The map above shows Michigan and Wisconsin side by side at exactly the same scale, using equal-area projections, so their true relative sizes are preserved.
Michigan vs Wisconsin Geography
Land area
- Michigan has a land area of 56,611 square miles (146,622 km²), while Wisconsin has 54,168 square miles (140,294 km²).
- Michigan and Wisconsin have about the same land area.
Total area
- Michigan: 96,713 square miles (250,486 km²) vs Wisconsin: 65,497 square miles (169,636 km²), including inland and coastal water.
- Michigan's total area is 1.5 times (48%) larger than Wisconsin's.
Length
- Michigan is 489 miles (786 km) long from north to south; Wisconsin is 368 miles (593 km).
- Michigan's north-south length is 1.3 times (33%) longer than Wisconsin's.
Width
- Michigan spans 453 miles (728 km) east to west; Wisconsin spans 323 miles (521 km).
- Michigan's east-west width is 1.4 times (40%) wider than Wisconsin's.
Highest point
- Michigan's highest point is Mount Arvon at 2,014 feet (614 m); Wisconsin's is Timms Hill at 1,946 feet (593 m).
- Mount Arvon is 68 feet higher than Timms Hill.
Lowest point
- Michigan's lowest point is Lake Erie at 571 feet; Wisconsin's is Lake Michigan at 577 feet.
- Michigan's lowest point is 6 feet lower.
Michigan vs Wisconsin Population and History
Population
- Michigan has a population of 10,140,459 (2024), while Wisconsin has 5,960,975 (2024).
- Michigan's population is 1.7 times (70%) larger than Wisconsin's.
Population density
- Michigan: 179.1 people per square mile vs Wisconsin: 110.0.
- Michigan's population density is 1.6 times (63%) higher than Wisconsin's.
Biggest city
- Michigan's biggest city is Detroit with 645,705 people; Wisconsin's is Milwaukee with 563,531.
- Detroit's population is 1.1 times (15%) larger than Milwaukee's.
Largest metro area
- Michigan's largest metropolitan area is Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area (4,400,578 people) vs Wisconsin's Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area (3,757,952).
- Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area's population is 1.2 times (17%) larger than Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI metro area's.
History
- Michigan: Admitted to the Union on January 26, 1837, as the 26th state.
- Wisconsin: Admitted to the Union on May 29, 1848, as the 30th state.
- In its current form, Michigan is the older of the two by 11 years.
Michigan vs Wisconsin Economy
GDP
- Michigan's GDP is $702.5 billion (2024) vs Wisconsin's $453.3 billion.
- Michigan's economic output is 1.5 times (55%) larger than Wisconsin's.
GDP per capita
- Michigan: $69,274 per person vs Wisconsin: $76,044.
- Wisconsin's GDP per capita is 1.1 times (10%) higher than Michigan's.
Average income
- Michigan: $63,690 vs Wisconsin: $67,755 average income per person (per capita personal income).
- Wisconsin's average income is 1.1 times (6%) higher than Michigan's.
Michigan vs Wisconsin Counties
Number of counties
- Michigan has 83 counties, while Wisconsin has 72.
- Michigan's county count is 1.2 times (15%) higher than Wisconsin's.
Biggest county by area
- Michigan's largest county is Marquette County at 1,809 square miles; Wisconsin's is Marathon County at 1,545 square miles.
- Marquette County's land area is 1.2 times (17%) larger than Marathon County's.
Smallest county by area
- Michigan: Benzie County (320 sq mi) vs Wisconsin: Pepin County (232 sq mi).
- Benzie County's land area is 1.4 times (38%) larger than Pepin County's.
Most populous county
- Michigan: Wayne County (1,771,063 people) vs Wisconsin: Milwaukee County (924,740 people).
- Wayne County's population is 1.9 times (92%) larger than Milwaukee County's.
Least populous county
- Michigan: Keweenaw County (2,161 people) vs Wisconsin: Menominee County (4,286 people).
- Menominee County's population is 2.0 times (98%) larger than Keweenaw County's.
Richest county
- Michigan: Oakland County ($93,579 per capita income) vs Wisconsin: Ozaukee County ($109,947).
- Ozaukee County's income is 1.2 times (17%) richer than Oakland County's.
Poorest county
- Michigan: Lake County ($39,505 per capita income) vs Wisconsin: Menominee County ($43,696).
- Menominee County's income is 1.1 times (11%) richer than Lake County's.
Michigan vs Wisconsin Taxes
State income tax
- Michigan has a top income tax rate of 4.25%, while Wisconsin has a top income tax rate of 7.65%.
- Wisconsin's top rate is 3.4 percentage points higher.
Property tax
- Michigan: 1.18% effective rate vs Wisconsin: 1.25% of home value per year.
- Wisconsin's rate is 0.07 percentage points higher.
Sales tax
- Michigan: 6% combined state and average local rate vs Wisconsin: 5.72%.
- Michigan's combined rate is 0.28 percentage points higher.
Official Websites
Michigan official website · Wisconsin official website
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More Size Comparisons
All Michigan 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.