Milwaukee County Commute Time Map & Patterns

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Commuting in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.

You 9/24/26, 8:03 PM

How much time do drivers in Milwaukee County spend on the road daily?

Map AI 9/24/26, 8:03 PM

Commute Time Burden in Milwaukee County: Annual Hours and Cost

Commuters in Milwaukee County spend about 41 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 173 hours, about 7.2 full days, spent commuting. That is 11% more time on the road than the Wisconsin average of 18.8 minutes each way, a difference of 2.0 minutes.

Milwaukee County holds about 15.7% of Wisconsin's population but accounts for roughly 17.3% of its total commuting time.

Working from home just 2 days a week in Milwaukee County would save about 69 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,143 at the same national wage assumption used above.

Area	One-Way Commute	Daily Round-Trip	Yearly Time Spent	Estimated Yearly Cost	Local Road Traffic (VPD)
Milwaukee County	20.7 min	41.5 min	173 hrs/yr	$5,356	2,534
Wisconsin	18.8 min	37.5 min	156 hrs/yr	$4,846	811
United States	22.4 min	44.8 min	187 hrs/yr	$5,790	1,355

The estimated yearly cost applies a single national rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area - treat it as a rough estimate, not a paycheck figure. Local road traffic counts, vehicles per day on non-highway roads, come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.

Commute Time Map: Wisconsin Counties

Fastest commutes among counties in Wisconsin

Ashland County (12.8 min)
Door County (13.6 min)
Eau Claire County (15.3 min)

Slowest commutes among counties in Wisconsin

Oconto County (26.4 min)
St. Croix County (25.3 min)
Waushara County (23.9 min)

Compare commute times among different counties

Milwaukee County

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Average commute time

On average, it takes 20.7 minutes to get to work in Milwaukee County. That's 7% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.

The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 14.4% work from home.

How People Get to Work in Milwaukee County

Public transit is unusually common in Milwaukee County: 3.2 times more than the Wisconsin average (3.4% vs 1.1%).

Commute Mode Trends in Milwaukee County, 2009-2024

This chart shows how workers in Milwaukee County get to work, as a share of all workers aged 16 and over, across 16 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) releases from 2009 to 2024. Each release is a 5-year estimate: the 2024 figures cover surveys taken from 2020 to 2024. Because neighboring releases share most of their survey years, the lines move gradually, and a sudden change such as the rise of remote work in 2020 spreads across several releases. Hover over or tap a line to highlight it, and use the legend to show or hide a mode. Driving starts hidden so the smaller modes stay readable.

Share of workers aged 16 and over, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Show commute mode data by year

Year	Car	Worked at Home	Public Transportation	Walked	Other	Bicycle	Taxi	Motorcycle
2009	86.6%	2.6%	5.7%	3.7%	0.4%	0.6%	0.1%	0.3%
2010	86.8%	2.5%	5.8%	3.6%	0.4%	0.6%	0.1%	0.2%
2011	86.6%	2.5%	5.8%	3.6%	0.4%	0.7%	0.1%	0.3%
2012	86.6%	2.5%	5.8%	3.7%	0.4%	0.7%	0.1%	0.3%
2013	86.1%	2.7%	5.9%	3.8%	0.4%	0.7%	0.1%	0.2%
2014	86.0%	2.8%	6.0%	3.8%	0.4%	0.7%	0.1%	0.2%
2015	85.6%	3.0%	6.0%	3.9%	0.5%	0.8%	0.1%	0.2%
2016	85.6%	3.2%	5.9%	3.8%	0.5%	0.8%	0.1%	0.2%
2017	85.6%	3.4%	5.7%	3.6%	0.5%	0.8%	0.1%	0.2%
2018	85.9%	3.7%	5.3%	3.5%	0.5%	0.8%	0.1%	0.1%
2019	86.1%	3.9%	5.1%	3.5%	0.5%	0.7%	0.1%	0.1%
2020	84.6%	6.1%	4.7%	3.3%	0.5%	0.6%	0.2%	0.1%
2021	82.7%	8.8%	4.1%	3.1%	0.6%	0.5%	0.2%	0.1%
2022	81.0%	10.8%	3.8%	3.0%	0.6%	0.4%	0.2%	0.1%
2023	79.2%	12.7%	3.7%	3.0%	0.7%	0.4%	0.2%	0.1%
2024	77.4%	14.4%	3.4%	3.0%	0.8%	0.5%	0.3%	0.1%

Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share peaked in 2010 at 86.8%. Overall it fell from 86.6% in 2009 to 77.4% in 2024, down 9.2 percentage points. It has fallen in each of the last 5 releases.

Working from home gained the most ground in Milwaukee County: its share of workers rose from 2.6% in 2009 to 14.4% in 2024, up 11.8 percentage points. Most of that increase, 10.5 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.

Public transit lost the most ground, falling from 5.7% to 3.4% of workers (down 2.3 percentage points).

Working from home overtook public transit to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2020 release and has stayed ahead since.

Commute Start Times in Milwaukee County

Sleeping InThe 2nd-highest share of 9 AM-or-later starts among Wisconsin's 72 counties: 27.8% of commuters leave at 9 AM or later.
Night OwlThe 3rd-latest start among Wisconsin's 72 counties: half of commuters are still at home at 7:42 AM.

What Time Do People Leave for Work in Milwaukee County?

The bars show when commuters in Milwaukee County leave home for work, as a share of everyone who commutes (people who work from home are not counted), from the 2024 ACS 5-year estimates. The thin violet marks show Wisconsin for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.

