The map above shows California and Wisconsin side by side at exactly the same scale, using equal-area projections, so their true relative sizes are preserved.
California vs Wisconsin Geography
Land area
- California has a land area of 155,859 square miles (403,673 km²), while Wisconsin has 54,168 square miles (140,294 km²).
- California's land area is 2.9 times (188%) larger than Wisconsin's.
Total area
- California: 163,694 square miles (423,965 km²) vs Wisconsin: 65,497 square miles (169,636 km²), including inland and coastal water.
- California's total area is 2.5 times (150%) larger than Wisconsin's.
Length
- California is 761 miles (1,224 km) long from north to south; Wisconsin is 368 miles (593 km).
- California's north-south length is 2.1 times (107%) longer than Wisconsin's.
Width
- California spans 706 miles (1,137 km) east to west; Wisconsin spans 323 miles (521 km).
- California's east-west width is 2.2 times (119%) wider than Wisconsin's.
Highest point
- California's highest point is Mount Whitney at 14,484 feet (4,415 m); Wisconsin's is Timms Hill at 1,946 feet (593 m).
- Mount Whitney is 12,538 feet higher than Timms Hill.
Lowest point
- California's lowest point is Death Valley at -279 feet; Wisconsin's is Lake Michigan at 577 feet.
- California's lowest point is 856 feet lower.
California vs Wisconsin Population and History
Population
- California has a population of 39,431,263 (2024), while Wisconsin has 5,960,975 (2024).
- California's population is 6.6 times (561%) larger than Wisconsin's.
Population density
- California: 253.0 people per square mile vs Wisconsin: 110.0.
- California's population density is 2.3 times (130%) higher than Wisconsin's.
Biggest city
- California's biggest city is Los Angeles with 3,878,704 people; Wisconsin's is Milwaukee with 563,531.
- Los Angeles' population is 6.9 times (588%) larger than Milwaukee's.
Largest metro area
- California's largest metropolitan area is Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area (12,927,614 people) vs Wisconsin's Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area (3,757,952).
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area's population is 3.4 times (244%) larger than Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area's.
History
- California: Admitted to the Union on September 9, 1850, as the 31st state.
- Wisconsin: Admitted to the Union on May 29, 1848, as the 30th state.
- In its current form, Wisconsin is the older of the two by 2 years.
California vs Wisconsin Economy
GDP
- California's GDP is $4,048.1 billion (2024) vs Wisconsin's $453.3 billion.
- California's economic output is 8.9 times (793%) larger than Wisconsin's.
GDP per capita
- California: $102,662 per person vs Wisconsin: $76,044.
- California's GDP per capita is 1.4 times (35%) higher than Wisconsin's.
Average income
- California: $86,232 vs Wisconsin: $67,755 average income per person (per capita personal income).
- California's average income is 1.3 times (27%) higher than Wisconsin's.
California vs Wisconsin Counties
Number of counties
- California has 58 counties, while Wisconsin has 72.
- Wisconsin's county count is 1.2 times (24%) higher than California's.
Biggest county by area
- California's largest county is San Bernardino County at 20,068 square miles; Wisconsin's is Marathon County at 1,545 square miles.
- San Bernardino County's land area is 13.0 times larger than Marathon County's.
Smallest county by area
- California: San Francisco County (47 sq mi) vs Wisconsin: Pepin County (232 sq mi).
- Pepin County's land area is 5.0 times (397%) larger than San Francisco County's.
Most populous county
- California: Los Angeles County (9,757,179 people) vs Wisconsin: Milwaukee County (924,740 people).
- Los Angeles County's population is 10.6 times larger than Milwaukee County's.
Least populous county
- California: Alpine County (1,099 people) vs Wisconsin: Menominee County (4,286 people).
- Menominee County's population is 3.9 times (290%) larger than Alpine County's.
Richest county
- California: Marin County ($190,891 per capita income) vs Wisconsin: Ozaukee County ($109,947).
- Marin County's income is 1.7 times (74%) richer than Ozaukee County's.
Poorest county
- California: Trinity County ($42,191 per capita income) vs Wisconsin: Menominee County ($43,696).
- Trinity County and Menominee County have about the same income.
California vs Wisconsin Taxes
State income tax
- California has a top income tax rate of 13.3%, while Wisconsin has a top income tax rate of 7.65%.
- California's top rate is 5.65 percentage points higher.
Property tax
- California: 0.71% effective rate vs Wisconsin: 1.25% of home value per year.
- Wisconsin's rate is 0.54 percentage points higher.
Sales tax
- California: 9.03% combined state and average local rate vs Wisconsin: 5.72%.
- California's combined rate is 3.31 percentage points higher.
Official Websites
California official website · Wisconsin official website
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More Size Comparisons
All California size comparisons · All Wisconsin size comparisons
Area, elevation and boundary figures come from official national statistics and US Census Bureau and Natural Earth boundary data; US state population, economic, county and tax figures come from the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Tax Foundation. Figures are rounded and for general reference.