What percentage of people rent in Madison, WI?

Name: Renters and owners in Madison, WI, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

54.0% (±1.0 points) of the occupied homes in Madison, WI are rented (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

That is 69,252 renting households against 59,009 that own their home.

In Madison, the share of households that rent went from 53.0% in 2015–2019 to 54.0% in 2020–2024 (+1.0 percentage points), not a measurable change.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Households that rent: 54.0% (±1.0 points)
Renting households: 69,252 (±1,525)
Median renter income: $52,502 (±$2,096)

Who rents and who owns in Madison

Tenure, estimate (90% margin of error)
	Madison	Dane County	Wisconsin	United States
Renter-occupied share	54.0% (±1.0 points)	42.9% (±0.7 points)	32.2% (±0.3 points)	34.8%
Renting households	69,252 (±1,525)	107,847 (±1,771)	797,266 (±6,241)	45,017,354
Owning households	59,009 (±1,355)	143,682 (±1,640)	1,682,214 (±9,276)	84,210,142
Average renter household size	1.9 (±0.0)	1.9 (±0.0)	2.0 (±0.0)	2.3
Average owner household size	2.3 (±0.0)	2.5 (±0.0)	2.5 (±0.0)	2.6
Median renter household income	$52,502 (±$2,096)	$56,374 (±$1,531)	$48,374 (±$478)	$52,966
Median owner household income	$120,846 (±$3,012)	$124,753 (±$2,577)	$95,874 (±$462)	$100,009

In Madison, the renter share is higher than in Dane County (42.9%).

It is also higher than in Wisconsin (32.2%).

It is higher than the national figure (34.8%).

In Dane County, Madison ranks 2 of 59 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest renter share.

Statewide, it ranks 14 of 1,848.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How renting in Madison has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Households that rent	53.0% (±0.8 points)	54.0% (±1.0 points)	+1.0 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Median gross rent	$1,118 (±$13)	$1,413 (±$20)	+26.4%	Up after inflation
Median household income	$65,332 (±$1,368)	$78,050 (±$2,037)	+19.5%	No measurable change after inflation

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Households that rent in places near Madison

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Madison
Place	Distance	Households that rent	Compared with this place
Madison	—	54.0% (±1.0 points)	—
Shorewood Hills	1.1 mi	43.0% (±5.6 points)	Lower
Maple Bluff	3.6 mi	7.6% (±2.6 points)	Lower
Middleton	4.1 mi	54.3% (±3.1 points)	Not measurably different
Monona	5.4 mi	46.4% (±4.3 points)	Lower
Town of Westport	5.5 mi	25.4% (±7.6 points)	Lower
Waunakee	6.6 mi	22.6% (±4.6 points)	Lower
Town of Blooming Grove	6.9 mi	17.9% (±6.2 points)	Lower
Fitchburg	7.1 mi	52.4% (±3.5 points)	Not measurably different

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Shorewood Hills, WI (43.0%), Maple Bluff, WI (7.6%), Monona, WI (46.4%).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Households that rent across Dane County, place by place

Rank	Place	Households that rent
1	Middleton	54.3% (±3.1 points)
2	Madison	54.0% (±1.0 points)
3	Fitchburg	52.4% (±3.5 points)
4	Monona	46.4% (±4.3 points)
5	Shorewood Hills	43.0% (±5.6 points)
6	Sun Prairie	39.2% (±2.7 points)
7	Stoughton	33.3% (±5.0 points)
8	Verona	32.6% (±3.9 points)

Showing 8 of 59 places in Dane County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

What you can do on Seayora in Madison

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Questions about Madison

How many renters are there in Madison?

Madison has an estimated 69,252 (±1,525) renting households, 54.0% of its occupied homes (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

Is renting growing in Madison?

In Madison, the share of households that rent went from 53.0% in 2015–2019 to 54.0% in 2020–2024 (+1.0 percentage points), not a measurable change.

How big are renting households in Madison?

A renting household in Madison has 1.9 people on average, against 2.3 in an owned home.

How much do renters earn in Madison?

The median renting household in Madison, WI has an income of $52,502 (±$2,096) a year, against $120,846 for households that own their home.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) and detailed tables (acs/acs5) for Madison city, Wisconsin (place:48000, in state:55).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, B25064_001E, B25064_001M, B19013_001E, B19013_001M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0047E, DP04_0047M, DP04_0046E, DP04_0046M, DP04_0049E, DP04_0049M, DP04_0048E, DP04_0048M, B25119_003E, B25119_003M, B25119_002E, B25119_002M

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.