Milwaukee, WI → Madison, WI
Moving to Madison costs you $8 a month
−$96 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
In 2022-2023, 1,347 households moved Milwaukee → Madison (avg AGI $64,518). 1,308 went the other way. The whole move →
| Per month | Milwaukee | Madison | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,625 | $7,781 | +$156 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,875 | $1,929 | +$54 |
| Take-home pay | $5,750 | $5,852 | +$101 |
| Rent | $1,245 | $1,335 | +$90 |
| Getting around | $503 | $509 | +$6 |
| Groceries | $384 | $388 | +$4 |
| Healthcare | $432 | $437 | +$5 |
| Utilities | $240 | $243 | +$3 |
| Everything else | $336 | $340 | +$4 |
| Left over | $2,610 | $2,602 | −$8 |
To break even in Madison, you'd need to earn
$93,500
Household gross, versus $91,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Milwaukee does now.
The tax difference alone
−$99
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 24.6% in Milwaukee, 24.8% in Madison.
More about Madison
Milwaukee, WI in full
Lake Michigan summers, cheap housing, and a 1.5% property tax.
Madison, WI in full
A university town with big-city wages and small-city commutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Madison on Madison wages.
Madison → Milwaukee →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.