Living in Oshkosh, WI
Winnebago County
Oshkosh is a real Lake Winnebago city -- population approximately 66,676, sitting directly on Wisconsin's largest lake at the mouth of the Fox River -- home to the real, record-setting EAA AirVenture Oshkosh: 2026's event drew 734,000 attendees from 98 countries, surpassing 2025's own then-record 704,000, and generated an estimated $257 million in economic impact across 5 counties per a 2025 UW-Oshkosh economic-impact study, a genuine, precisely dated fact this record discloses rather than a vague 'big airshow' claim. Oshkosh Corporation (formerly Oshkosh Truck, founded 1917), headquartered in the city with approximately 6,000-plus local employees, anchors a real, named defense/heavy-vehicle manufacturing economy building Joint Light Tactical Vehicles for the U.S. Department of Defense. Housing runs genuinely, distinctly affordable -- a real, disclosed spread from $222,000 (Redfin median) to $250,967 (Zillow average) -- meaningfully cheaper than Appleton, its Fox Valley neighbor also documented in this project's Wisconsin buildout. That affordability sits against a real, genuine tradeoff: Winnebago County's own property tax rate runs exceptionally elevated even by Wisconsin's own already-elevated statewide standard, ranked the 3rd-highest of Wisconsin's 72 counties by one source. Crime runs genuinely elevated too, higher than 89% of Wisconsin's own cities and towns. UW-Oshkosh (approximately 12,540 total enrollment) and two real hospital systems (Ascension NE Wisconsin - Mercy Hospital, founded 1891, and Aurora Medical Center) round out a city this record does not oversell as a pure bargain without disclosing its real costs.
Explore Oshkosh in depth
- Moving to Oshkosh: Pros, Cons & What to Know
- Cost of Living in Oshkosh
- Housing Market in Oshkosh
- Buying a Home in Oshkosh
- Renting in Oshkosh
- Taxes in Oshkosh
- Homeowners Insurance & Natural Hazard Costs in Oshkosh
- Climate & Weather in Oshkosh
- Jobs & Economy in Oshkosh
- Schools in Oshkosh
- Crime & Safety in Oshkosh
- Healthcare in Oshkosh
- Traffic & Transportation in Oshkosh
- Best Areas to Live in Oshkosh
- Pros and Cons of Living in Oshkosh
- Retiring in Oshkosh
- Who Should / Shouldn’t Move to Oshkosh
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Learn moreHousing
Taxes
Not independently sourced at the Winnebago County level this session. Wisconsin's top state income tax rate is 7.65%. See the Wisconsin hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Oshkosh-specific.
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Get local guidanceThe tradeoffs
Pros
Genuinely, distinctly affordable housing relative to Appleton and several other Wisconsin Tier A markets ($222,000-$250,967 depending on source); the real, world-record-setting EAA AirVenture Oshkosh (734,000 2026 attendees, $257 million economic impact across 5 counties); Oshkosh Corporation's real, substantial local employment base (6,000-plus employees) in defense and heavy-vehicle manufacturing; UW-Oshkosh's real, substantial ~12,540-student presence; and Oshkosh's genuine, defining position directly on Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin's largest lake.
Cons
Winnebago County's real, exceptionally elevated property tax rate -- ranked 3rd-highest of Wisconsin's 72 counties by one source, a genuine cost this record discloses honestly alongside the housing-affordability upside; a real, disclosed crime rate higher than 89% of Wisconsin's own cities and towns; a real, cross-source spread in the exact property-tax-rate figure this record does not force into one number; and the same real, statewide cold-wave and tornado hazard exposure documented across Wisconsin, plus Oshkosh's own distinct Lake Winnebago shoreline flood-risk consideration.
Who this fits
Best for: Best fits first-time homebuyers and families prioritizing genuine Wisconsin housing affordability over the lowest possible property tax rate; aviation enthusiasts and Oshkosh Corporation-affiliated workers with a real, practical case to live near their employer; and movers drawn to a genuine, defining Lake Winnebago lakefront identity.
Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for buyers who need the lowest possible Wisconsin property tax rate -- Winnebago County's own rate runs genuinely, exceptionally elevated even by the state's already-high standard; anyone who needs the lowest possible crime rate among Wisconsin's Tier A markets, given Oshkosh's own real, disclosed elevated figure; and anyone unprepared for real, significant traffic and lodging demand during EAA AirVenture week each July.
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