News of the Day March 31, 2026
Sharp Drop in Immigration in 2025 Slowed Wisconsin Population Growth

Wisconsin’s population growth slowed in 2025 after international migration to the state was cut by more than half, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

Wisconsin’s natural population growth from births outpacing deaths has remained low for much of the 2020s, Census data shows. In fact, deaths outpaced births for two years during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 and 2022.

That’s meant international and domestic migration have been the main drivers of the state’s population growth.

Wisconsin saw an estimated more than 18,000 people move to the state from abroad each year from 2022 through 2024, according to Census data.

But the number of people who moved to Wisconsin from other countries dropped from 19,395 in 2024 to 7,260 in 2025, Census Bureau figures show.

As a result, overall population growth slowed from an estimated 26,818 in 2024 to an estimated 15,619 in 2025, the Census Bureau reports.

The Census Bureau also reports that lower international migration contributed to lower population growth in the country’s most populous counties.

According to Census data, Milwaukee County’s population was essentially flat, decreasing by 107 from 2024 to 2025. Meanwhile, Dane County’s population growth slowed from increasing by 7,026 in 2024 to 4,050 last year. The Census Bureau estimates that the number of people who moved to Milwaukee County from abroad declined from 5,688 to 1,973 from 2024 to 2025. In Dane County, international migration fell from 4,404 to 2,049.

Overall population growth also slowed in the Green Bay and Appleton metropolitan areas, but the decrease wasn’t quite as sharp as in the Milwaukee-Waukesha and Madison metro areas, Census data shows.