Wisconsin · County property tax · ACS 2024
Monroe County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Monroe County pays $2,826 a year, an effective rate of 1.35%, well above the U.S. average.
- $2,826
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 1.35%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +42%
- vs U.S. average
- #41 of 72
- rank in WI
The verdict
Homeowners in Monroe County pay a median $2,826 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.35%, more affordable than 17% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,826
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.35%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2617 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +42%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($210,000). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Tax affordability score · Monroe County, WI
26/100
5 ACS dimensions · release 2024
Comparative score against U.S. county percentiles on Census ACS medians (effective rate, bill, income share, mortgage gap, home-value/income). Higher means more affordable on those published medians, not a recommendation to buy, sell, appeal, or move, and not your personal tax bill. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.
Mortgaged vs free-and-clear median bill gap in Monroe County
Median home value relative to Monroe County's median income
Monroe County's median annual property-tax bill vs U.S. counties
Monroe County's effective rate vs U.S. county percentiles (ACS 2024)
Median tax as a share of Monroe County's median household income
Read the chart values
- Mortgage premium: 58/100 (C) · +$242
- Housing pressure: 47/100 (D) · 3.02×
- Bill size: 20/100 (F) · $2,826/yr
- Rate relief: 17/100 (F) · 1.35%
- Income room: 15/100 (F) · 4.1%
Track this county alongside up to five others. Saved figures refresh when the annual source data changes.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Wisconsin. Population: 46,208. Owner-occupied homes: 13,316.
The median annual property tax in Monroe County is $2,826, which is 25% lower than the Wisconsin state average and 42% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.35% on a median home value of $210,000. Property taxes represent 4.1% of the median household income in this county.
What This Data Tells Us About Monroe County
Primary signal
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Monroe County pay a median annual property tax of $2,826, well above the national median and well below the Wisconsin state median. On a $210,000 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.35% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 2
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Monroe County's 1.35% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 17%).
Decision signal 3
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Monroe County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.1% of the $69,467 median household income.
Decision signal 4
Near the middle of Wisconsin counties by effective rate
Monroe County ranks #41 of 72 counties in Wisconsin by effective rate (43% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
This page is for informational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Figures describe the median homeowner household in Monroe County as reported to the Census Bureau, your own bill can differ based on your parcel's assessed value, exemptions, special districts, and municipal overlays. Always consult your county assessor, tax collector, or a qualified professional before making 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 Monroe County rose 33.2%, from $157,600 to $210,000. 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 7.9%, to $2,826. 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
Very little moved here between 2020 and 2024: the typical bill went from $2,620 to $2,826, a change of 8%. The comparison describes county-level medians only; individual assessments and bills can differ.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 5,707 of 13,316 owner-occupied homes (42.9%) 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.
The rate is in the national top quarter while earnings are only moderately above the midpoint, so the median bill claims 4.1% of median household income. A high rate is affordable only relative to something, and this is what it is relative to 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 Monroe County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Monroe County homeowners, 5,707 of 13,316 owner-occupied homes (42.9%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 4.9% (657)
- $800 to $1,499 8.1% (1,073)
- $1,500 to $1,999 10.5% (1,403)
- $2,000 to $2,999 29.6% (3,943)
- $3,000 or more 42.9% (5,707)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
533 homes here (4.0%) 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 Monroe County pay about the same bill, a 9% gap.
How Monroe County compares
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Monroe County's effective rate is higher than 43% of the 72 counties in Wisconsin - ranking #41 of 72 for property tax burden.
Where Monroe County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.35% more affordable than 17% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. 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 · 2024
Same rate as Wisconsin, a smaller bill
The effective rate here sits within 5% of the Wisconsin median, yet the median bill runs 25% below it. When the rate matches and the cheque does not, the difference is in what is being taxed, not how heavily: the same percentage applied to cheaper housing produces $2,826 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Monroe County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Monroe County | Wisconsin Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 4.1% | - | - |
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.
Monroe County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Monroe County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $210,000 median home carries a $2,826 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $283 a year at the same rate. Whether an appeal is worth filing depends on your own parcel. Use our free Appeal Savings Estimator to run your own numbers, then read our step-by-step appeal guide for the procedure in Wisconsin.
Property Tax History · STEEP · MID
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,826 +0.9% | 1.35% |
| 2023 | $2,801 +0.8% | 1.42% |
| 2022 | $2,780 +5.1% | 1.51% |
| 2021 | $2,644 +0.9% | 1.62% |
| 2020 | $2,620 | 1.66% |
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.
Tax Burden
Tax Affordability Score
An effective rate well above the national average of 0.92% puts Monroe County in the "Moderate" band for property tax burden.
How this score is calculated: a 1-10 scale derived mechanically from the ratio of this county's effective rate to the national average effective rate (0.92%) - a ratio at or below 0.5× scores 10, a ratio at or above 2.0× scores 1, with a linear scale between. It is a factual comparison of Census figures only, not a recommendation, quality rating, or endorsement of Monroe County or any other county.
Counties with similar tax profiles
On effective rate, Monroe County sits nearest Matagorda County (TX), Hutchinson County (TX), Ellis County (TX).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Ketchikan Gateway Borough (AK), Franklin County (NY), Pope County (IL).
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
What tax filers report in Monroe County
Of the 21,910 federal returns filed from Monroe County in 2022, 630 (2.9% of filers) itemised and reported real estate taxes on Schedule A, averaging $4,984 each. The largest group was filers with adjusted gross income of $100-200k, who accounted for 32% of the county's reporting returns.
Two things this does not say. The amount is what filers reported, recorded before the $10,000 cap on combined state and local tax deductions applies, so it is not the amount deducted. And the share is of everyone who files a return, not of homeowners: most filers now take the standard deduction, so a minority itemise at all. Source: IRS Statistics of Income county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Wisconsin
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Monroe County property tax compare to the national average? ▼
What is the tax affordability score for Monroe County? ▼
What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Monroe County? ▼
What is the average property tax in Monroe County, Wisconsin? ▼
Are property taxes increasing in Monroe County? ▼
What to do with Monroe County's numbers
- Monroe County's $2,826 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
- Monroe County ranks #41 of 72 Wisconsin counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Wisconsin overview →
- If Monroe County's assessment looks high versus the $210,000 typical home, check Wisconsin's filing window and evidence rules before the notice deadline passes. How to appeal →
Effective-rate definition
Effective rate is the county median tax divided by the county median home value ($210,000); your parcel's assessed value, exemptions, and local levies determine your actual bill. U.S. Census Bureau ACS · 2024.
Nationwide peers by effective rate & median bill
Two PlainPropertyTax-derived comparison paths for Monroe County, both outside Wisconsin so the link neighborhoods are not the same-state geography lattice. Axes stay disjoint: median-bill peers exclude the effective-rate peer set.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 1.35%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,826/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Monroe County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Monroe County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Bremer County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,824/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.29% vs Monroe County 1.35%.
Lincoln County, ME
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,828/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.85% vs Monroe County 1.35%.
Wasco County, OR
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,828/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.77% vs Monroe County 1.35%.
Effingham County, IL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,823/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.49% vs Monroe County 1.35%.
Wisconsin county set
State ACS overview for every published Wisconsin county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Monroe County stamps STEEP · MID - 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.
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Editorial standards and provenance
PlainPropertyTax is rendered directly from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on the Census ACS county-level record for Monroe County. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-09.