What is the cost of living in Fond du Lac?

Fond du Lac has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 91.6, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 67.3, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,176/month.

What is the median salary in Fond du Lac?

The median salary in Fond du Lac is $63,055 annually (mean: $67,063). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers, Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators.

How safe is Fond du Lac?

The violent crime rate in the Fond du Lac area is 280 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1157 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Fond du Lac?

The state of WI has 2,205 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14.4:1. Charter schools make up 10.7% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Fond du Lac?

Infant center-based childcare in the Fond du Lac area averages $11,256 per year. Preschool averages $10,203/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Fond du Lac a good place to relocate?

Fond du Lac has a Life Score of 54.8/100 (D), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Fond du Lac sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Fond du Lac ranks #30 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Fond du Lac, WI

LiveAbility 62.7/100 places Fond du Lac #30 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

91.6
Cost index (US=100): $1,176
2BR rent / mo: $63,055
Median salary: 62.7
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Fond du Lac ranks #30 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (62.7/100), with its strongest marks in air quality and housing.

#30
of 387 US metros · Excellent: 5,960,975
metro-area population: 280
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,205
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (45/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Fond du Lac ranks #30 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 91.6 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,176/mo, median salary $63,055; LiveAbility Score 62.7/100, strongest in air quality and housing.

Signature: LiveAbility 62.7/100 places Fond du Lac #30 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 91.6 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,176/mo.

LiveAbility 62.7/100 puts Fond du Lac in the top third (#30 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Fond du Lac area is 37,390.

Fond du Lac vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

63 Top 8% higher than 92% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

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 and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Fond du Lac housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Fond du Lac MSA; housing RPP 67.3 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,176/mo.

Studio

$811

/month

1 Bedroom

$946

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,176

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,522

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,665

/month

Fond du Lac wages and employment

Fond du Lac posts 37,390 total employment with median salary $63,055.

Median Salary

$63,055

Mean Salary

$67,063

Total Employment

37,390

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$28,180
Cashiers	$30,230
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators	$51,200
Retail Salespersons	$33,640
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	$57,730

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Fond du Lac area from NCES.

Schools

2,205

Enrollment

814,921

Student:Teacher

14.4:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Fond du Lac area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$11,256

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,203

per year

Preschool (Center)

$10,203

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Fond du Lac's composite Life Score is 54.8/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

66/100

Strong

Wages

55/100

Above average

Rent

68/100

Strong

Crime

62/100

Above average

Schools

46/100

Average

Childcare

42/100

Below average

Environment

24/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Fond du Lac ranks #30 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 62.7/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Air quality (82/100)

Air quality

82
Housing

68
Low hazard

68
Cost of living

66
Safety

62
Job market

55
Schools

54
Climate

45

What this shows Fond du Lac's strongest dimensions are air quality and housing; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 45/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Fond du Lac to

Longview Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim Louisville/Jefferson County Lubbock Lynchburg Macon-Bibb County

Metros near Fond du Lac on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Fond du Lac on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Fond du Lac cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Fond du Lac wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Fond du Lac?

Fond du Lac runs a $63,055 median salary at a 91.6 cost index, ranking #30 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Fond du Lac's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Fond du Lac head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Fond du Lac
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.