Wisconsin · County property tax · ACS 2024
Waukesha County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Waukesha County pays $4,554 a year, an effective rate of 1.14%, far above the U.S. average.
- $4,554
- Median tax / yr · Highest-decile bill
- 1.14%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +128%
- vs U.S. average
- #59 of 72
- rank in WI
The verdict
Homeowners in Waukesha County pay a median $4,554 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.14%, more affordable than 26% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $4,554
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.14%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2312 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +128%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($398,200). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Wisconsin. Population: 411,762. Owner-occupied homes: 128,147.
The median annual property tax in Waukesha County is $4,554, which is 20% higher than the Wisconsin state average and 128% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.14% on a median home value of $398,200. Property taxes represent 4.3% of the median household income in this county.
Why Waukesha County's ACS bill runs high vs the U.S.
Primary signal
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Waukesha County pay a median annual property tax of $4,554, far above the national median and notably higher than the Wisconsin state median. On a $398,200 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.14% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 2
High among Wisconsin counties by effective rate
Waukesha County ranks #59 of 72 counties in Wisconsin by effective rate (18% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Waukesha County's 1.14% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 26%).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Waukesha County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.3% of the $106,076 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Waukesha 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 Waukesha County rose 35.7%, from $293,500 to $398,200. The effective rate fell 19.7% over the same span, a steeper move than in 81% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 9.0%, to $4,554. 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 $4,178 to $4,554, a change of 9%. The comparison describes county-level medians only; individual assessments and bills can differ.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 110,097 of 128,147 owner-occupied homes (85.9%) 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.
Earnings are in the national top quarter and the rate is above the midpoint, so the median bill represents 4.3% of median household income. A headline bill conflates the dollar figure with the proportion; the two come apart here, and the ratio above is the second of them.
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 Waukesha County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Waukesha County homeowners, 110,097 of 128,147 owner-occupied homes (85.9%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 1.4% (1,759)
- $800 to $1,499 1.1% (1,469)
- $1,500 to $1,999 1.8% (2,292)
- $2,000 to $2,999 8.7% (11,190)
- $3,000 or more 85.9% (110,097)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,340 homes here (1.0%) 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 Waukesha County pay about the same bill, a 3% gap.
Waukesha County's bill vs state & U.S. medians
Median annual bill bars around Waukesha County's HEAVY ACS 2024 figure.
Waukesha County's median bill is 20% above the Wisconsin median and 128% above the U.S. median.
A low rate, a bigger bill
Waukesha County taxes property at 1.14%, roughly 20% below the Wisconsin average, and still bills a median $4,554, about 20% above the state figure. Because the effective rate is the bill divided by the home's value, that combination means local home values run well ahead of the state norm: a gentler rate applied to a larger base.
Waukesha County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Waukesha County | Wisconsin Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Highest-decile bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 4.3% | - | - |
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 Waukesha County's $4,554 median bill appeal-worthy?
At Waukesha County's $4,554 ACS median (HEAVY), a 10% assessment cut is worth about $455/yr before exemptions. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Wisconsin.
Waukesha County bill trail · HEAVY
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $4,554 +0.6% | 1.14% |
| 2023 | $4,525 +0.8% | 1.21% |
| 2022 | $4,487 +5.4% | 1.27% |
| 2021 | $4,259 +1.9% | 1.39% |
| 2020 | $4,178 | 1.42% |
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.
Waukesha County: tax takes 4.3% of income
Counties near Waukesha County's median bill
On effective rate, Waukesha County sits nearest Wise County (TX), Starr County (TX), Minnehaha County (SD).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Curry County (OR), Choctaw County (OK), Braxton 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
Waukesha County: only 10% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 20,670 of 216,140 returns from Waukesha County reported real estate taxes, averaging $7,421 - 39% of those reporters sat in the $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
Waukesha County bill FAQs
- How does Waukesha County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Waukesha County run far above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.14% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Waukesha County, Wisconsin?
- The median annual property tax in Waukesha County is $4,554, an effective rate of 1.14% on a $398,200 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Waukesha County?
- Property taxes in Waukesha County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.3% of the $106,076 median household income.
- What is the tax affordability score for Waukesha County?
- Waukesha County, Wisconsin scores F (25/100) 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+ (+$114). 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 Waukesha County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Waukesha County climbed 9.0% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $4,178 to $4,554, 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 Waukesha County's HEAVY bill
Waukesha County's $4,554 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Waukesha County ranks #59 of 72 Wisconsin counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Wisconsin overview →
Nationwide peers by median bill (then rate)
Bill-first peers for Waukesha 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: 1.14%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $4,554/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Waukesha County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Waukesha County (PAR · HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR HEAVY
Pierce County, WI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,551/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.36% vs Waukesha County 1.14%.
Geauga County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,564/yr (near-tied bill ABS $10); rate 1.38% vs Waukesha County 1.14%.
Ontario County, NY
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,565/yr (near-tied bill ABS $11); rate 2.05% vs Waukesha County 1.14%.
Brazos County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,568/yr (near-tied bill ABS $14); rate 1.54% vs Waukesha County 1.14%.
Wisconsin county set
State ACS overview for every published Wisconsin county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Waukesha County stamps PAR · HEAVY - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
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 Waukesha County (PAR · HEAVY) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.