Best PlacesGreenbush, Madison, WI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Greenbush, Madison, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Greenbush, Madison ranks 1,809th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on biking by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Greenbush, Madison
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Greenbush, Madison's strengths and weaknesses
Where Greenbush, Madison ranks high
- BikingBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- School gradeA, better than 95% of neighborhoods
- Short commute16.6 minutes each way, better than 94% of neighborhoods
Where Greenbush, Madison ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than only 16% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 23% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 32% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 35% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Greenbush, Madison
A household needs to earn about $134,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Greenbush, Madison home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $73,593, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Greenbush, Madison's effective rate of 1.78%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Greenbush, Madison
Greenbush, Madison runs younger than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Greenbush, Madison.
Who works in Greenbush, Madison, and how
Work in Greenbush, Madison centers on education and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 60%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 25%
Life in Greenbush, Madison
Greenbush, Madison has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Greenbush, Madison and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Greenbush, Madison, month by month
Greenbush, Madison sees roughly 81 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 30, with lows near 14. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 30° | 22° | 14° |
| April | 60° | 46° | 34° |
| July | 85° | 73° | 62° |
| October | 64° | 51° | 41° |
Flying in and out of Greenbush, Madison
The nearest airport, Dane County Regional/Truax Field, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Mitchell International, about 77 miles away.
The best schools in and around Greenbush, Madison
Schools across Greenbush, Madison average an A, better than 95% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Randall Elementary SchoolA+ · 74% proficient
- Lincoln ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hamilton MiddleA+ · 68% proficient
- Cherokee Heights MiddleC · 34% proficient
Top high schools
- West HighB+ · 56% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Greenbush, Madison school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Greenbush, Madison measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Greenbush, Madison against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Greenbush, Madison
Is Greenbush, Madison a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Greenbush, Madison ranks 1,809th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on biking, heat safety, and cheap car insurance, and lowest on property taxes and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Greenbush, Madison expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $452,588. The overall cost of living runs about 6% above the national average. Set against a $73,593 median income, cost of living beats 35% of neighborhoods.
Is Greenbush, Madison safe?
Greenbush, Madison is safer than 16% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $746 per resident a year.
Compare Greenbush, Madison with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Greenbush, Madison. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Greenbush, Madison represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Greenbush, Madison detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Greenbush, Madison: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Greenbush, Madison: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Greenbush, Madison: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Greenbush, Madison: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Greenbush, Madison detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.