State profile

Wisconsin

Population, economy, housing, and demographics · ACS 2020–2024

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At a glance

Total population
5,914,872
Median household income
$77,485
People below poverty
10.6%
Median home value
$266,500

Census Insights

  • Financial pressure eased as the poverty rate dropped 20.3% while median household income rose 10.6%.
  • The share of people below the poverty level fell from 13.3% to 10.6%.
  • People aged 25 to 34 made up 12.6% of the population, the 5th lowest share among states.
  • Working from home became much more common, rising from 4.1% to 13.1%.
  • The average household size was 2.33 people, the 5th lowest among states.
  • The uninsured rate was relatively low at 5.2%, the 10th lowest among states.
  • Education levels stood out: 93.6% of adults had a high school diploma or higher, the 8th highest share among states.
  • Interstate migration was relatively low, with 2.0% of people moving from a different state, the 10th lowest share among states.

Income

The median income of households in Wisconsin was $77,485. An estimated 4.1% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 9.2% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 4.1
$10,000 to $14,999 3
$15,000 to $24,999 5.9
$25,000 to $34,999 7.2
$35,000 to $49,999 10.8
$50,000 to $74,999 17.5
$75,000 to $99,999 13.8
$100,000 to $149,999 19.1
$150,000 to $199,999 9.4
$200,000 or more 9.2

Median Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Workers by Sex in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Dollars
Male 65871
Female 53435

An estimated 76% of households received earnings. An estimated 32.6% of households received Social Security and an estimated 26.9 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $25,671. These income sources are not mutually exclusive; that is, some households received income from more than one source.

Proportion of Households with Various Income Sources in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 76
Social Security 32.6
Retirement income 26.9
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 4.2
Cash public assistance income 2

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 10.6 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 12.8% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 9.1% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 10.2% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 10.6
Children under 18 years below poverty 12.8
People 65 years old and over below poverty 9.1
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 10.2

In 2020-2024, 11.1 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 42.3% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 35.4% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 30% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Wisconsin in 2020-2024, 94.8% had health insurance coverage and 5.2% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 73.4% and public coverage was 35.1%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 4.1%.


In 2020-2024, Wisconsin had a total population of 5,914,872 - 2,952,490 (49.9%) females and 2,962,382 (50.1%) males. The median age was 40.2 years. An estimated 21.4% of the population was under 18 years, 32% was 19 to 44 years, 25.6% was 45 to 64 years, and 18.5 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Wisconsin in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 161623 154263
5 to 9 178489 168339
10 to 14 188851 179651
15 to 19 200171 189514
20 to 24 200508 193490
25 to 29 190137 181347
30 to 34 189603 181552
35 to 39 195131 187770
40 to 44 185840 180185
45 to 49 171216 165464
50 to 54 182354 177410
55 to 59 199243 198622
60 to 64 208489 209567
65 to 69 176866 185693
70 to 74 146812 152293
75 to 79 87635 99074
80 to 84 53923 69288
85 and over 45491 78968

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 80.1% were White; 6.1% were Black or African American; 4.5% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 3% were Asian; 3% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 7.6% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 8% of the people in Wisconsin were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 78.6% of the people in Wisconsin were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 2,479,480 households in Wisconsin. The average household size was 2.33 people.

Married-couple households made up 46.8% of the households in Wisconsin while cohabiting couple households made up 8.2% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 25.1% of all households, while 19.9% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 15.1% of households were male householders living alone, and 16.5% were female householders living alone, for a total of 31.6% of all households.

In Wisconsin, 26.1% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 31.4% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 46.8
Cohabiting Couples 8.2
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
19.9
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
25.1

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 50.3% of males and 48.7% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 36.5 30.5
Now married, except separated 50.3 48.7
Separated 0.7 1
Widowed 2.6 8.1
Divorced 9.8 11.8

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Wisconsin, 61,575 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 34.2% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 94.8% of the people living in Wisconsin were U.S. natives. 70.3% of the Wisconsin population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 5.2% of Wisconsin residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 47.7% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 65.8 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Wisconsin come from different parts of the world. The bar graph below displays the percentage of foreign-born from each world region of birth in 2020-2024 for Wisconsin.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 42.1
Asia 34.1
Europe 14.6
Africa 6.4
Northern America 2.3
Oceania 0.5

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Wisconsin in 2020-2024, 9 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 4.9% of people at least five years old; 3.2% reported that they did not speak English "very well."

Percentage of the Population 5 years and over who Speak a Language other than English in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 4.9
Other Indo-European languages 1.9
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 1.7
Other languages 0.4

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 88.2 % of the people at least one year old living in Wisconsin were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 88.2
Different house, same county 6.2
Different county, same state 3.3
Different state 2
Abroad 0.3

Education

In 2020-2024, 93.6 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 33.4% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 6.4% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Wisconsin was 1,356,381 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 72,380 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 940,258. College or graduate school enrollment was 343,743.

Educational Attainment of People in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 6.4
High school diploma or equivalency 29.4
Some college, no degree 19.5
Associate's degree 11.3
Bachelor's degree 22
Graduate or professional degree 11.4

Disability

In Wisconsin, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 12.3 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 4.5% of people under 18 years old, to 10.2% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 28.4% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Wisconsin, 63.1 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 34.7% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 81.8% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 12.9% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 5.1 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 2,480,417 81.8
Federal, state, or local government workers 390,384 12.9
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 155,018 5.1

Industries

In 2020-2024, the civilian employed population 16 years and older in Wisconsin worked in the following industries:

Percent by Industry in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 2.1
Construction 6.3
Manufacturing 17.9
Wholesale trade 2.3
Retail trade 11.1
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 4.9
Information 1.4
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 6.1
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 9.4
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 23.3
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 7.4
Other Services, except public administration 4.2
Public administration 3.6

Occupations

Occupations for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and over in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 1,219,259 40.2
Service occupations 458,226 15.1
Sales and office occupations 568,852 18.8
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 259,826 8.6
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 524,879 17.3

Commuting to Work

An estimated 74.4% of Wisconsin workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 7.3% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 22.2 minutes to get to work.

Percent of Workers 16 and over Commuting by Mode in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 74.4
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 7.3
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 1.1
Walked 2.6
Other means 1.6
Worked from home 13.1

In 2020-2024, Wisconsin had a total of 2,778,572 housing units. Of these housing units, 70.5% were single-family houses either not attached to any other structure or attached to one or more structures (commonly referred to as "townhouses" or "row houses"). 26.4% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 3.1% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 70.5
Apartments in multi-unit structures 26.4
Mobile homes 3.1
Boat, RV, van, etc 0

8.5% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 17.8% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Wisconsin was 5.6 rooms, and of these housing units 60.1% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Wisconsin had 2,479,480 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 299,092 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 67.8% while renters occupied 32.2%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.49 and in renter-occupied houses it was 2.

4.1% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 11.1% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 6.4% and another 21.1% had three or more vehicles available for use.

The following chart provides the primary fuel used to heat houses in Wisconsin:

House Heating Fuel Used in Wisconsin in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 76.6
Electricity 17.8
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 1.4
All other fuels 3.6
No fuel used 0.6

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Wisconsin was $266,500.

Of the owner-occupied households, 61.1 % had a mortgage. 38.9% owned their houses "free and clear," that is without a primary mortgage or loan on the house. The median monthly housing costs for owners with a mortgage was $1,689 and for owners without a mortgage it was $659.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Wisconsin was $1,087. Gross rent includes the monthly contract rent and any monthly payments made for electricity, gas, water and sewer, and any other fuels to heat the house.