The Muscatine County portion of Wilton is part of the Muscatine Micropolitan Statistical Area.
The city is served by the Wilton Police Department and Wilton Volunteer Fire Department.
Historic sites in Wilton include: The Wilton Candy Kitchen, which is the oldest ongoing ice cream parlor in the world, and the former Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railroad Depot built in 1898. Both of these sites are located in the historic downtown area and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,842 people, 1,105 households, and 784 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,509.5 people per square mile (584.1/km²). There were 1,141 housing units at an average density of 608.8/sq mi (235.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.74% White, 0.21% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.60% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.01% of the population.
There were 1,105 households out of which 36.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.2% were married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.0% were non-families. 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.05.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.7% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,278, and the median income for a family was $49,615. Males had a median income of $37,146 versus $23,350 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,445. About 5.5% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.2% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over.
Wilton is located three miles (5km) south of Interstate 80, at the junction of County Highway F58 and Iowa Highway 38, and is within easy driving distance of Muscatine, the Quad Cities, Iowa City, and Cedar Rapids. The Iowa Interstate Railroad passes through the city and provides service to local industries. Amtrak is also in the process of establishing a route from the Quad-Cities to Iowa City which would pass through Wilton and could be up and running within five years. Once this route is in service there will be station stops within easy driving distance of Wilton. The Quad City International Airport is located 30 miles to the east of Wilton providing non-stop flights to many destinations throughout the country.