Neillsville, WI
Neillsville wildfire risk explained
Neillsville sits at the 24th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 1,451 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Neillsville's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 24th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Indirect exposure is dominant in Neillsville (54.9% of 1,451 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 34.6% sit in the Direct zone.
How Neillsville compares
Within Wisconsin, Neillsville ranks higher (45th percentile) than it does nationally (24th) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Neillsville ranks 23,970 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 9,394 by building count (1 is largest). Within Wisconsin alone, it ranks 444 of 808 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Wisconsin on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Neillsville's moderate rating (24th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Neillsville (54.9% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
More on how this number was built
Neillsville's 24th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Neillsville, see the exposure-zones guide.