Appleton vs Milwaukee leftover
Moving to Milwaukee costs you $497 a month
$2,607/mo leftover in Milwaukee vs $3,104 in Appleton after tax and rent ($497 less). −$5,964 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Appleton leftover
$3,104
a month after tax and rent
Milwaukee leftover
$2,607
−$497 vs Appleton
Compare Appleton to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Appleton.
Monthly gap
Appleton → Milwaukee
$497
less / month in Appleton
$2,607 in Milwaukee · $3,104 in Appleton · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 336 households moved Appleton → Milwaukee (avg AGI $56,042). 242 went the other way. The whole move →
−$497 / mo
| Per month | Appleton | Milwaukee | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,917 | $7,644 | −$273 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,977 | $1,881 | −$95 |
| Take-home pay | $5,940 | $5,763 | −$178 |
| Rent | $916 | $1,261 | +$345 |
| Getting around | $551 | $503 | −$48 |
| Groceries | $378 | $384 | +$6 |
| Healthcare | $425 | $432 | +$7 |
| Utilities | $236 | $240 | +$4 |
| Everything else | $330 | $336 | +$6 |
| Left over | $3,104 | $2,607 | −$497 |
To break even in Milwaukee, you'd need to earn
$101,000
Household gross, versus $95,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Appleton does now.
The tax difference alone
+$174
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 25.0% in Appleton, 24.6% in Milwaukee.
More about Milwaukee
Appleton, WI in full
State income tax topping out at 7.65%, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,090 and 195 sunny days; commutes average 21 minutes.
Milwaukee, WI in full
Lake Michigan summers, cheap housing, and a 1.5% property tax.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Milwaukee on Milwaukee wages.
Milwaukee → Appleton →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Milwaukee than Appleton?
A one-bedroom is about $916 in Appleton versus $1,261 in Milwaukee. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $497 a month lower in Milwaukee. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Milwaukee have state income tax?
Milwaukee is in Wisconsin, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Appleton to Milwaukee?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Wisconsin tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Appleton and Milwaukee moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.