12:00-4:59 AM		5.2%
5:00-5:29 AM		3.8%
5:30-5:59 AM		4.7%
6:00-6:29 AM		8.0%
6:30-6:59 AM		9.0%
7:00-7:29 AM		14.5%
7:30-7:59 AM		11.6%
8:00-8:29 AM		10.5%
8:30-8:59 AM		5.0%
9:00-9:59 AM		6.1%
10:00-10:59 AM		3.1%
11:00-11:59 AM		1.6%
12:00-3:59 PM		9.6%
4:00-11:59 PM		7.5%

Milwaukee County Wisconsin Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates

The busiest time to head out in Milwaukee County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 14.5% of commuters leave home, compared with 14.7% across Wisconsin. Early starts are less common than in Wisconsin: 13.7% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 17.7% there. The morning rush looks much like Wisconsin's: 45.6% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 46.8% there. About 1 in 4 commuters (27.8%) leave at 9 AM or later, which usually points to shift work, flexible hours or part-time jobs.

When people leave matters as much as how far they go. Rush-hour traffic shrinks how much ground a 20-minute trip covers, so a trade area drawn as a simple circle often takes in neighborhoods that customers or staff would never drive from and misses others that are an easy trip. A drive-time zone, also called an isochrone, outlines every place within a set number of minutes of an address, which makes it the more honest way to size a store's catchment, a hiring area or the commute from a new home.

See it for yourself on the interactive map: click any spot in Milwaukee County, pick a 5, 10, 15 or 30-minute drive and see the local demographics of the people who live within that exact drive time.

Is Milwaukee County Waking Up Earlier? Typical Departure Time, 2009-2024

Each line follows the typical (median) departure time: the moment by which half of commuters have already left home. Higher on the chart means a later start. Setting Milwaukee County next to Wisconsin and the U.S. shows whether local mornings are drifting earlier or later than everyone else's. The figures span 16 ACS 5-year releases, so changes build up gradually rather than jumping from one year to the next.

Median time commuters leave home, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Show typical departure times by year

Year	Milwaukee County	Wisconsin	United States
2009	7:41 AM	7:30 AM	7:37 AM
2010	7:42 AM	7:30 AM	7:38 AM
2011	7:43 AM	7:30 AM	7:38 AM
2012	7:44 AM	7:31 AM	7:38 AM
2013	7:44 AM	7:31 AM	7:39 AM
2014	7:44 AM	7:30 AM	7:39 AM
2015	7:44 AM	7:30 AM	7:38 AM
2016	7:43 AM	7:29 AM	7:38 AM
2017	7:41 AM	7:29 AM	7:38 AM
2018	7:40 AM	7:28 AM	7:37 AM
2019	7:38 AM	7:27 AM	7:37 AM
2020	7:37 AM	7:27 AM	7:37 AM
2021	7:38 AM	7:27 AM	7:37 AM
2022	7:40 AM	7:27 AM	7:37 AM
2023	7:40 AM	7:27 AM	7:38 AM
2024	7:42 AM	7:27 AM	7:38 AM

In 2024, half of commuters in Milwaukee County were on the road by 7:42 AM, 2 minutes later than in 2009 (7:41 AM). That goes against the trend across Wisconsin, where the typical commuter now leaves 3 minutes earlier than in 2009. Commuters in Milwaukee County now leave 5 minutes later than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM). Since the 2019 release, which covers the years just before the pandemic, the typical start in Milwaukee County has moved 4 minutes later.

How does Milwaukee County's commute time compare?

Metric	Milwaukee County	Wisconsin	US Average
Avg. Commute Time	20.7 min	18.8 min	22.4 min
Departure Window	07:00 AM – 07:29 AM	07:00 AM – 07:29 AM	07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window	07:30 AM – 07:59 AM	07:30 AM – 07:59 AM	07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home	14.4%	13.1%	15.0%
Walked	3.0%	2.6%	2.4%
Public Transit	3.4%	1.1%	3.2%

The average commute time in Milwaukee County is 20.7 minutes, longer than the 18.8 minutes in Wisconsin.

3.4% commute by public transit, higher than the 1.1% in Wisconsin. 3.0% commute by walking, higher than the 2.6% in Wisconsin.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Milwaukee County, WI Commute Compared With Nearby Counties

Milwaukee County, WI is the largest of the 6 counties compared here, 925,807 residents against a local median of 168,436. Where Milwaukee County, WI breaks from the counties next to it is work from home, sitting 32% above the local median of 10.9% at 14.4%.

The counties themselves spread 9.6% on work from home, so Milwaukee County, WI sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Milwaukee County, WI has the 3rd highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.

Area	Population	One-way commute	Work from home	Typical departure
Milwaukee County, WI	925,807	20.7 min #2/6	14.4% #3/6	7:42 AM #6/6
Racine County, WI	197,532	21.2 min	9.9%	7:19 AM
Ozaukee County, WI	92,977	21.5 min	17.5%	7:35 AM
Kenosha County, WI	168,436	21.0 min	10.7%	7:31 AM
Lake County, IL	714,026	25.6 min	19.5%	7:37 AM
Sheboygan County, WI	117,991	15.8 min	10.9%	7:30 AM

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about commuting in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin.

Is commuting expensive in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin?

Commuters here spend an estimated 173 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,356 at a typical national wage. That's 11% more than the typical Wisconsin commuter spends.

What time should you leave for work to avoid traffic in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin?

Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM also sees a secondary bump.

Is public transportation a realistic commute option in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin?

Public transit usage is notably higher here than typical: about 3.4% of commuters use it versus 1.1% in Wisconsin, making it a realistic option for many workers.

Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in Wisconsin?

Among counties in Wisconsin, the shortest average commutes are in Ashland County (12.8 min), Door County (13.6 min), Eau Claire County (15.3 min). The longest are in Oconto County (26.4 min), St. Croix County (25.3 min), Waushara County (23.9 min).