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Place dossier plate
SheetWI-MILWAUKEE-WI · Milwaukee, WI 569,756 pop · income 23rd pct · 302 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Milwaukee
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Milwaukee on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
DeFuniak Spri… · lowest
51,883
DeFuniak Spri… · lowest
51,883 median HH income
61.9% of the leader · rank #1
Jamestown · near
51,886
Jamestown · near
51,886 median HH income
62.0% of the leader · rank #2
Milwaukee · this city
51,888
Milwaukee · this city
51,888 median HH income
62.0% of the leader · rank #3
Holyoke · near
51,892
Holyoke · near
51,892 median HH income
62.0% of the leader · rank #4
Oroville · near
51,893
Oroville · near
51,893 median HH income
62.0% of the leader · rank #5
Poplar-Cotton… · near
51,893
Poplar-Cotton… · near
51,893 median HH income
62.0% of the leader · rank #6
Sacramento · highest
83,753
Sacramento · highest
83,753 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Milwaukee on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 569,756.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Milwaukee - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Milwaukee places in the 23rd percentile for household income and the 7th percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
23rd
percentile, household income
34th
percentile, home value
29th
percentile, median rent
7th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Milwaukee, WI
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 569,756 residents in Milwaukee, a mid-sized U.S. city within Wisconsin. Households in Milwaukee report a median income of $51,888 per year, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 18.6%. Typical homes in Milwaukee are valued around $172,000, and the median resident age is 32.2 years. 26.6% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 60.2% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The Census Building Permit Survey recorded 236 residential units authorized here in 2024 (Rapid Growth), up 22% from five years earlier. Milwaukee's reported crime rate runs above the national norm: FBI UCR figures show 4131.6 crimes per 100,000 residents, above the national average (reporting is voluntary across agencies, so treat this as reporting activity rather than a definitive danger score). NOAA puts Milwaukee's yearly average temperature at 49.3°F with 34.6 inches of precipitation per year and 48.7 inches of snowfall.
Living costs in Wisconsin run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Wisconsin scores 94.1 (Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $1,097 monthly. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Wisconsin's average monthly utility costs around $225 (state average). Workers in Milwaukee report an average commute of 19.9 minutes, with 67.8% driving alone and 11.2% working from home. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 59.1 out of 100 (Moderate).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Milwaukee's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from reported crime to comparison shortlist to within-city variation to climate and hazard context to housing and income to work and mobility to population change to schools and households; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Milwaukee, city-specific coverage includes within-city Census tract profiles, annual population history, local building permits, FBI reported-crime rates, commute-mode shares, matched public-school count.
All six city-specific enrichment layers used by this profile are present.
Question 1
What can the FBI record say about safety in Milwaukee?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 4131.6 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, above the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 81% higher in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
Which cities make useful reference points for Milwaukee?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Within Wisconsin, the closest population matches are Madison (275,568 residents, $76,983 income); Green Bay (106,585 residents, $62,546 income); Kenosha (99,147 residents, $68,532 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Albuquerque, NM (562,488 residents); Baltimore, MD (577,193 residents); Fresno, CA (543,615 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
What can 302 Census tracts reveal inside Milwaukee?
PlainCities matches 302 Census tracts to this city.
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
The two sources should not be blended into one comfort or safety score. Use the climate values for baseline conditions and the risk index as a prompt to inspect specific hazards, insurance, and local emergency guidance for a particular address.
NOAA normals put the annual mean temperature at 49.3°F, with 34.6 inches of precipitation and 48.7 inches of annual snowfall. FEMA's state-averaged National Risk Index score for Wisconsin is 59.1 out of 100. Climate normals describe long-run weather; the FEMA score on PlainCities is a state average of county NRI inputs and combines hazards, exposure, vulnerability, and resilience.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in Milwaukee?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.3 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 18.6%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Value / income
3.3×
Home value
$172,000
Household income
$51,888
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
What does the journey to work look like in Milwaukee?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 67.8%. The reported mean trip to work is 19.9 minutes.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Drive alone
67.8%
Work from home
11.2%
Public transit
5.4%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 259,913 workers age 16+.
Is Milwaukee growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -14,744 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -2.6% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 236 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
2020 estimate
577,151
2025 estimate
562,407
Period change
-2.6%
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
What does the education layer cover for Milwaukee?
