Waunakee, Wisconsin
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Growing. Up 10.0% since 2020.
16,411
people, the 56th-largest of Wisconsin's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Wisconsin's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
82.6%
of 6,926 jobs located in Waunakee are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 62% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$1,324
a month. Wisconsin's median is $1,087.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.
A $916 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Dane County.
- $900 Tract 120.02
- $1,816 Tract 117
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
The median rent sits inside what local wages can carry.
$1,154–$1,731
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $1,324 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
56% of the housing here was built before 2000.
- 525 homes permitted, 2022–2025
- 17% of those were in multifamily buildings
- 56% of all homes were built before 2000
Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.2–1.1% to the 6,091 homes here.
15–69
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 94% more than Wisconsin's.
$515,900
median home value in Waunakee.
- $515,900 Waunakee
- $266,500 Wisconsin
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year