Wisconsin
Wisconsin population growth slows as international migration shrinks by more than half
Anti-ICE protest at UW-Milwaukee
Dozens of UW-Milwaukee students marched around campus Feb. 3 to protest ICE and the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
Wisconsin’s population is on the rise, but the rate of growth has slowed over the past year amid a plunge in international migration to the state, according to recent estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.
As of July 2025, Wisconsin had 5,972,787 residents, the Census Bureau reported Jan. 27. That’s about 15,000 residents – or about 0.26% – more than in 2024. That growth rate is nearly half what it was the year before and the lowest of the post-pandemic years so far.
Wisconsin is not alone in the trend. Nationwide population growth also slowed significantly in 2025 due to a dip in international migration. The year saw President Donald Trump begin a sweeping crackdown on immigration, which has involved everything from halting refugee programs to revoking protected status for hundreds of thousands of migrants.
In Wisconsin, the latest estimates show the number of international migrants coming to the state fell by more than 62% in 2025.
Here’s what else the Census Bureau report found.
Wisconsin’s population growth rate falls to lowest since pandemic
After several years of post-pandemic recovery, Wisconsin’s population growth in 2025 was its lowest since 2021, according to Census Bureau estimates.
The state’s 0.26% population growth rate was down from about 0.45% in 2023 and 2024, and 0.36% from 2022. Nationally, population growth halved last year, with the country’s population growing by 0.5%, or 1.8 million residents, compared to 1%, or 3.2 million residents, in 2024.
Various projections have predicted a long-term decline of Wisconsin’s population. In early 2025, the Department of Administration projected most Wisconsin counties would face a shrinking population by 2050, with an estimated statewide loss of nearly 200,000 residents.
Milwaukee County, though, defied these expectations when its population grew for the first time in a decade in 2024. The county’s population reached just under 925,000 residents as of July 1, 2024, which was up by 2,880 people, or 0.31%, from the prior year. The slight growth came after the county lost about 15,000 residents between 2020 and 2024 – the most of any Wisconsin county in that time period.
The Census Bureau has not yet released county population data for 2025.
After reaching record levels in 2024, international migration plunges
For both Wisconsin and the country, a rapid decline in international migration is driving the slowdown in population growth.
The drop comes after migration to Wisconsin reached the highest level in two decades in 2024, largely spurred by people moving to the state from other countries, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. Between July 2023 and June 2024, Wisconsin saw about 19,300 international migrants and about 5,800 domestic migrants move to the state.
In contrast, between June 2024 and July 2025, the number of international migrants dropped to 7,200 – the lowest since 2020. Nationwide, the number of international migrants fell by more than 50% from 2.7 million to 1.3 million last year.
The latter half of that yearlong period saw the Trump administration start its nationwide crackdown on immigration, including in Wisconsin.
For several years, global unrest drove people to the U.S. and Wisconsin: The fall of Kabul in Afghanistan and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine led to a national and local influx of refugees from those countries. Biden-era sponsorship of immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela also allowed more legal immigrants, and Milwaukee in particular became a hub for Burmese refugees from Myanmar.
In his first few weeks in office, Trump issued a slew of executive orders on immigration, including indefinitely suspending federal refugee programs. More recently, the Trump administration announced Jan. 14 it would stop processing visas from 75 countries, halting the legal immigration process for hundreds of local immigrants and refugees in Milwaukee.
The curbing of international migration comes as some economists and population experts have argued that more immigrants will be key to growing the economy in Milwaukee and Wisconsin – especially with a declining birth rate and projections of a shrinking population.
Midwest sees domestic migration grow for the first time since pandemic
Despite the dip in international migration, the Midwest was the only region of the country where all states gained population last year, the Census Bureau reported.
It’s a change from when the region saw a steep population decline in 2021, followed by small growth in 2022, and then steadier growth each year after that. The past year was the first time this decade that the Midwest saw positive domestic net migration, meaning more people moved to the Midwest from other U.S. states than moved away.
Through domestic migration, the Midwest gained 16,000 residents last year, compared to net losses of more than 175,000 residents in 2021 and 2022.
Still, Midwest states were not immune to the effects of the immigration decline: The region’s population grew by about 244,000 residents in 2025, compared to about 386,000 in 2024.
MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – Sugar River Emergency Medical Services (EMS) received a $20,000 grant from Only in Wisconsin Giving on Thursday.
“This is an exciting time both for our region and state, and a real ability to show what happens when communities work together,” Sugar River EMS Chief Chris Backes said. “We think what we’ve built in partnership here is a model for what’s possible to improve rural emergency medical care.”
Only in Wisconsin Giving is the philanthropic area of the New Glarus Brewing Company.
The grant will help the department purchase a new cardiac monitor defibrillator for a brand-new ambulance that will be in use this summer.
“Only in Wisconsin Giving has taken great pride in providing grants to all the first responders in our area for many, many years,” President of Only in Wisconsin Giving Scott May said. “From police and EMS, to the volunteer firefighters in our area, ensuring folks in rural areas are covered is something that is very important to us.”
