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Cost of living, pay and housing

43.79° N · 91.04° W · GEOID 5570800

St. Joseph

La Crosse County, Wisconsin · part of the La Crosse, WI metro

Limited data population under 5,000

WisconsinSt. Joseph, WISt. JosephSt. Joseph

The short answer

St. Joseph is home to 548 people. Median household income is $90,625 a year and median rent is $950 a month, 12.6% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $285,100, about 3.1x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$950
30% below the median place
Median household income
$90,625
13% above the median place
Median home value
$285,100
11% below the median place
Unemployment
3.1%
36% below the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about St. Joseph

  • Only 0% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 98% of the 2,214 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the lowest of 151 Wisconsin places.
  • Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, household income rose 6.6% a year while rent rose 0.4%, so pay gained on rent more than in 91% of places its size. It is the 2nd-lowest of 157 Wisconsin places.
  • The median rent takes only 12.6% of the median household's income, a smaller share than in 94% of places its size.

Rent is light relative to pay, but the county has a FEMA natural hazard risk score of 81 out of 100. Budget for insurance before counting the savings.

01

Moving to St. Joseph

La Crosse County gains about 2.4 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in4,482
Moved out4,244
Net+238

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Trempealeau County, WI233230+3
Vernon County, WI237193+44
Dane County, WI146210−64

Within Wisconsin, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within WisconsinOther states

Income per tax return

Arrivals$55K
Leavers$59K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of La Crosse County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
0.0% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 0.0% from another state.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into La Crosse County report $54,900 a year in income on average; those leaving, $58,600, so leavers earn more than newcomers.
Income you would need
$38,000 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $950 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,460 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $285,100.
Getting to work
23 minutes each way on average; 20.3% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Groveport, OH matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved here in the past year1
0.0%
below the median place (median 5.7%)
Moved from another state1
0.0%
below the median place (median 2.0%)
Income of households moving in6
$54,928
22% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureSt. JosephAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year10.0%below (median 5.7%)
Moved from another state10.0%below (median 2.0%)
Net movers per 1,000 people6County figure2.4above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in6County figure$54,92822% below
Income of households moving out6County figure$58,62317% below
02

What it costs to live here

Renters paying 30%+ is 0.0%, below the median place (median 50.6%).

St. Joseph12.6%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$38,000
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
12.6%
38% below the median place
Home price to income
3.1x
17% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
13%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$82,600
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in St. Joseph, $950 a month, and local prices for everything else (96.4 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in St. Joseph.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to St. Joseph? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Renters paying 30%+1
0.0%
below the median place (median 50.6%)
Vacant homes1
0.0%
below the median place (median 7.1%)
Property tax rate1
1.5%
67% above the median place
All 15 cost and housing measures
MeasureSt. JosephAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$95030% below
Rent to income112.6%38% below
Property tax rate11.5%67% above
Home price to income13.1x17% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure91.89% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,34317% below
Property tax paid (median)1$4,34233% above
Median home value1$285,10011% below
Home prices, 1-year change4County figure4.6%43% above
Home prices, 5-year change4County figure50.1%3% below
Homeownership168.8%4% above
Renters paying 30%+10.0%below (median 50.6%)
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,46022% below
Vacant homes10.0%below (median 7.1%)
Median year built119800% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Works from home1
20.3%
63% above the median place
Median household income1
$90,625
13% above the median place

More on work and pay, against the typical place

Mean commute23 min −6%
Income per person$37,189 −7%
Poverty rate10.4% −4%
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureSt. JosephAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$90,62513% above
Income per person1$37,1897% below
Unemployment1County figure3.1%36% below
Average annual pay5County figure$60,9738% below
Pay growth, 1 year5County figure4.3%16% above
Jobs5County figure70,07753% below
Poverty rate110.4%4% below
Mean commute123 min6% below
Works from home120.3%63% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

High school or higher is 100.0%, 8% above the median place.

High school or higher1
100.0%
8% above the median place
Median age1
36.8
6% below the median place
Household size1
2.4
5% below the median place
All 8 people measures
MeasureSt. JosephAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population15486646th largest
Median age136.86% below
Bachelor's or higher131.8%1% below
High school or higher1100.0%8% above
Household size12.45% below
Born abroad1County figure3.0%66% below
No health insurance1County figure4.4%31% below
Homes with broadband193.8%2% above
05

Life in St. Joseph

2 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, one of them a National Historic Landmark.

  • Kriesel, Louis C. and Augusta, Farmstead listed 2009
  • Thelen, John Nicholas and Hermina, House listed 2009

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars26.7 +28%
Shops32.1 +6%
Arts, recreation and fitness6.9 +68%
Doctors' offices and clinics17.0 −16%
Child care centers2.5 +9%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Restaurants and bars per 10k7
26.7
28% above the median place
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7
6.9
68% above the median place
Students per teacher9
12.5
19% below the median place
All 9 schools and local life measures
MeasureSt. JosephAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools9County figure37311% above
Public school students9County figure14,903204% above
Students per teacher9County figure12.519% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k7County figure26.728% above
Shops per 10k7County figure32.16% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7County figure6.968% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k7County figure17.016% below
Child care centers per 10k7County figure2.59% above
National Register listings8285% below
06

Safety, weather and risk

Hurricane risk is 0.0, below the median place (median 70.7).

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached St. Joseph. Larger places are fetched first.

Hurricane risk11
0.0
below the median place (median 70.7)
Wildfire risk11
11.8
81% below the median place
January average low10
8°F
68% below the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureSt. JosephAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high10County figure82°F6% below
January average low10County figure8°F68% below
Average temperature10County figure46°F16% below
Annual precipitation10County figure36.4 in17% below
Natural hazard risk11County figure80.513% below
Hurricane risk11County figure0.0below (median 70.7)
Tornado risk11County figure84.64% above
Wildfire risk11County figure11.881% below
Heat wave risk11County figure88.52% below
Median air quality index12County figure3714% below
Good air days12County figure93.4%36% above
08

St. Joseph in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 12% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 13% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$950/mo (2024)$1,200/mo$980 to $1,460/mo+4.0%
Median household income$90,625 (2024)$116,500$98,500 to $138,000+4.3%
Median home value$285,100 (2024)$417,000$303,000 to $575,000+6.6%

The median home would be worth 3.6 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.1 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like St. Joseph

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Groveport, OH$1,082$93,586Compare
Clover, SC$841$85,450Compare
Johnstown, OH$886$91,713Compare
Stewartville, MN$1,070$82,632Compare
Stewartville, MNJohnstown, OHClover, SCGroveport, OHSt. Joseph, WISt. JosephGroveportCloverJohnstownStewartvilleSt. JosephGroveportCloverJohnstownStewartville

Common questions

Is St. Joseph a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Only 0% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a lower share than in 98% of the 2,214 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the lowest of 151 Wisconsin places. Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, household income rose 6.6% a year while rent rose 0.4%, so pay gained on rent more than in 91% of places its size. It is the 2nd-lowest of 157 Wisconsin places. On cost, space and class size it scores 76 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is St. Joseph expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 12.6% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $285,100.

What salary do you need to live in St. Joseph?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $38,000 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to St. Joseph?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Groveport, OH, Clover, SC, Johnstown, OH and Stewartville, MN.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  7. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  8. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  9. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  10. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  11. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  12. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares St. Joseph with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for St. Joseph itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/saint-joseph-wisconsin

Citytistics. “St. Joseph, Wisconsin.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/saint-joseph-wisconsin/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.