Wisconsin · County property tax · ACS 2024
Milwaukee County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Milwaukee County pays $4,444 a year, an effective rate of 1.93%, far above the U.S. average.
- $4,444
- Median tax / yr · Highest-decile bill
- 1.93%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- +123%
- vs U.S. average
- #2 of 72
- rank in WI
The verdict
Homeowners in Milwaukee County pay a median $4,444 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.93%, more affordable than 3% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $4,444
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.93%
- Effective rate on median home
- #3031 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +123%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($230,700). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Wisconsin. Population: 926,331. Owner-occupied homes: 195,766.
The median annual property tax in Milwaukee County is $4,444, which is 17% higher than the Wisconsin state average and 123% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.93% on a median home value of $230,700. Property taxes represent 6.9% of the median household income in this county.
Why Milwaukee County's ACS bill runs high vs the U.S.
Primary signal
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Milwaukee County pay a median annual property tax of $4,444, far above the national median and notably higher than the Wisconsin state median. On a $230,700 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.93% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 2
Income carries a heavy tax share
Property taxes in Milwaukee County run well above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 6.9% of the $64,435 median household income.
Decision signal 3
Low among Wisconsin counties by effective rate
Milwaukee County ranks #2 of 72 counties in Wisconsin by effective rate (97% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
The effective rate is a national headwind
Milwaukee County's 1.93% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 97% pay more.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Milwaukee County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Milwaukee County rose 40.5%, from $164,200 to $230,700. The effective rate fell 19.1% over the same span, a steeper move than in 79% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 13.7%, to $4,444. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $3,909 to $4,444, a gain of 14%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 149,087 of 195,766 owner-occupied homes (76.2%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 6.9% of median household income. A rate ranking places this county by the rate alone; the ratio above is the figure that accounts for what is earned here.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Milwaukee County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Milwaukee County homeowners, 149,087 of 195,766 owner-occupied homes (76.2%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 2.5% (4,851)
- $800 to $1,499 4.2% (8,209)
- $1,500 to $1,999 4.4% (8,661)
- $2,000 to $2,999 11.0% (21,508)
- $3,000 or more 76.2% (149,087)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
3,450 homes here (1.8%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Wisconsin handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Milwaukee County pay about the same bill, a 7% gap.
Milwaukee County's bill vs state & U.S. medians
Median annual bill bars around Milwaukee County's HEAVY ACS 2024 figure.
Milwaukee County's median bill is 17% above the Wisconsin median and 123% above the U.S. median.
Among the highest-taxed counties in the country
At 1.93%, Milwaukee County sits in the top 3% of all U.S. counties by effective property-tax rate. That is the rate, not the bill: a high rate on a modest home can still produce a smaller cheque than a low rate on an expensive one, which is why the $4,444 median bill is the number to compare against another county.
Milwaukee County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Milwaukee County | Wisconsin Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Highest-decile bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Highest-decile rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Highest-decile income burden | 6.9% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Is Milwaukee County's $4,444 median bill appeal-worthy?
At Milwaukee County's $4,444 ACS median (HEAVY), a 10% assessment cut is worth about $444/yr before exemptions. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Wisconsin.
Milwaukee County bill trail · HEAVY
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $4,444 +0.9% | 1.93% |
| 2023 | $4,406 +2.2% | 2.04% |
| 2022 | $4,313 +7.0% | 2.16% |
| 2021 | $4,029 +3.1% | 2.34% |
| 2020 | $3,909 | 2.38% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Milwaukee County: tax takes 6.9% of income
Counties near Milwaukee County's median bill
On effective rate, Milwaukee County sits nearest Hunterdon County (NJ), Woodson County (KS), Rooks County (KS).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Fallon County (MT), Socorro County (NM), Mingo County (WV).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Milwaukee County: only 5% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 21,410 of 440,900 returns from Milwaukee County reported real estate taxes, averaging $7,991 - 31% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Wisconsin
Milwaukee County bill FAQs
- How does Milwaukee County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Milwaukee County run far above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.93% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Milwaukee County?
- Property taxes in Milwaukee County run well above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 6.9% of the $64,435 median household income.
- What is the average property tax in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin?
- The median annual property tax in Milwaukee County is $4,444, an effective rate of 1.93% on a $230,700 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Milwaukee County?
- Milwaukee County, Wisconsin scores F (11/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at C- (+$279). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- Are property taxes increasing in Milwaukee County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Milwaukee County climbed 13.7% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $3,909 to $4,444, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
What to do with Milwaukee County's HEAVY bill
Milwaukee County's $4,444 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Income burden is elevated here: about 6.9% of Milwaukee County's $64,435 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by median bill (then rate)
Bill-first peers for Milwaukee County's HEAVY median, then a disjoint out-of-state rate set, not the same-state geography lattice.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 1.93%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $4,444/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Milwaukee County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Milwaukee County (PEAK · HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PEAK HEAVY
Galveston County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,442/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.41% vs Milwaukee County 1.93%.
Johnson County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,447/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.14% vs Milwaukee County 1.93%.
Monroe County, PA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,447/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.66% vs Milwaukee County 1.93%.
Bastrop County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,453/yr (near-tied bill ABS $9); rate 1.41% vs Milwaukee County 1.93%.
Wisconsin county set
State ACS overview for every published Wisconsin county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Milwaukee County stamps PEAK · HEAVY - review notice deadlines before quoting the ACS median.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Milwaukee County (PEAK · HEAVY) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.