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METRO AREA · 2000 CENSUS

Milwaukee Metro

Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI · 4 counties · 1,500,741 residents · 1,455 sq mi
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The short version

With 1,500,741 people, Milwaukee is a metro area. 27% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Households take in $46,881 a year at the median, 10% more than the country as a whole. Headcount has barely moved since 1990. Home values have risen by half since 1990, reaching $125,259.

At a glance
Wealthier
above the US median
US median: $42,589
Mid-age
median age 35.3
US median: 35.2
More educated
27% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 24%
Less affordable
home values up 28%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $120,530
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
1,500,741
+5%since 1990
from 1,432,149 in 1990
1990 – 2025
Population density
1,032 / sq mi
+5%since 1990
from 984 / sq mi in 1990
Median age
35.3
+7%since 1990
from 32.8 in 1990
US average: 35.2
Land area
1,455 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
1.4M1.5M1.5M1.5M1.6M19902000201020202024Milwaukee
20241.6M
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2000
Under 56.9%(103,276)
US avg: 6.8%
5 to 97.5%(112,211)
US avg: 7.3%
10 to 147.6%(113,872)
US avg: 7.3%
15 to 197.2%(108,284)
US avg: 7.2%
20 to 246.3%(95,295)
US avg: 6.7%
25 to 3413.8%(207,256)
US avg: 14.2%
35 to 4416.3%(244,843)
US avg: 16%
45 to 5413.7%(204,960)
US avg: 13.4%
55 to 648.1%(122,056)
US avg: 8.6%
65 to 746.4%(95,918)
US avg: 6.5%
75 to 844.5%(67,966)
US avg: 4.4%
85 and over1.7%(24,804)
US avg: 1.5%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$46,881
+8%inflation adjusted, since 1990
from $32,877 in 1990
US average: $42,589
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$23,158
+57%since 1990
from $14,785 in 1990
US average: $21,522
Poverty rate
10.6%
−1.0 ptssince 1990
from 11.6% in 1990
US average: 12.4%
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$125,259
+28%inflation adjusted, since 1990
from $74,438 in 1990
US average: $120,530
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$606
Unchangedinflation adjusted, since 1990
from $461 in 1990
US average: $602
Owner-occupied
61.5%
+1.4 ptssince 1990
from 60.0% in 1990
38.5% rent
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

1990
White, non-Hispanic82.7%(1,184,263)
Black13.8%(197,144)
Hispanic / Latino3.4%(48,276)
Asian1.3%(18,384)
2000
White, non-Hispanic74.4%(1,116,150)
Black15.5%(232,247)
Hispanic / Latino6.3%(94,511)
Asian2%(30,765)

No data for the years selected.

Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Detailed origin tables are available for 2024; showing 2024 data.

Hispanic origin
Mexican7.8%(121,993)
Puerto Rican2.6%(40,714)
Central American0.5%(8,412)
South American0.5%(8,302)
Nicaraguan0.2%(2,487)
Colombian0.1%(2,195)
Cuban0.1%(2,097)
Guatemalan0.1%(1,955)
Dominican0.1%(1,876)
Peruvian0.1%(1,627)
Spaniard0.1%(1,555)
Venezuelan0.1%(1,439)
+ 10 more hispanic origin groups with data
Salvadoran0.1%(1,426)
Honduran0.1%(1,270)
Argentine0.1%(1,161)
Costa Rican0.1%(764)
Ecuadorian0%(634)
Bolivian0%(583)
Panamanian0%(499)
Chilean0%(400)
Uruguayan0%(158)
Asian origin
Asian Indian1.1%(16,627)
Hmong1%(16,260)
Chinese0.5%(7,086)
Burmese0.4%(5,766)
Filipino0.3%(4,130)
Vietnamese0.2%(2,688)
Korean0.2%(2,511)
Laotian0.1%(1,889)
Pakistani0.1%(1,839)
Malaysian0.1%(1,261)
Thai0.1%(777)
Japanese0%(750)
+ 9 more asian origin groups with data
Nepalese0%(604)
Taiwanese0%(388)
Indonesian0%(225)
Kazakh0%(173)
Uzbek0%(41)
Cambodian0%(39)
Pacific Islander origin
Chamorro0%(248)
Samoan0%(143)
Guamanian0%(107)
Tongan0%(51)
Fijian0%(22)
Ancestry
German31%(486,592)
Polish9.5%(149,231)
Irish9.4%(147,463)
English5.2%(82,336)
Italian4.2%(66,622)
American2.7%(42,840)
Norwegian2.7%(41,841)
French2%(31,961)
Swedish1.4%(21,879)
Dutch1.1%(17,359)
Scottish1%(15,039)
Czech0.8%(12,713)
+ 50 more ancestry groups with data
Subsaharan African0.8%(12,574)
Russian0.7%(10,830)
Arab0.6%(9,090)
Danish0.5%(8,280)
Hungarian0.5%(7,831)
Greek0.5%(7,356)
Swiss0.5%(7,272)
French Canadian0.4%(6,887)
Austrian0.4%(6,673)
Finnish0.4%(6,454)
Croatian0.4%(5,945)
Welsh0.4%(5,721)
Slovak0.3%(5,276)
Serbian0.3%(4,724)
Scotch-Irish0.3%(4,564)
Belgian0.3%(4,303)
Slovene0.2%(3,554)
Lithuanian0.2%(3,245)
West Indian0.2%(3,068)
British0.2%(3,018)
Ukrainian0.2%(3,006)
Palestinian0.1%(2,197)
Nigerian0.2%(2,147)
Jamaican0.1%(2,076)
Romanian0.1%(1,737)
Canadian0.1%(1,623)
Somali0.2%(1,594)
Armenian0.1%(1,307)
Lebanese0.1%(1,272)
Turkish0.1%(1,073)
Latvian0.1%(1,041)
Portuguese0.1%(1,013)
Egyptian0.1%(1,011)
Ethiopian0.1%(910)
Iranian0.1%(868)
Iraqi0.1%(677)
Jordanian0%(617)
Moroccan0.1%(539)
Bulgarian0%(502)
Syrian0%(468)
Australian0%(418)
Ghanaian0%(415)
Brazilian0%(313)
Haitian0%(300)
Macedonian0%(292)
Israeli0%(249)
Kenyan0%(163)
Guyanese0%(52)
Barbadian0%(17)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
26.8%
+5.6 ptssince 1990
from 21.3% in 1990
US average: 24.4%
High school or higher
84.4%
+4.7 ptssince 1990
from 79.6% in 1990
US average: 80.3%
Graduate degree
8.7%
+2.1 ptssince 1990
from 6.5% in 1990
US average: 8.8%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
13.7 min
−29%since 1990
from 19.1 min in 1990
US average: 17.6
Section 07

