Wisconsin · County property tax · ACS 2024
Rock County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Rock County pays $3,703 a year, an effective rate of 1.60%, far above the U.S. average.
- $3,703
- Median tax / yr · Highest-decile bill
- 1.60%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- +86%
- vs U.S. average
- #7 of 72
- rank in WI
The verdict
Homeowners in Rock County pay a median $3,703 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.60%, more affordable than 8% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $3,703
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.60%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2880 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +86%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($231,600). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Wisconsin. Population: 164,350. Owner-occupied homes: 47,819.
The median annual property tax in Rock County is $3,703, which is 2% lower than the Wisconsin state average and 86% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.60% on a median home value of $231,600. Property taxes represent 4.9% of the median household income in this county.
Rock County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national headwind
Rock County's 1.60% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 92% pay more.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Rock County pay a median annual property tax of $3,703, far above the national median and roughly in line with the Wisconsin state median. On a $231,600 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.60% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Wisconsin counties by effective rate
Rock County ranks #7 of 72 counties in Wisconsin by effective rate (90% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Rock County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.9% of the $75,673 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Rock 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 Rock County rose 47.7%, from $156,800 to $231,600. The effective rate fell 19.9% over the same span, a steeper move than in 82% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 18.3%, to $3,703. 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 $3,129 to $3,703, a gain of 18%. 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: 31,059 of 47,819 owner-occupied homes (65.0%) 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 4.9% 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 Rock County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Rock County homeowners, 31,059 of 47,819 owner-occupied homes (65.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 2.2% (1,069)
- $800 to $1,499 4.8% (2,313)
- $1,500 to $1,999 7.0% (3,326)
- $2,000 to $2,999 18.8% (8,970)
- $3,000 or more 65.0% (31,059)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,082 homes here (2.3%) 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 Rock County pay about the same bill, a 3% gap.
Rock County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Rock County's effective rate is higher than 90% of the 72 counties in Wisconsin - ranking #7 of 72.
Where Rock County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.60% more affordable than 8% 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
Among the highest-taxed counties in the country
At 1.60%, Rock County sits in the top 8% 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 $3,703 median bill is the number to compare against another county.
Rock County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Rock 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 | 4.9% | - | - |
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.
Rock County's STEEP · HEAVY lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Rock County's published figures (STEEP · HEAVY), a $231,600 median home carries a $3,703 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $370 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Wisconsin.
Rock County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $3,703 +1.4% | 1.60% |
| 2023 | $3,652 +4.4% | 1.69% |
| 2022 | $3,499 +6.8% | 1.81% |
| 2021 | $3,276 +4.7% | 1.98% |
| 2020 | $3,129 | 2.00% |
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.
Rock County: tax takes 4.9% of income
Counties near Rock County's effective rate
On effective rate, Rock County sits nearest Wilbarger County (TX), Knox County (TX), Erie County (PA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Refugio County (TX), Clinton County (MO), Sweetwater County (WY).
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
Rock County: only 4% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 3,010 of 82,160 returns from Rock County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,146 - 33% 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
Rock County rate FAQs
- How does Rock County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Rock County run far above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.60% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Rock County, Wisconsin?
- The median annual property tax in Rock County is $3,703, an effective rate of 1.60% on a $231,600 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Rock County?
- Rock County, Wisconsin scores F (22/100) 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 B+ (+$124). 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.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Rock County?
- Property taxes in Rock County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.9% of the $75,673 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Rock County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Rock County climbed 18.3% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $3,129 to $3,703, 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 Rock County's STEEP rate
Rock County's $3,703 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Rock County ranks #7 of 72 Wisconsin counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Wisconsin overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Rock County's STEEP effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 1.60%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $3,703/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Rock County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Rock County (STEEP · HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP HEAVY
Summit County, UT
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,701/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.35% vs Rock County 1.60%.
Orleans County, VT
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,692/yr (near-tied bill ABS $11); rate 1.65% vs Rock County 1.60%.
Oneida County, NY
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,690/yr (near-tied bill ABS $13); rate 2.02% vs Rock County 1.60%.
Poquoson city, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,690/yr (near-tied bill ABS $13); rate 0.92% vs Rock County 1.60%.
Wisconsin county set
State ACS overview for every published Wisconsin county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Rock County stamps STEEP · 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 Rock County (STEEP · HEAVY) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.