Moving from Minnesota to Wisconsin
Everyone compares rent and groceries. Almost nobody compares the two numbers that actually decide whether a move works: state income tax and property tax. Here is Minnesota and Wisconsin, side by side.
Moving to Wisconsin costs about
-$380/mo
less than Minnesota each month, renting
Worth knowing
A cheaper house in Wisconsin, a bigger property tax bill
The median home in Wisconsin costs $266,500 against $329,300 in Minnesota, but you would pay about $3,784 a year in property tax rather than $3,359. The rate more than cancels the lower price.
Minnesota vs Wisconsin at a glance
| Minnesota | Wisconsin | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $329,300 | $266,500 |
| Median rent | $1,280/mo | $1,087/mo |
| State income tax | Up to 9.85% | Up to 7.65% |
| Property tax rate | 1.02% | 1.42% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 101 | 94 |
| Utilities | 91 | 90 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
What changes each month
| Monthly | MN | WI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent)Biggest factor | $1,280 | $1,087 | -$193 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $328 | $288 | -$40 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $104 | $73 | -$31 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,843 | $1,729 | -$114 |
| Utilities | $371 | $367 | -$4 |
| Total | -$380 | ||
What the move itself costs
$1,500 to $3,500
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $350 to $600, against roughly $50 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 1-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Minneapolis is not Minnesota-average and Milwaukee is not Wisconsin-average, so a specific city can look nothing like its state. Compare metro areas instead to narrow it to 387 real places, including which side of a state line you would live on.
Run this with your own numbers
Estimates only, not advice. Housing and income figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2024); price levels from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024); tax rates are for the 2026 tax year, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Moving costs are modelled from published ranges rather than quoted. Every figure is a statewide median or average and will not match any particular household.