Wisconsin Elevation ToolsOpen Saved Properties on the map →

Property · Select a property, draw a box or polygon, or upload a boundary

Compare the terrain of up to 5 Wisconsin properties

Compare properties side by side on the numbers that decide whether a parcel works: elevation range, slope classes, modeled winter sun and a drainage indicator. Save up to 5 places and the table fills in as each one is analyzed.

The shortlist is kept in your browser, with notes per property, and exports as a file you can share with a partner or a builder.

Free to run · pay to download

Free to run, and free to save as a PNG image of the map. This tool has no file export of its own. For the terrain as a file, Download Data exports contours, a GeoTIFF or a 3D mesh with a pass: US$29 for 24 hours, US$99 for 30 days or US$399 for 12 months.

Open Saved Properties on the map →Pass prices and what’s included

Who uses this

  • Buyers of rural acreage. Rank a shortlist on terrain before driving out to see any of them.
  • Buyer’s agents. Give clients a like-for-like terrain table.

When to use it

  • You are choosing between several parcels and want the terrain numbers in one table.
  • You want to come back to a shortlist later without selecting each parcel again.

Tools for your job

Saved Properties is one step in a bigger question. These are the jobs it helps with, and the tools that go with it.

For the job: Buying a lot or rural acreage

What is the ground like, and how does it compare with the others on my list?

  1. 1.Property — Selects the county parcel so every other tool is clipped to the boundary.
  2. 2.Property Report — A PDF with contours, slope, aspect, winter sun, drainage and elevation for that one parcel.
  3. 3.Saved Properties (this tool) — Up to 5 places side by side: elevation, slope, winter sun and drainage.
  4. 4.Water & Drainage — Terrain flow paths and potential ponding; rainfall and flood extent are not modeled.

How to use it

  1. Select a parcel, or draw or upload a boundary.
  2. Choose Analyze and save property. The terrain is sampled and the snapshot is stored.
  3. Repeat for up to 5 places. The table updates as each one finishes.
  4. Add notes per property, and export the shortlist as a JSON file to keep or share.

Step by step: a Madison parcel

We save the Madison parcel and a second parcel nearby, and compare the two.

1.Select a parcel (or an area), give it a name and choose Analyze and save property. Elevation, slope, winter sun and drainage are computed and stored in your browser.

2.After the second save the table fills in the elevation range, mean slope and winter sun hours for both.

What it showed

  • On flat city ground the differences are small; the table puts them in numbers instead of impressions.
  • The list stays in this browser. Export comparison saves it as a file you can keep or send.
Try it yourself on a Madison parcel →

How it works

For each saved boundary the tool loads the terrain and computes the mean and range of elevation, slope classes, modeled hours of direct sun on the shortest day (December 21) and a drainage indicator from flow accumulation, then stores the results with the boundary.

Everything lives in your browser’s local storage. Nothing is sent to a server or tied to an account, which is also why the list is per device.

Reading the results

Compare like with like: a 10-acre parcel and a 100-acre parcel will differ in elevation range simply because of size.

Winter sun hours are modeled on bare ground for December 21 and ignore trees and buildings.

Limits and caveats

  • Five snapshots per browser. Saving the same boundary again replaces its snapshot.
  • Clearing site data in the browser removes the list. Export the JSON first if you want to keep it.
  • Outside the finest lidar work units, 3DEP can use older lidar at about 9.8 ft per pixel or a coarser model at about 33 ft per pixel. Fine output spacing cannot recover missing source detail. Lidar coverage and source dates vary across Wisconsin. Check your site against the USGS 3DEP work-unit index; an unavailable lookup means coverage is unknown.

Data and attribution

Results come from the USGS 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) bare-earth elevation model: lidar at 3.3 ft per pixel where it has been flown, with older lidar at about 9.8 ft per pixel and coarser sources at about 33 ft per pixel elsewhere, with elevations above NAVD 88. The optional surface model is limited to Brown County. Outside usable regional data, Sunlight, Viewshed and Sightline fall back to bare earth; Object Heights needs usable surface data. Surface and ground source dates can differ.

USGS 3DEP elevation data and USGS maps are U.S. Government works in the public domain: you may use the results, including commercially. A credit to the USGS 3D Elevation Program is appreciated, and every file you download carries it. Wisconsin parcel boundaries are aggregated local-government data, not legal surveys; the parcel disclaimer accompanies the selection. Brown County surface data is credited separately when used. The Esri aerial basemap follows Esri’s terms and is display-only; downloadable aerial photos use USGS NAIP.

Questions

Where is my shortlist stored?

In your browser only. Nothing is sent to a server and there is no account, so the list is per device. Export it to keep a copy.

Ready to try it?

Open Saved Properties on the map →

Free to use, no account. The analysis runs in your browser on public-domain USGS 3DEP data. Downloading the results needs a pass: see pricing.