Latest Census city estimates released May 14, 2026 · Population as of July 1, 2025 · Next city estimates scheduled for May 2027. Release schedule
Madison, Wisconsin population is 286,233 as of July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimate), ranking #77 nationally and #2 in Wisconsin. Cost of living runs 2.7% below the U.S. average (BEA RPP 2024); the four-person spending scenario corresponds to modeled gross income of $125,928/yr (TY2026 tax assumptions; partial scenario excluding unverified local income tax). This profile draws on 13 federal datasets covering population, housing, income, employment, climate, and risk.
286,233 people live in Madison as of July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025), the #77 largest U.S. city.
How big is Madison?
Madison covers 84.2 square miles of land and 21.4 square miles of water. Its population density is about 3,399 residents per square mile of land. Compare U.S. cities by land area →
Source detail: 2025 population
2025 population
Source agency
U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division
Dataset
Census PEP
Vintage / period
Vintage 2025 (Jul 1, 2025)
Native geography
Census PEP subcounty place records for the included city universe.
Transformation
Copied from POPESTIMATE2025, joined by Census GEOID, and used for ranks, filters, and city pages.
Known limit: Annual estimate, not a decennial count; each new PEP vintage can revise the prior series.
Population grew 4.2% from the April 2020 base to mid-2025.
Vintage 2025 · annual estimates
Recent history (V2025 series, 2020 base → 2025).
2020 base: 274,640 → 2025: 286,233 (+4.2%)
Year
Population
Reference date
2020 base
274,640
April 1, 2020
2020
274,851
July 1, 2020
2021
271,089
July 1, 2021
2022
277,322
July 1, 2022
2023
280,941
July 1, 2023
2024
284,278
July 1, 2024
2025
286,233
July 1, 2025
Earlier history (2010–2019, prior Census vintage)
These figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Vintage 2019 release — a separate, earlier methodology. They’re shown here as historical context only; the 2010 and 2019 values aren’t directly comparable to the 2020–2025 series above.
Population grew 11.1% from the July 2010 estimate to 2019 (V2019 — see seam note below).
Madison is the #77 largest of 19,483 U.S. cities and #2 in Wisconsin.
▸Show the analyst detail (9 rows)
Measure
Value
Note
2020 base
274,640
April 1, 2020 census base
5-yr change
+11,593
2020 base → 2025; within V2025
5-yr change %
+4.2%
within V2025 only
1-yr change
+1,955
2024 → 2025 estimate
1-yr change %
+0.7%
within V2025 only
Density
3,399
people per sq mi, land only
Land area
84.2
sq mi (2025 Gazetteer)
U.S. rank by population
#77
of 19,483 cities
State rank by population
#2
of 608 in Wisconsin
What is the median household income in Madison?
Same-period U.S. benchmarks: household income $80,734 ± $166; per-capita income $44,673 ± $122. Margins are at 90% confidence. Comparison badges describe point estimates; they are not significance tests.
Median household income is 3% below the U.S. median ($78,050 vs $80,734); 16.4% live in poverty, 3.9 points above the 12.5% U.S. estimate.
Median household income$78,050
US
Madison: $78,050 — 3% below the US median of $80,734.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with ACS income data; censored rows retained in the distribution
Madison
$78,050
United States
$80,734
Income and poverty estimates for Madison from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates (window 2020–2024). Every figure is shown with its 90% margin of error (MOE). Cells where the ± margin exceeds half the estimate are flagged "low precision." See methodology §12.
Measure
Estimate
± margin / note
Median household income
$78,050-3.3% vs US
±$2,037
Per capita income
$49,425+10.6% vs US
±$1,941
Population in poverty
16.4% ± 0.9 percentage points
share of population for whom poverty status is determined
Median home value is 12% above the U.S. median ($372,900 vs $332,700); median rent is 0% above ($1,413 vs $1,413); the ratio of median home value to median household income is 4.8× versus 4.1× nationally; this compares two distributions and does not measure an individual household's housing burden.
Median home value$372,900
US
Madison: $372,900 — 12% above the US median of $332,700.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with ACS home-value data; censored rows retained in the distribution
HUD 2-BR fair-market rent$1,694/mo
US
Madison: $1,694/mo — 57% above the US median of $1,077/mo.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with a HUD Fair Market Rent
Same-period U.S. benchmarks: home value $332,700 ± $236; gross rent $1,413 ± $2. Comparison badges describe estimates and do not establish statistical significance.
Measure
Estimate
± margin / note
Median value, owner-occupied units
$372,900+12.1% vs US
±$5,542
Median gross rent
$1,4130.0% vs US
±$20
HUD Fair Market Rent, 2-BR (FY2026)
$1,694-16.6% vs US
Madison, WI HUD Metro FMR Area· 40th-percentile gross rent · HUD methodology
Owner-occupied share
46.0% ± 1.0 percentage points
of occupied housing units
Price-to-income ratio
4.8x± 0.14x approximate 90% MOE+15.9% vs US
median home value ÷ median household income · U.S. ratio: 4.1x
Rent-burdened (≥30% of income)
50.2% ± 2.0 percentage points-1.7% vs US
renters with a computed rent/income ratio · U.S. share: 51.1%
Severely rent-burdened (≥50%)
26.1% ± 1.6 percentage points+0.7% vs US
renters with a computed rent/income ratio · U.S. share: 25.9%
Poverty (Census SAIPE 2024, model-based), unemployment (BLS LAUS 2025 annual averages), and remote-work share (ACS 2020–2024) for Madison. Numbers are labeled at their native grain — place-grain when BLS publishes it, otherwise per-county. We do not compute population-weighted county averages. See methodology §13.
