What salary do you need to live in La Crosse, WI?

What housing costs in La Crosse

A one-bedroom in La Crosse rents for a median of $823 a month, utilities the tenant pays included; a two-bedroom goes for $1,094 and a three-bedroom for $1,276. Over a full year, the two-bedroom median comes to $13,128.

On the ownership side, the typical owner-occupied home is valued at $247,400. Against a median household income of $73,340, the ratio is 3.4× — one of the gentler home-price-to-income ratios in the country.

BEA's Regional Price Parity for the metro is 91.8, where 100 is the US average. In plain terms, the full basket of goods, services and housing costs 8.2% less than average, so $100,000 here buys roughly what $108,969 would at average US prices.

How much you need to earn in La Crosse

For two bedrooms, $121,000 is where La Crosse turns Comfortable. Below that, $60,000 marks the start of Okay and $30,000 the start of Tight; under $30,000 the score reads Stretched. Rent at the Comfortable line is 11% of gross pay.

The Royal grade is within reach at $335,000 a year, where both rent and the median home price look small next to income.

How they were found: the same scoring function the calculator runs was evaluated at rising incomes until each cutoff was crossed, and the crossing rounded up to a whole $1,000.

Scores at $50K, $75K, $100K and $150K in La Crosse

At $75,000 home size barely changes the picture: one, two and three bedrooms all grade Okay, with scores from 49 to 56.

Of the four salaries, $150,000 is the first where a two-bedroom reads Comfortable or better; $100,000 still lands at Okay.

La Crosse on the national list

On price level La Crosse is 250th of 387 (1 = most expensive); on two-bedroom rent it is 222nd, and on median home value 212th. The two rankings agree, both falling in the middle half.

Its nearest neighbors on the rent list are Oklahoma City, OK ($1,096) and Lincoln, NE ($1,091).

La Crosse next to Wisconsin and similar metros

Compared with Wisconsin as a whole, two-bedroom rent in La Crosse is about the same ($1,094 vs. $1,106) and the median home is 7% lower ($247,400 vs. $266,500). Because the metro spans Wisconsin and Minnesota, the comparison uses Wisconsin, where La Crosse itself is.

On statewide medians, a two-bedroom budget reaches Comfortable at $133,000 — above La Crosse's $121,000 line.

Within Wisconsin, the metros closest to La Crosse on rent and overall prices are Appleton, WI, Eau Claire, WI, and Janesville-Beloit, WI. Their Comfortable lines for two bedrooms sit at $126,000, $125,000, and $121,000.

Where the typical La Crosse household lands

What about a typical local household? Census puts median household income here at $73,340, which grades Okay (51) for a two-bedroom at the median rent. The Comfortable line is 65% above what the median household makes. For Wisconsin as a whole, the median household income of $77,485 scores 50 against statewide rents. Since a household can have two or more earners, compare it with a combined income rather than one paycheck.

These are pre-tax estimates from public statistics, not financial advice.