Moving to Wisconsin from Washington
What to Expect
Considering a move from Washington to Wisconsin? Here's how the two compare on cost, climate, safety, and more.
If you moved from Washington to Wisconsin, you would find that Wisconsin is 21.6% cheaper than Washington. A $75,000 salary in Washington would need to be roughly $58,800 in Wisconsin to maintain the same lifestyle. Seattle and Milwaukee are about 1,700 mi apart.
Is Wisconsin cheaper than Washington?
How key spending categories compare
Restaurants
pay 18.3% less
Groceries
pay 15.7% less
Transportation
pay 20.1% less
Housing
pay 30.3% less
Childcare
pay 17.0% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 17.3% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
What salary do you need in Wisconsin?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $58,800
To maintain the same standard of living in Wisconsin
Calculate with your salary →Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Wisconsin cost about 14% less than cities in Washington.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
The numbers behind daily life in Wisconsin compared to Washington.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Wisconsin performs significantly better than Washington across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
Washington generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Wisconsin leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Wisconsin performs significantly better than Washington across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Washington generally does better on infrastructure, though Wisconsin leads in average commute.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
Washington generally does better on employment & economy, though Wisconsin leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Washington performs better than Wisconsin across all family life metrics.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
Weather in Wisconsin vs Washington
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Seattle | Milwaukee |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 50°/38°F (10°/3°C) | 35°/21°F (1°/-6°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 64°/47°F (18°/8°C) | 65°/47°F (18°/8°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 74°/55°F (23°/13°C) | 76°/61°F (25°/16°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 52°/41°F (11°/5°C) | 46°/32°F (8°/0°C) |
View all months
| Month | Seattle | Milwaukee |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47°/37°F (8.4°/2.7°C) | 29°/16°F (-1.7°/-9.1°C) |
| Feb | 50°/37°F (9.9°/2.7°C) | 33°/19°F (0.3°/-7.1°C) |
| Mar | 54°/39°F (12.1°/4.1°C) | 42°/28°F (5.8°/-2.4°C) |
| Apr | 58°/42°F (14.7°/5.7°C) | 54°/37°F (12.1°/2.9°C) |
| May | 65°/47°F (18.2°/8.5°C) | 65°/47°F (18.3°/8.1°C) |
| Jun | 70°/52°F (21.1°/11.1°C) | 75°/57°F (24.1°/13.9°C) |
| Jul | 76°/56°F (24.3°/13.1°C) | 80°/64°F (26.7°/17.5°C) |
| Aug | 76°/56°F (24.6°/13.3°C) | 78°/63°F (25.8°/17.2°C) |
| Sep | 71°/52°F (21.4°/11.2°C) | 71°/55°F (21.8°/12.7°C) |
| Oct | 60°/46°F (15.4°/7.7°C) | 59°/43°F (15.2°/6.2°C) |
| Nov | 51°/40°F (10.5°/4.4°C) | 46°/32°F (7.8°/0.0°C) |
| Dec | 46°/36°F (7.6°/2.0°C) | 33°/20°F (0.4°/-6.6°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Wisconsin than Washington?
On average Wisconsin is about 22% less expensive than Washington, with major cities narrowing the gap.
How much money do I need to move to Wisconsin?
Budget about $14,700 for 3 months in Wisconsin (based on a $75,000 comparable annual salary), then add the one-off costs: movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Wisconsin safe?
Wisconsin performs significantly better than Washington across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Wisconsin compared to Washington?
Washington generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Wisconsin leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Wisconsin compared to Washington?
The average high temperature in Milwaukee is 55°F, compared to 60°F in Seattle. Milwaukee receives around 34.8 in of rainfall per year, while Seattle gets 37.5 in.