Measure
Value
Grain
Unemployment rate (annual avg)
2.5%
Madison (BLS sub-state LAUS)
Civilian labor force
170,886
2025 annual avg
Worked from home
20.5% ± 1.0 percentage points+35.9% vs US
share of workers 16+ working from home · U.S. share: 15.1% · ACS
County context — Madison sits in Dane County:
County
Poverty rate
Median HH income
Unemployment
Dane County
9.9%
$91,479
2.6%
Top industries by private employment — NAICS supersectors rolled up from Madison's linked county in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW, 2025 annual averages). See methodology §11.
#
Industry (NAICS supersector)
Private employment
Avg weekly wage
#1
Health care and social assistance (62)
44,485
$1,514 / wk
#2
Retail trade (44-45)
29,294
$765 / wk
#3
Accommodation and food services (72)
28,339
$485 / wk
#4
Professional and technical services (54)
26,551
$2,072 / wk
#5
Manufacturing (31-33)
25,939
$1,545 / wk
What workers earn in the Madison, WI metro — top occupations by employment plus six curated benchmarks (registered nurse, software developer, elementary teacher, general manager, retail salesperson, truck driver). Wages are metro-area medians from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). See methodology §25.
Registered Nurses is the largest tracked occupation in the Madison, WI metro (10,650 jobs, median $101,190/yr).
▸Show all 13 occupations
Occupation
Employment
Median annual
Median hourly
Fast Food and Counter Workers
9,180
$29,820
$14.34
Home Health and Personal Care Aides
8,360
$37,220
$17.89
Cashiers
7,960
$34,550
$16.61
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
7,130
$44,190
$21.25
Customer Service Representatives
7,120
$47,500
$22.84
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners
6,780
$39,680
$19.08
Office Clerks, General
5,970
$46,590
$22.40
Registered Nurses · benchmark
10,650
$101,190
$48.65
Retail Salespersons · benchmark
8,330
$35,830
$17.23
Software Developers · benchmark
6,720
$130,630
$62.80
General and Operations Managers · benchmark
5,130
$126,620
$60.88
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers · benchmark
4,160
$59,700
$28.70
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education · benchmark
All items run 2.7% below the U.S. average (RPP 97.3); utilities run 10.2% below (RPP 89.8) — the metro's utility affordability is the main driver.
Cost of living (RPP, all items)RPP 97.3
US
Madison's cost of living runs 2.7% below the U.S. average (RPP 97.3 vs 100).
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of metro/non-metro areas with a BEA price parity
BEA Regional Price Parity (all items)
RPP 97.3
−2.7% vs U.S. average · BEA 2024 · Madison, WI metro
HUD Fair Market Rent, 2-BR
$1,694/mo
FY2026 · Madison, WI HUD Metro FMR Area
State income tax (top marginal rate)
7.65%
4 brackets · TY2026
Four-person monthly spending scenario
$10,494/mo
3BR rent + food + childcare + taxes + transport · federal sources; excludes unverified local income tax
One-person monthly spending scenario
$3,663/mo
1BR rent + food + taxes + transport · federal sources; excludes unverified local income tax
Local income tax
—
Unverified and excluded from the spending scenario; not a verified zero
Household budget figures are arithmetic floors using current federal sources at the grains documented in methodology. Not a recommended salary, not a poverty threshold, not a composite score.
11.6% ± 0.5 percentage points foreign-born (U.S. share 14.1%); Spanish is the most-spoken language at home other than English (6.1% of residents 5+).
A quick read on Madison's residents — nativity and languages spoken at home shown above, from the ACS 5-Year 2020–2024. The full demographic breakdown (age, race and ethnicity, household types, and educational attainment, each with its margin of error) lives on the demographics page.
These are K-12 public school districts. Higher education (colleges and universities) is not represented in this dataset.
7 districts serve Madison, from the NCES EDGE Geographic Relationship Files (GRF25, 2024–25 school year boundaries). The join is many-to-many — large cities often span multiple districts. Expand the list below to see every district sorted primary first. See methodology §12.
Source: NCES EDGE GRF25 · school year 2024–25 · methodology →
What is the climate like in Madison?
Hottest month: July (83°F avg high). Coldest: January (11°F avg low). Annual precipitation: 37.3 in.
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) for Madison from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. See methodology §15 for the gridded vs. station source path.
Average monthly highs & lows · 30-year normal (NOAA 1991–2020). Every number on this chart is an average.
bar = avg daily high → avg daily lowprecip in inches below each barprecip in millimeters below each bar
Natural-hazard exposure for Madison from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index (FEMA NRI December 2025 v1.20.0). NRI is an expected-annual-loss composite calibrated on 1996–2019 historical losses, published at the U.S. county grain. See methodology §17.