Sugar River EMS is a collaboration between seven municipalities serving over 10,000 people in northern Green and Dane Counties.
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A Safe Haven Baby Box has been purchased for Wisconsin Rapids. The next step is choosing the best alarm system for the project before it can be installed.
WISCONSIN RAPIDS − The city is close to having a Safe Haven Baby Box installed to help protect babies who are unwanted or unable to be cared for by their parents.
Volunteers have raised $35,000 for the Safe Haven Baby Box project and spent about $17,000 to pay for the box. The remainder will help to cover the cost of an alarm system and installation of the box in Wisconsin Rapids’ Fire Station 2, 1641 W. Grand Ave.
Safe Haven Baby Boxes are secure, temperature-controlled, ventilated boxes that provide a place to anonymously put a newborn baby the mother can not or does not want to keep.
The project currently is waiting on the selection of an alarm system, said Linda Casper, who has led the efforts to get a Baby Box. Wisconsin Rapids Fire Chief Benjamin Goodreau is researching what system would be the best and most cost effective, Casper said. The alarm will alert the Wood County Communications Center when the box is opened. A delayed alarm then sounds after the baby is placed in the box and it is closed. The second alarm is delayed to allow the person dropping off the baby time to leave the area, Casper said.
Casper said she learned about the Baby Box when she was reading a newsletter from a state organization she and her husband belong to and found an article about the Safe Haven Baby Box. Casper thought it was a good idea for Wisconsin Rapids and contacted Wisconsin Rapids City Council member Jeff Penzkover about it. After discussions about a location that would work for the Baby Box, it was decided to place it at Wisconsin Rapids Fire Station 2.
Once the alarm system is chosen, Altmann Construction will begin the process of installing the box, Casper said. The installation will require removing bricks from the outside wall of the fire station. Before the box can be put into service, the firefighters and some members of the Wood County Sheriff’s Office will have to be trained on the correct protocols for handling a baby being left in the box, Casper said. Fire Department administration also will have to adjust the protocols to fit the department, she said.
Since the efforts to get a Baby Box in Wisconsin Rapids have become known, Casper has been getting phone calls from people in other communities, including Marshfield and Wausau, who want to know how she got the project going.
How you can help
Although the initial cost of the Baby Box is covered, Casper and the other people who have worked to bring the lifesaving device to Wisconsin Rapids still are working on raising more money. The box will need to be inspected each year by Safe Haven and the alarm system will have a monthly fee, Casper said. She hopes to raise enough to cover the costs for years to come.
People interested in helping can send donations to: Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, 1150 Second St. N., Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494. Please put “SHBB,” for Safe Haven Baby Box, on the memo line so church staff know where the money should go.
Contact Karen Madden at kmadden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KMadden715, Instagram @kmadden715 or Facebook at www.facebook.com/karen.madden.33.
Spring practice has wrapped up across the country, and college football has officially entered its quiet period of summer doldrums.
However, the mass influx of new intel on transfers gleaned from spring ball means top recruiting sites 247Sports and On3/Rivals have updated their national transfer portal rankings, and the Badgers’ class has gained more respect from both services since the initial transfer boom in the winter.
Wisconsin’s 2026 transfer haul currently checks in at No. 15 in the country on On3/Rivals, up slightly from its perch at No. 18 this winter. That’s good enough for third in the Big Ten behind UCLA (No. 11) and Indiana (No. 1).
247Sports sees the Badgers’ class a little differently; they’ve awarded Wisconsin with the No. 38-ranked class in the nation. That checks in at ninth in the Big Ten. Still, the outlet has bumped its individual ratings for several of the Badgers’ incoming transfers.
After initially not having signed a four-star transfer portal prospect in the eyes of 247Sports, the site has bumped quarterback Colton Joseph, running back Abu Sama and safety Marvin Burks Jr. to four-star transfer prospects, giving the Badgers three blue-chip portal players. Center Austin Kawecki was also bumped to a high three-star portal prospect.
On3, meanwhile, sees Wisconsin with just one four-star portal prospect in the Iowa State transfer tailback Sama.
It’s interesting to note that On3’s transfer portal grading system evaluates all of Wisconsin’s portal movement, additions and departures combined. 247Sports’ system is less additive and only evaluates teams based on how it ranks their newcomers.
Why it matters
In this day and age, programs have no choice but to deftly navigate the transfer portal if they want any shot at success. That doesn’t always mean you need to add over 30 signees, like Wisconsin did, but it’s a good sign that the Badgers are gaining recognition for one of the most important aspects of roster building.
Wisconsin is going to be a team largely fueled by mercenaries this season. I’d expect the vast majority of the Badgers’ production, especially on offense where new faces at quarterback, running back, tight end and receiver figure to dominate reps.
The Badgers still have a solid core of home-grown players, namely their two studs at inside linebacker and a handful of key cogs along the offensive line. After all, they rank 35th nationally in returning production; the cupboard isn’t entirely bare.
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