What it's like to live in Portage
Portage is a small city in Wisconsin with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, county unemployment below the national average, and crime rates well below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Portage deals with household incomes below the national average, college degree attainment below the national average, a population that has been shrinking, and cold, harsh winters.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low unemployment in the county
- Low crime rates
- Short commutes
- Low student-teacher ratio
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Low college degree attainment
- Shrinking population
- Cold, harsh winters
- Snowy winters — 39" per year
- Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
How Portage compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Portage
Based on Portage's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,016
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $40,320 a year
- 34% of Portage renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$40,980
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $20,490
- Homes cost 3.2× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 29% below US
$1,008/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $1,008 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $204,900. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $204,900 · 34% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
3.0% county unemployment
Unemployment in Columbia County is 3.0%, a little below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Columbia County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 66% below US
112 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 1312/100k · Portage Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 15% below US
22 min average commute
Commutes are reasonable, averaging 22.1 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 6% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are comfortable, with highs around 80°F, and winters are cold and harsh, with lows dropping to 13°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 3.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 45% below US
20% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
7 public schools inside the boundary
There are 7 public schools inside the boundary and 2 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 13:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Ice Age National Scenic Trail (31 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Portage's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and college degree attainment below the national average. A year of median rent ($1,008/mo) equals 19% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, job seekers (county-wide unemployment is low), and anyone prioritizing low crime. It may be a harder fit for anyone who doesn't drive and anyone who dislikes long, cold winters.
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