County
NRI composite
Rating
Top hazards
Dane County
93.9
Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave 99.0 Very High · Hail 98.9 Relatively High · Tornado 97.6 Relatively High
Source: FEMA National Risk Index · FEMA NRI December 2025 v1.20.0 · methodology →
How fast is home internet in Madison?
16 non-satellite ISPs serve the area; 61% of locations have gigabit-capable service per ISP filings.
Fixed broadband availability for Madison from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's Broadband Data Collection (BDC), as of December 31, 2025. Every speed and provider count below is an ISP-reported advertised maximum — not measured throughput. Actual delivered speeds typically run 60–80% of advertised. See methodology §16.
Measure
Value
Note
Providers serving this city
16 + satellite
distinct ISPs, excluding satellite-only
Fiber providers
16
offer fiber-to-the-premises somewhere in the BDC
Units with ≥100/20 Mbps fixed
100.0%
share of broadband-serviceable units, ISP-reported max
Locations with ≥100 Mbps upload
60.6%
derived: max(fiber ≥100/20, gigabit). Fiber is symmetric; gigabit is ≥100 up by definition
Units with ≥1 Gbps fixed
60.6%
share of broadband-serviceable units, ISP-reported max
Total broadband-serviceable units
147,944
residential locations in the FCC Fabric (not households)
Source: FCC BDC · as of December 31, 2025 · methodology →
How much crime is reported in Madison?
In 2024, law enforcement reported 722 violent and 5,260 property offenses in the Madison jurisdiction — a violent-crime rate of 256.0 per 100,000, below the U.S. estimate of 359.1.
Reported offenses known to law enforcement from the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program (CIUS Table 8), 2024. Figures describe the FBI agency jurisdiction: Madison — an FBI jurisdiction population of 282,045, versus the Census place population of 286,233. The rate per 100,000 is the FBI's own (count ÷ that jurisdiction population), never divided by the Census place figure. These are reported crimes under voluntary participation — not measured or victimization crime — and the FBI cautions against using them to rank or compare places. See methodology §31.
Offenses known, 2024
Count
Rate /100k
U.S. rate
Violent crime
722
256.0
359.1
Property crime
5,260
1,865.0
1,760.1
▸Offense breakdown and 3-year trend
Offense, 2024
Count
Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter
7
Rape
75
Robbery
95
Aggravated assault
545
Burglary
447
Larceny-theft
4,500
Motor vehicle theft
313
Arson (12-month reporters only)
8
Year
Violent /100k
Property /100k
Jurisdiction pop.
2022
300.5
2,396.3
269,546
2023
301.2
2,334.9
274,234
2024
256.0
1,865.0
282,045
Only years the agency reported a complete 12 months appear; the FBI does not estimate missing agency-years, so a gap is a non-reporting year, not zero crime.
U.S. rate is the FBI national estimate (imputes non-reporting agencies); the city figures are reported-only. Source: FBI UCR CIUS Table 8 (2022–2024) · FBI agency jurisdiction: Madison · methodology → · FBI Crime Data Explorer →
In-state context.
Madison sits at state rank #2 among 608 cities in Wisconsin. Nearby in the state ranking:
Just above in the profiled set: Anchorage, AK · #76 · 287,155 residents.
Just below in the profiled set: Reno, NV · #78 · 283,621 residents.
Quick travel facts for Madison
Quick travel facts.
Elevation
924 ft · at city centroid, from USGS 3D Elevation Program
Nearest scheduled-service airport
Dane County Regional Truax Field(MSN) · 6 mi 9 km from city centroid
Sources: elevation from USGS 3DEP · nearest airport from OurAirports CSV (OurAirports type=large/medium and scheduled_service=yes; not an FAA service classification) · best months derived from NOAA 1991-2020 normals · methodology →
Frequently asked questions about Madison.
How many people live in Madison, WI?
Madison has 286,233 residents as of July 1, 2025, making it the #77 largest city in the United States and #2 in Wisconsin. Source: U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025.
Is Madison growing or shrinking?
Madison has grown 4.2% since the April 2020 census baseline, adding 11,593 residents, including a 0.7% increase from 2024 to 2025. Source: Census PEP Vintage 2025.
Madison covers 84.2 square miles of land, with a population density of about 3,399 residents per square mile. Source: Census Gazetteer 2025.
What is the median household income in Madison?
$78,050, about 3% below the U.S. median. Source: ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024.
SourceU.S. Census · PEP
VintageV2025
Reference2025-07-01
Place typeIncorporated place
GEOID5548000
Last build2026-09-30
Sources · provenance
Every listed dataset is used on this page.
The GEOID for Madison is 5548000. These are the official datasets used by this profile's main data modules; click "methodology" for inclusion rules and the V2019 ↔ V2025 seam, or "source" for the raw publisher page. The headline population value above includes a source-detail disclosure with publisher, dataset, vintage, native geography, transformation, and caveat.
