Most African American cities in Wisconsin research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to analyze Wisconsin’s most recent Census data to determine the cities with the largest Black population, based on the percentage of Black residents.
The city with the largest African American population in Wisconsin is Milwaukee (37.9% Black); the least is Milton (0.0%). Statewide, Wisconsin is 5.9% Black — the 28th blackest state in the country.
Roughly 42 million people identifying as Black or African American live in the United States, about 12% of the total population. In Wisconsin, the Black population is 351,851, at 5.9% of the state total.
We broke down the most recent Census data to determine the cities in Wisconsin with the largest African American population in 2026.
Not sold on Wisconsin? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
#1 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Washington County, WisconsinMilwaukee is the largest city in the state of Wisconsin and the fifth-largest city in the Midwestern United States. The county seat of Milwaukee County, it is on Lake Michigan’s western shore. Ranked by estimated 2014 population, Milwaukee was the 31st largest city in the United States. The city’s estimated population in 2015 was 600,155. Milwaukee is the main cultural and economic center of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. It is also part of the larger Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha combined statistical area, which had an estimated population of 2,026,243 in the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers | Compare
#2 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Milwaukee County, WisconsinBrown Deer is a village in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. As a suburb of Milwaukee, it is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 11,999 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#3 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Racine County, WisconsinRacine is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River. Racine is located 22 miles south of Milwaukee. As of the 2013 U.S. census, the city had a population of 78,199, making it the fifth-largest city in Wisconsin. Its median home price of $103,625 makes it one of the most affordable cities in Wisconsin to buy a home. In January 2017, it was rated “the most affordable place to live in the world” by the Demographia International Housing Affordability survey. Also in 2017, Racine was ranked the fourth worst city in America for black residents.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#4 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Milwaukee County, WisconsinGlendale is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 12,872 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#5 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Rock County, WisconsinBeloit is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 36,966.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#6 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Racine County, WisconsinSturtevant is a village in Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 6,970 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#7 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Fond du Lac County, WisconsinWaupun is a city in Dodge and Fond du Lac counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 11,340 at the 2010 census. Of this, 7,864 were in Dodge County, and 3,476 were in Fond du Lac County. In Fond du Lac County, the Town of Waupun abuts the city of Waupun.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#8 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Kenosha County, WisconsinKenosha is a city in and the county seat of Kenosha County, Wisconsin, United States. Kenosha is on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. With an estimated population of 99,889 as of July 1, 2013, it is the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin and the fourth-largest city on Lake Michigan. The city is part of the United States Census Bureau’s Chicago Combined Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#9 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Dane County, WisconsinFitchburg is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,260 at the 2010 census. Fitchburg is a suburb of Madison and is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. Fitchburg consists of a mix of suburban neighborhoods closer the border with the city of Madison, commercial and industrial properties, and more rural properties in the southern portion of the city. Despite its status as an incorporated city, some rural parts of Fitchburg still lack certain municipal services such as sewer, water, and natural gas.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
#10 most African American in Wisconsin
Located in
Dane County, WisconsinSun Prairie is a city in Dane County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. A suburb of Madison, it is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city’s population was 29,441 at the 2010 U.S. Census. It is the second most populous city in Dane County after Madison.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Wisconsin’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Wisconsin’s Black communities live
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Determined The Cities In Wisconsin With The Largest Black Population For 2026
We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the Census. So that’s where we went to get the race breakdown across Wisconsin.
That leads us to the Census’s most recently available data, the 2020-2024 American Community Survey data from the US Census.
Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:
- Hispanic or Latino
- White alone*
- Black or African American alone*
- American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
- Asian alone*
- Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
- Some other race alone*
- Two or more races*
Our particular column of interest was the number of people who identified as Black or African American.
We limited our analysis to non-CDPs with a population greater than 5,000 people in Wisconsin. That left us with 137 cities.
We then calculated the percentage of residents that are Black or African American. The percentages ranked from 37.9% to 0.0%.
