Milwaukee, WI vs Appleton, WI
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Milwaukee, WI spends 27% more per resident than Appleton, WI: $19,417 against $15,241. That gap is large enough to show up across most functional budget categories below.
Appleton, WI holds the stronger Fiscal Health Score, 87/100 (grade A) against 62/100 (grade C) for Milwaukee, WI — a 25-point spread that puts the two in different grade territory.
Neither city reports outstanding debt per resident in its current Census filing, which removes debt service as a point of difference between them. Their budgets diverge on where the largest per-resident dollars go: Milwaukee, WI leads with police at $3,642 per resident, while Appleton, WI leads with health at $684.
They also fund themselves differently: sales tax is the largest single revenue source in Milwaukee, WI at 59% of total revenue, whereas Appleton, WI relies most on intergovernmental transfers at 15%.
Summary
Milwaukee spends 27.4% more per capita than Appleton ($4,176/person difference). Appleton, WI has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (A, 87/100).
Fiscal Health Score
Key Metrics
Per Capita Spending by Department
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Property Tax | $0 | $1,550 |
| Sales Tax | $6,548 | $558 |
| Income Tax | $1 | $226 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,231 | $5,693 |
| Charges & Fees | $0 | $1,875 |
| Other | $3,984 | $1,817 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
| Police | $3,642 | $0 |
| Fire Protection | $802 | $206 |
| Highways & Roads | $23 | $81 |
| Public Welfare | $180 | $2,412 |
| Health | $1 | $684 |
| Hospitals | $0 | $75 |
| Parks & Recreation | $2,206 | $661 |
| Housing | $1,071 | $2,686 |
| Sewerage | $0 | $130 |
| Utilities | $1,866 | $2,687 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,608 | $1,257 |
| Other | $8,018 | $4,363 |
Compare More Cities
Source: Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, 2026.