Wisconsinincome tax up to 7.65%, 7th highest property tax, median home $285K

Worth knowing before you move to Wisconsin

Wisconsin has a graduated income tax reaching 7.65%, does not tax Social Security, and exempts some retirement income for residents 65 and over. Property taxes are high, largely for schools and local services, with a state lottery credit offsetting part of the bill. Milwaukee and Madison drive most job growth; the northern half of the state is lakes, forests and second homes.

What Wisconsin taxes, and what it doesn't

Wisconsin levies a graduated income tax that tops out at 7.65%. A household earning $75,000 pays an effective 4.5%, about $3,371 a year; at $150,000 the effective rate is 4.9%. Among the 41 states that tax income, Wisconsin has the 19th highest effective rate at $100,000 of income.

Property tax runs 1.51% of home value a year, roughly $4,304 on the state's median home of $285K. The national effective rate is about 1.10%, and Wisconsin has the 7th highest rate of the 50 states.

Combined state and local sales tax averages 5.43%, the 8th lowest in the country (the state portion is 5%).

For retirees: Social Security benefits are not taxed, pension income is partly exempt, and there is no estate or inheritance tax.

Capital gains are taxed as ordinary income.

Housing and the cost of living in Wisconsin

Wisconsin's cost of living index is 93, where 100 is the national average; that is the 19th cheapest of the 50 states.

The median home costs $285K, 6% below the national figure and the 18th lowest among the states. A two-bedroom rents for about $1,200 a month.

Carrying costs matter as much as the price: home insurance averages $1,100 a year, flood coverage adds about $550 where it is needed, car insurance runs $1,290.

Budget $135 a month for electricity and gas, $470 a month in groceries for two, $1,250 a month for full-time infant care.

Safety, health and schools

Violent crime is 295 incidents per 100,000 residents in the FBI's 2023 Crime Data Explorer figures, below the median state (387); Wisconsin is the 18th safest of the 50 by that measure. Property crime is 1,787 per 100,000.

Life expectancy is 78.1 years (County Health Rankings 2024). 5.7% of residents have no health insurance, and the state has not expanded Medicaid. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks Wisconsin's health system 8th of 50.

Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks K-12 schools 11th in the country, and the state runs a school-choice voucher program.

Politics, guns and social policy

Politically, Wisconsin is a swing state decided by Trump by 1 points in 2024.

On guns, concealed-carry permits are shall-issue, and Giffords grades the state's gun laws F.

Abortion is legal with limits. Marijuana is illegal. Wisconsin is a right-to-work state, and the minimum wage is $7.25 an hour.

Climate, risk and getting around

Natural disaster risk is moderate. The main hazards are blizzard, tornado, flood. Annual average air quality index is 34 (under 50 is good).

Wisconsin has no top-25 hub airport, with about 75 nonstop destinations from its busiest airport.