Work & employment

No data for the years selected.

Section 08

People & community

No data for the years selected.

Marital status
Men 15+
Never married33.2%(185,375)
Married56.1%(313,733)
Widowed2.5%(13,953)
Divorced8.2%(45,979)
Women 15+
Never married27.9%(171,097)
Married51.5%(315,422)
Widowed10.2%(62,397)
Divorced10.4%(63,506)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2000
Section 09

Health coverage

Showing 2024 (the nearest year with coverage data).

Uninsured
5.5%
−4.1 ptssince 2013
from 9.6% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
60.1%
−1.4 ptssince 2020
from 61.5% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
13.0%
+0.8 ptssince 2020
from 12.2% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
18.2%
+1.0 ptssince 2020
from 17.1% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
20.6%
+0.9 ptssince 2020
from 19.7% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
1.4%
−0.3 ptssince 2020
from 1.7% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
70.1%
−1.8 ptssince 2020
from 71.9% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
35.9%
+1.6 ptssince 2020
from 34.3% in 2020
US average: 36.7%

Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.

Section 09 · Service history

Veterans

Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)20.7%(12,411)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)18.1%(10,825)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era35.3%(21,182)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War6.4%(3,824)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II1.6%(942)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 59,931 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.

BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
In this metro

Largest cities

MilwaukeeCENTRAL562,407WaukeshaCENTRAL70,872West Allis60,119Wauwatosa48,649Brookfield41,448Menomonee Falls41,291New Berlin39,953Oak Creek38,296Greenfield37,159Franklin36,687West Bend32,268Muskego25,602Mequon25,120Germantown21,050South Milwaukee20,191Oconomowoc20,119Cudahy17,655Pewaukee16,375Glendale14,795Whitefish Bay14,489Greendale14,426Shorewood13,474Grafton13,389Cedarburg12,916Brown Deer12,821Sussex12,779Port Washington12,658Richfield11,785Hartland10,740St. Francis8,955

The 30 most populous of 61 cities and towns in this metro. CENTRAL marks the metro's principal cities.

What's inside

4 component counties

Milwaukee CountyCENTRAL924,216Waukesha CountyCENTRAL417,210Washington County139,238Ozaukee County94,346
Drill deeper

Metros similar to Milwaukee

Jacksonville
Pop 1,785,500
Oklahoma City
Pop 1,512,813
Louisville
Pop 1,402,509
Virginia Beach
Pop 1,797,213
Places similar to Milwaukee
Head to head

Compare Milwaukee side by side

MILWAUKEE VS
Jacksonville
Income$81,763+74%
Home value$342,382+173%
Population1,785,500+13%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
MILWAUKEE VS
Oklahoma City
Income$72,641+55%
Home value$228,101+82%
Population1,512,813−4%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
MILWAUKEE VS
Louisville
Income$75,127+60%
Home value$252,743+102%
Population1,402,509−11%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
MILWAUKEE VS
Virginia Beach
Income$84,869+81%
Home value$338,965+171%
Population1,797,213+14%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI?

Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI has about 1,500,741 residents according to the 2000 Census.

What is the median household income in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI?

The typical household in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI earns about $46,881 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI expensive?

In Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI, the median home is worth about $125,259, and the typical rent is about $606 a month.

How educated are people in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI?

About 26.8% of adults age 25 and over in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI?

About 10.6% of people in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI live below the federal poverty line.

Has Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI grown since 1990?

Yes, Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI has grown since 1990. The population has added about 68,592 residents, a change of about 5 percent over that period.

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DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR + DECENNIAL CENSUS · METRO ROLLUP OF COMPONENT COUNTIES · UPDATED 2024

How we source and harmonize this data →