Finally, we ranked each city based on the percentage of the Black population, with a higher score being more Black than a lower score. Milwaukee took the distinction of being the most Black, while Milton was the least African American city.
We updated this article for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the cities in Wisconsin with the largest African American population.
The full plate
African American Population By City In Wisconsin
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | African American Population | % African American |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Milwaukee | 566,973 | 214,848 | 37.9% |
| 2 | Brown Deer | 12,564 | 3,724 | 29.6% |
| 3 | Racine | 77,633 | 15,683 | 20.2% |
| 4 | Glendale | 13,656 | 2,164 | 15.8% |
| 5 | Beloit | 36,534 | 5,069 | 13.9% |
| 6 | Sturtevant | 6,772 | 906 | 13.4% |
| 7 | Waupun | 11,174 | 1,162 | 10.4% |
| 8 | Kenosha | 99,372 | 8,963 | 9.0% |
| 9 | Fitchburg | 32,619 | 2,830 | 8.7% |
| 10 | Sun Prairie | 37,570 | 3,181 | 8.5% |
| 11 | Mount Pleasant | 27,953 | 2,320 | 8.3% |
| 12 | Madison | 278,001 | 19,962 | 7.2% |
| 13 | Wauwatosa | 48,529 | 3,458 | 7.1% |
| 14 | Allouez | 13,975 | 923 | 6.6% |
| 15 | St. Francis | 9,004 | 591 | 6.6% |
| 16 | Portage | 10,236 | 602 | 5.9% |
| 17 | Oregon | 11,547 | 611 | 5.3% |
| 18 | West Allis | 59,612 | 2,978 | 5.0% |
| 19 | Oshkosh | 66,729 | 3,276 | 4.9% |
| 20 | Fox Point | 6,683 | 291 | 4.4% |
| 21 | Oak Creek | 37,325 | 1,624 | 4.4% |
| 22 | Greenfield | 37,345 | 1,518 | 4.1% |
| 23 | Shorewood | 13,627 | 514 | 3.8% |
| 24 | Germa | 20,962 | 778 | 3.7% |
| 25 | Menomonee Falls | 39,539 | 1,442 | 3.6% |
| 26 | Monona | 8,527 | 285 | 3.3% |
| 27 | Rothschild | 5,600 | 185 | 3.3% |
| 28 | Green Bay | 106,253 | 3,449 | 3.2% |
| 29 | Howard | 21,087 | 674 | 3.2% |
| 30 | Prairie du Chien | 5,491 | 172 | 3.1% |
| 31 | Whitewater | 15,807 | 491 | 3.1% |
| 32 | Pleasant Prairie | 21,669 | 671 | 3.1% |
| 33 | Fond du Lac | 44,494 | 1,336 | 3.0% |
| 34 | Janesville | 66,030 | 1,963 | 3.0% |
| 35 | Sheboygan | 49,645 | 1,442 | 2.9% |
| 36 | Appleton | 75,023 | 2,130 | 2.8% |
| 37 | Cudahy | 17,853 | 493 | 2.8% |
| 38 | Franklin | 35,886 | 985 | 2.7% |
| 39 | Onalaska | 19,348 | 527 | 2.7% |
| 40 | Platteville | 11,499 | 311 | 2.7% |
| 41 | Sparta | 9,950 | 263 | 2.6% |
| 42 | Waukesha | 71,233 | 1,877 | 2.6% |
| 43 | Middleton | 22,301 | 576 | 2.6% |
| 44 | Rice Lake | 9,030 | 231 | 2.6% |
| 45 | Grafton | 12,445 | 315 | 2.5% |
| 46 | Mequon | 25,270 | 626 | 2.5% |
| 47 | South Milwaukee | 20,442 | 501 | 2.5% |
| 48 | Whitefish Bay | 14,665 | 359 | 2.4% |
| 49 | Caledonia | 25,257 | 607 | 2.4% |
