Metro Life Score
Fond du Lac, WI
Above-median composite Life Score — grade B, 61st percentile of the national corpus.
- 52.2
- Life Score / 100
- B
- Grade (curved)
- #152
- of 387 metros
- 61%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Fond du Lac is above-median composite Life Score — #152 of 387 (52.2/100, grade B, 61st percentile). Carried by safety at 68/100; held back most by environment at 24/100.
- 61st
- composite percentile
- #152
- of 387 peers
- 66th
- cost dimension percentile
- 43rd
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · MID · SAFE-LED · signature cost
Fond du Lac: mid-pack cost with a distinct Life Score shape
Fond du Lac sits mid-pack on cost (≈66th percentile, CHEAP) with composite #152 of 387 (52.2/100). Profile SAFE-LED; wages mark MID. Strongest safety 68/100; weakest environment 24/100. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Fond du Lac, WI ranks #152 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #133 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 91.6 (rent-RPP 67.3). BLS median salary $63,055, 37,390 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers, Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators). HUD 2BR FMR $1,176/mo (studio $811).
FBI UCR (WI): 280 violent, 1157 property/100K. NCES: 14.1:1 ratio, 10.6% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,256/yr. EPA: 46 Superfund sites (WI).
Where Fond du Lac sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
52 61st percentile higher than 61% of 387 US metros
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source PlainCompare composite of BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, EPA data · August 2026
How the 52.2 is built
Fond du Lac's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Fond du Lac scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are WI state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Fond du Lac With...
Ranking Context
Fond du Lac outranks 61% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #149 | Jackson, MI | 52.3 | B |
| #150 | Rockford, IL | 52.4 | B |
| #151 | Farmington, NM | 52.4 | B |
| #152 | Fond du Lac, WI | 52.2 | B |
| #153 | Kokomo, IN | 52.2 | B |
| #154 | Wausau, WI | 52.2 | B |
| #155 | Bay City, MI | 52.1 | B |
Quality vs. Affordability
Fond du Lac, WI's quality rank (top 39% highest-quality) and affordability rank (top 34% most affordable) sit close together -- an unusually proportionate metro where overall quality and cost-of-living move together.
WI Metro Scores
Read with Fond du Lac
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Fond du Lac (MID · SAFE-LED · CHEAP/MID), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Kokomo, IN
ABS(composite) peer at 52.2 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · CHEAP/MID.
Wausau, WI
ABS(composite) peer at 52.2 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · CHEAP/MID.
Jackson, MI
ABS(composite) peer at 52.3 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · CHEAP/MID.
Bay City, MI
ABS(composite) peer at 52.1 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · CHEAP/MID.
Birmingham, AL (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 66/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Lincoln, NE (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 66/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Fond du Lac, WI relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for MID · SAFE-LED · CHEAP/MID - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Fond du Lac's middle-third Life Score
Fond du Lac scores 52.2/100 overall, but Safety (68.4) and Environment (23.6) sit 44.8 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Safety is the strongest of Fond du Lac's seven dimensions (weighted 15% in the composite); if it is your priority, this is where the metro earns its rank. See all seven dimensions
- Environment is the weakest (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
- Oshkosh is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Oshkosh
A middle-third composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can sit well above or below it.