Minnesota vs Wisconsin: which really costs more?
Upper Midwest neighbors with a long history of cross-border comparison.
Income tax shown is the effective state rate on a $75,000 salary for a single filer; sales tax is the combined state and local rate in each state's representative county. Both figures come from the same verified datasets the calculator uses.
What things actually cost in each
Gross income required at a $75,000 salary, using each category's default assumptions — sorted by the biggest difference between the two states.
| Category | Minnesota | Wisconsin | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home purchase | $1,341,841 | $1,279,745 | $62,096 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Car purchase | $148,636 | $141,677 | $6,959 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Wedding | $51,213 | $49,316 | $1,897 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Coffee habit | $27,984 | $26,990 | $993 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Car payment or lease | $18,297 | $18,052 | $245 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Funeral | $12,589 | $12,420 | $169 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Phone plan | $10,842 | $10,697 | $145 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Pet annual cost | $2,634 | $2,541 | $94 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Laptop or phone purchase | $2,042 | $1,970 | $72 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Rent | $2,832 | $2,794 | $38 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Childcare | $1,731 | $1,708 | $23 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Hotel stay | $1,101 | $1,086 | $15 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Health insurance premium | $708 | $699 | $10 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Student loan payment | $629 | $621 | $8 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Concert ticket | $233 | $225 | $8 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Domestic flight | $516 | $509 | $7 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Restaurant dinner | $163 | $158 | $6 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Utilities | $330 | $326 | $4 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Weekly groceries | $275 | $272 | $4 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Car insurance | $260 | $256 | $3 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Gym membership | $77 | $74 | $3 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Streaming bundle | $77 | $74 | $3 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Pizza delivery | $63 | $62 | $2 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Food delivery | $60 | $59 | $2 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Cannabis (legal states) | $111 | $110 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Internet service | $110 | $109 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Soft drinks | $41 | $39 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Gas fill-up | $71 | $70 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Haircut | $66 | $65 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Fast food meal | $20 | $20 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Bar drink | $18 | $18 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Cigarettes or vape | $15 | $15 | $1 cheaper in Wisconsin |
| Rideshare trip | $35 | $34 | $0 cheaper in Wisconsin |
Across the 33 categories we can compute for both states, Wisconsin comes out cheaper more often. That is not the whole picture — housing costs, wages, and property tax vary far more than sales tax does, and none of those are modeled here. See limitations.