| 50 | DeForest | 11,501 | 261 | 2.3% |
| 51 | Tomah | 9,532 | 200 | 2.1% |
| 52 | New Berlin | 40,270 | 800 | 2.0% |
| 53 | La Crosse | 51,356 | 1,017 | 2.0% |
| 54 | Delafield | 7,202 | 140 | 1.9% |
| 55 | West Bend | 32,030 | 622 | 1.9% |
| 56 | Bellevue | 16,442 | 314 | 1.9% |
| 57 | Sussex | 12,066 | 229 | 1.9% |
| 58 | Mukwonago | 8,415 | 158 | 1.9% |
| 59 | Weston | 15,749 | 286 | 1.8% |
| 60 | New London | 7,726 | 140 | 1.8% |
| 61 | Chippewa Falls | 14,782 | 263 | 1.8% |
| 62 | McFarland | 9,160 | 162 | 1.8% |
| 63 | De Pere | 25,301 | 436 | 1.7% |
| 64 | Neenah | 27,336 | 463 | 1.7% |
| 65 | Little Chute | 11,754 | 198 | 1.7% |
| 66 | Eau Claire | 70,322 | 1,156 | 1.6% |
| 67 | Cottage Grove | 8,513 | 134 | 1.6% |
| 68 | New Richmond | 10,539 | 161 | 1.5% |
| 69 | Port Washington | 12,645 | 193 | 1.5% |
| 70 | Stevens Point | 25,785 | 393 | 1.5% |
| 71 | Menasha | 18,273 | 278 | 1.5% |
| 72 | Manitowoc | 34,620 | 515 | 1.5% |
| 73 | Burlington | 10,987 | 163 | 1.5% |
| 74 | Delavan | 8,689 | 125 | 1.4% |
| 75 | Waunakee | 15,687 | 225 | 1.4% |
| 76 | Suamico | 12,985 | 181 | 1.4% |
| 77 | Brookfield | 41,273 | 560 | 1.4% |
| 78 | Kronenwetter | 8,395 | 113 | 1.3% |
| 79 | Altoona | 8,878 | 117 | 1.3% |
| 80 | Elkhorn | 10,221 | 133 | 1.3% |
| 81 | Waterford | 5,692 | 73 | 1.3% |
| 82 | Jefferson | 7,732 | 93 | 1.2% |
| 83 | Marshfield | 18,700 | 219 | 1.2% |
| 84 | Ashwaubenon | 17,314 | 198 | 1.1% |
| 85 | Beaver Dam | 16,565 | 186 | 1.1% |
| 86 | Menomonie | 16,539 | 185 | 1.1% |
| 87 | Greendale | 14,594 | 160 | 1.1% |
| 88 | Rhinelander | 8,316 | 91 | 1.1% |
| 89 | Superior | 26,677 | 279 | 1.0% |
| 90 | Hudson | 14,959 | 155 | 1.0% |
| 91 | Lake Mills | 6,470 | 67 | 1.0% |
| 92 | Marinette | 11,115 | 113 | 1.0% |
| 93 | Waupaca | 6,283 | 61 | 1.0% |
| 94 | Hartford | 15,821 | 149 | 0.9% |
| 95 | Mount Horeb | 7,736 | 70 | 0.9% |
| 96 | Lake Geneva | 8,521 | 77 | 0.9% |
| 97 | Stoughton | 13,033 | 114 | 0.9% |
| 98 | Wisconsin Rapids | 18,722 | 159 | 0.8% |
| 99 | Hales Corners | 7,689 | 64 | 0.8% |
| 100 | Edgerton | 6,014 | 48 | 0.8% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. 137 cities with more than 5,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: Black Populations Across Wisconsin
If you’re looking for a breakdown of African American populations across Wisconsin according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.
The blackest cities in Wisconsin are Milwaukee, Brown Deer, Racine, Glendale, Beloit, Sturtevant, Waupun, Kenosha, Fitchburg, and Sun Prairie. Wondering how Milwaukee stacks up against a bigger name? See Milwaukee, WI vs. Madison, WI side by side.