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
The NCES join finds 181 public schools within the city match. 26.6% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
Poverty estimate
18.6%
Bachelor's degree+
26.6%
Matched public schools
181
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, Wisconsin average
F
City profile score · Milwaukee, WI
30/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Cost of living B-
94.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Bachelor's+ share C-
26.6%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Household income F
$51,888
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Poverty rate F
18.6%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime F
1,431 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Milwaukee profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 68/100 (B-) · 94.1 index
Bachelor's+ share: 52/100 (C-) · 26.6%
Household income: 23/100 (F) · $51,888
Poverty rate: 16/100 (F) · 18.6%
Violent crime: 0/100 (F) · 1,431 /100k
Where Milwaukee sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Milwaukee's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Milwaukee highlighted among 12 peers.Read the chart values
Milwaukee, WI (this city): home $172,000, crime 4,132/100k
Albuquerque, NM : home $266,700, crime 5,811/100k
Baltimore, MD : home $219,300, crime 5,763/100k
Fresno, CA : home $348,500, crime 4,007/100k
Tucson, AZ : home $242,200, crime 3,902/100k
Sacramento, CA : home $484,600, crime 3,302/100k
Madison, WI : home $346,900, crime 2,121/100k
Green Bay, WI : home $191,500, crime 1,807/100k
Kenosha, WI : home $210,500, crime 1,152/100k
Racine, WI : home $158,100, crime 1,495/100k
Appleton, WI : home $211,500, crime 1,549/100k
Waukesha, WI : home $286,600, crime 989/100k
How does Milwaukee compare to other US cities?
Milwaukee measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income23% higher than other cities
Home value34% pricier than other cities
Median rent29% pricier than other cities
Safety7% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to Wisconsin alone, Milwaukee ranks #200 of 202 Wisconsin cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Milwaukee against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Wisconsin only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Wisconsin-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Milwaukee near the bottom of Wisconsin's cities
Among the 761 Wisconsin cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Milwaukee ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Milwaukee only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#638 of 753
15th percentile in Wisconsin
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 761
0th percentile in Wisconsin
Median Home Value
#399 of 754
47th percentile in Wisconsin
Poverty Rate
#56 of 761
93rd percentile in Wisconsin
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#275 of 761
63rd percentile in Wisconsin
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Wisconsin only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
23rd percentile nationally for median household income · 7th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Milwaukee's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Milwaukee's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Milwaukee's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$172,000Among the most affordablemore affordable than 66% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Milwaukee's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.3×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#8,194 of 15,516
More affordable than 47% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#23 of 117
Large cities (200,000–999,999)
At 3.3×, Milwaukee sits in the moderate band:
national rank #8,194 of 15,516 and #23 of 117large cities (200,000–999,999).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$51,888Milwaukee, WI median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Milwaukee, WI median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Milwaukee, WI.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)26.6%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)18.6%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)60.2%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
569,756
Median Income
$51,888
Median Home Value
$172,000
Median Age
32.2
Poverty Rate
18.6%
Labor force participation
60.2%
Bachelor's Degree+
26.6%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
4131.6
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
1430.9
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
2700.7
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Climate
Avg Temperature
49.3°F
Annual Precipitation
34.6"
Annual Snowfall
48.7"
Schools
Total Schools
181
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Milwaukee's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
577,151 residents
2021
566,535 residents
2022
564,296 residents
2023
562,904 residents
2024
563,322 residents
2025
562,407 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Rapid Growth
Total Permits (2024)
236
housing units authorized
Single-Family
72
detached homes
Multifamily
164
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
0.4
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
193
15
178
$24.3M
2020
112
34
78
$21.2M
2021
204
28
176
$28.1M
2022
176
42
134
$36.7M
2023
97
61
36
$27.4M
2024
236
72
164
$46.9M
Permit volume increased 22% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
19.9 minutes
Drive Alone
67.8%
Carpool
10.0%
Public Transit
5.4%
Walk
4.0%
Work from Home
11.2%
Other
1.6%
Based on 259,913 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Wisconsin statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $225
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Wisconsin at $225 (electricity about $100 , water and sewer about $45 ).
These are Wisconsin statewide averages, not a meter reading for Milwaukee. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Wisconsin's BEA cost-of-living index is 94.1 (Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Milwaukee is $1,097/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Wisconsin statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 59.1 / 100 (Moderate).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Wisconsin statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Milwaukee sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Milwaukee compares to similar-size Wisconsin cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.