottom 38%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026−0.2%Bottom 49%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026+0.6%Top 24%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202635,26138th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year81.7%Top 37%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageJanesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$61,110Bottom 19%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageJanesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$48,390Bottom 25%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year0.6%81st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.2%Bottom 31%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20263.5%Top 19%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year9.5%58th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/074.82.6
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.5% in July 2026. It has been falling, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202473k63k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $73,446 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

Largest occupations — Janesville-Beloit, WI

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers2,150$28,290
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand2,000$44,590
Registered Nurses1,680$93,030
Retail Salespersons1,670$34,000
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers1,670$59,800
Cashiers1,610$31,240

Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

35% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 38% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 12.8 students for every full-time teacher across 22 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
24
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
12.8
across 22 of them
Math proficiency
35.2%
Bottom 22% in Wisconsin
Reading proficiency
37.9%
Bottom 30% in Wisconsin
The 12 largest of 24 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Craig HighJanesville School District1,40013.625%37%
Parker HighJanesville School District1,27212.817%28%
Marshall MiddleJanesville School District74713.325%40%
Edison MiddleJanesville School District58711.741%43%
Franklin MiddleJanesville School District4869.929%40%
Roosevelt ElementaryJanesville School District41213.369%59%
Washington ElementaryJanesville School District41013.232%37%
Van Buren ElementaryJanesville School District40814.642%42%
Kennedy ElementaryJanesville School District40413.972%52%
Monroe ElementaryJanesville School District37613.952%47%
Preschool 4 JanesvilleJanesville School District34523.0——
Jackson ElementaryJanesville School District33910.332%32%

51.8% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Wisconsin’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 8% below the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 91.5, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Janesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area is up 55% over five years, and up 4.8% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $3,736 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.67% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,246, some 18% above the $1,054 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,246 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $49,800 a year, about 68% of the median household income here of $73,446.

The typical renter household here spends 27% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,054 a month.

A median home at $223,400 costs 2.5 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $89,427, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Cost of living
91.5

Prices here run about 8% below the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the Janesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.

Rent as a share of income
26.9%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.5×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,246
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,054
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$223,400
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Janesville’s median household income of $73,446, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe Janesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area’s figure202391.5Top 11%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Janesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+4.8%76th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Janesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+55.1%90th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Janesville-Beloit, WI Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+123.6%91st percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.12024 ACS 5-Year2.5Bottom 49%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year67.3%33rd percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±5572024 ACS 5-Year29,33098th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$955Top 19%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,596Top 23%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,246Top 24%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$402024 ACS 5-Year$1,054Bottom 43%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$4,9132024 ACS 5-Year$223,40059th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$892024 ACS 5-Year$3,73681st percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$3,1602024 ACS 5-Year$89,427Top 37%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.05%2024 ACS 5-Year1.67%85th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year26.9%Top 42%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±2032024 ACS 5-Year18493rd percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.6%58th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year2.8%25th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±2902024 ACS 5-Year1,00495th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.

Development Momentum

56/ 100
Top 37% of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was downward, in a series running from 2020 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 1% since 2020, reaching 66,428 in 2024.

Permitting has turned downward after moving the other way the year before: 75 units authorized in 2025, 75% below the prior year.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 132 units permitted over the past twelve months, only 6% are in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show that people moving in from elsewhere in the US and people moving out roughly balanced across Rock County, which contains Janesville, in the most recent year. Households that moved in reported an average income of $56,939, close to the $59,212 of households that moved out.

At 2.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
132
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
2.0
Bottom 42% nationally
Year over year
+78%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
6.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202466k66k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been rising for the last 2 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
+0.2%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
47%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$56,939
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$59,212
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Dane County, WI 1,210 people · 21% of arrivals
  2. Winnebago County, IL 681 people · 12% of arrivals
  3. Walworth County, WI 405 people · 7.1% of arrivals
  4. Jefferson County, WI 320 people · 5.6% of arrivals
  5. Green County, WI 211 people · 3.7% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Dane County, WI 858 people · 16% of departures
  2. Winnebago County, IL 717 people · 13% of departures
  3. Walworth County, WI 345 people · 6.3% of departures
  4. Green County, WI 222 people · 4.1% of departures
  5. Jefferson County, WI 206 people · 3.8% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Rock County, WI. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

20202021202220232024202530875
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2020 (−72%).

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 83°F and January a low of 12°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 37.4 inches, including 36.6 inches of snow.

Air quality measures a median index of 41, in the Good band, and about 4 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

0°20°40°60°80°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station AFTON - JANESVILLE WWTP, 4.2 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND5.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year582024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals37.4"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals36.6"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals12°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals83°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year42024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year412024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals53°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
41
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
58
90th percentile index
Days above 100
4
unhealthy for sensitive groups

A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

69 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and cold wave, with inland flooding alone responsible for 52% of it. Cold wave is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

HailElevated
TornadoElevated
Inland floodingModerate
Strong windModerate
LightningModerate

Low or minimal exposure: cold wave, heat wave, winter weather, landslide, earthquake, ice storm, drought, wildfire, hurricane, avalanche, coastal flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
122
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
1,569
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Janesville's police department reported 122 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, near the middle of places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 1,569.

Rock County has a modeled homicide rate of about 3.2 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 14.0 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 11.0 per 100,000 residents in Rock County.

Homicide
3.2
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Firearm deaths, all intents
14.0
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
11.0
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
19.5
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Janesville’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Janesville (Rock County) rather than Janesville itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Dane County Rgnl/Truax Fld at 35 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year91.3%Top 43%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle35 miBottom 22%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle3Bottom 20%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year4.9%Top 36%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Dane County Rgnl/Truax FldMSN35 mi9,006 ft
Chicago O'Hare IntlORD75 mi11,245 ft
Wittman RgnlOSH93 mi8,002 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
63
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Other cities in Janesville-Beloit, WI

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
BeloitRock County36,53452Beloit vs Janesville

Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.

Compare

Put Janesville side by side with a similar place.

Janesville vs BeltonJanesville vs Bethlehem

Moving to Janesville from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

ZIP codes in Janesville

3 ZIP areas

Every ZIP area in Janesville with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Janesville closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
5354629,867$75,825$239,400—
5354524,703$73,889$220,700—
5354819,916$76,869$234,900—