Wisconsin Sales Tax Calculator

Wisconsin rates: 5%, 5.5% or 7.9%

Wisconsin charges a 5% state sales and use tax, and most counties add 0.5%, making 5.5%. Milwaukee is the exception. Since January 1, 2024, Milwaukee County has charged 0.9% and the City of Milwaukee has added a 2% city tax, the only city sales tax in the state. That brings the rate inside the city to 7.9%.

Seventy counties have adopted the 0.5% county tax. Manitowoc County started on January 1, 2025 and Racine County on April 1, 2025. Counties without it charge only the 5% state rate. The average combined rate statewide is 5.72%.

Groceries and prescription drugs are exempt

Food and food ingredients are exempt from Wisconsin sales tax, except for candy, soft drinks, dietary supplements and prepared food. Wisconsin uses the national Streamlined Sales Tax definitions, so the details matter. Candy means sweetened bars, drops or pieces and doesn’t include anything containing flour. A sweetened drink containing milk or more than 50% juice isn’t a soft drink.

So a candy bar made with flour is tax-free, but a chocolate bar without flour is taxable. On a $120 grocery bill in Milwaukee with $15 of candy and soda, only the $15 is taxed, at $1.19. Prescription drugs are exempt, including drugs furnished to patients by physicians, surgeons, podiatrists, dentists and hospitals.

Premier resort areas and other local taxes

Some tourist towns charge an extra premier resort area tax on purchases made there, which the Department of Revenue administers alongside the county tax. If you shop in a resort town such as Wisconsin Dells or Lake Delton, check the exact rate with the Department’s State and Local Tax Rate Look-up.

The Department also lists other special taxes, such as local exposition taxes, a rental vehicle tax and a dry cleaning tax. These are separate from the general sales tax and don’t affect ordinary shopping.

Use tax on your Wisconsin income tax return

If you buy something taxable from a seller that doesn’t charge Wisconsin tax, you owe use tax at your state and county rate (and city rate in Milwaukee). Individuals can report it on the Wisconsin income tax return, on the line for “Sales and use tax due on out-of-state purchases”, or on Form UT-5, the Consumer’s Use Tax Return. If you paid tax to another state, you can deduct it, but only up to the Wisconsin amount.

Example: a $700 camera ordered from a non-collecting seller and delivered to Madison owes $38.50 of use tax at 5.5%. In the City of Milwaukee the same camera owes $55.30. Vehicles have their own rule: the county tax depends on the county where the vehicle is usually kept, not where it was bought.

What is taxable at a Wisconsin grocery store

Most food is exempt, but the exceptions for candy, soft drinks, dietary supplements and prepared food are defined precisely. This table applies the definitions in Publication 201, using the 7.9% Milwaukee rate for taxable items.

Vehicles: the county where the car is kept decides

Wisconsin’s 5% state tax applies to car purchases. The county tax is based on the county where the vehicle is customarily kept, not where the dealer is. Publication 201 applies the same rule to trailers and aircraft.

Example: a $30,000 car bought from a dealer in a county without the county tax, but kept at home in Dane County, is taxed at 5.5%, or $1,650.00. The same car kept in a county without the county tax pays $1,500.00. Tell the dealer where the car will be garaged so the paperwork shows the right county.

One sofa, three Wisconsin prices

A $1,000 sofa costs $79.00 in tax in Milwaukee, $55.00 in Madison and $50.00 in a county without the county tax. To take tax out of a Milwaukee receipt, divide by 1.079: $53.95 is $50.00 of goods and $3.95 of tax. Wisconsin has no sales tax holiday, so the same rules apply all year.