Data / Rankings / Housing units authorized by building permits / Cities in Wisconsin

Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits

Madison, WI had the highest housing units authorized by building permits of 94 cities in 2023, at 2,620. Shorewood, WI had the lowest, at 0. The median was 37 and the figure for Wisconsin was 21,494. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest2,620Madison, WI
Lowest0Shorewood, WI
Median3794 cities
Wisconsin21,494History

Top 40 cities, 2023

Madison, WI: 2,620 countMadison, WI2,620Eau Claire, WI: 885 countEau Claire, WI885Fitchburg, WI: 487 countFitchburg, WI487Sun Prairie, WI: 445 countSun Prairie, WI445Verona, WI: 421 countVerona, WI421Glendale, WI: 312 countGlendale, WI312Racine, WI: 308 countRacine, WI308River Falls, WI: 279 countRiver Falls, WI279Franklin, WI: 277 countFranklin, WI277Menomonee Falls, WI: 272 countMenomonee Falls, WI272West Allis, WI: 247 countWest Allis, WI247Oak Creek, WI: 240 countOak Creek, WI240Howard, WI: 193 countHoward, WI193Onalaska, WI: 181 countOnalaska, WI181DeForest, WI: 176 countDeForest, WI176Wausau, WI: 174 countWausau, WI174Sheboygan, WI: 160 countSheboygan, WI160Baraboo, WI: 151 countBaraboo, WI151Chippewa Falls, WI: 143 countChippewa Falls, WI143Oregon, WI: 139 countOregon, WI139Holmen, WI: 129 countHolmen, WI129Sussex, WI: 125 countSussex, WI125Oshkosh, WI: 124 countOshkosh, WI124Oconomowoc, WI: 123 countOconomowoc, WI123Waunakee, WI: 114 countWaunakee, WI114Kenosha, WI: 113 countKenosha, WI113Appleton, WI: 98 countAppleton, WI98Milwaukee, WI: 97 countMilwaukee, WI97Windsor, WI: 90 countWindsor, WI90Cedarburg, WI: 88 countCedarburg, WI88Harrison, WI: 82 countHarrison, WI82Janesville, WI: 82 countJanesville, WI82Kaukauna, WI: 81 countKaukauna, WI81Grafton, WI: 76 countGrafton, WI76De Pere, WI: 74 countDe Pere, WI74Neenah, WI: 73 countNeenah, WI73New Richmond, WI: 67 countNew Richmond, WI67Muskego, WI: 64 countMuskego, WI64Bellevue, WI: 60 countBellevue, WI60Whitewater, WI: 56 countWhitewater, WI56Madison, WI: 2,620 countMadison, WI2,620Eau Claire, WI: 885 countEau Claire, WI885Fitchburg, WI: 487 countFitchburg, WI487Sun Prairie, WI: 445 countSun Prairie, WI445Verona, WI: 421 countVerona, WI421Glendale, WI: 312 countGlendale, WI312Racine, WI: 308 countRacine, WI308River Falls, WI: 279 countRiver Falls, WI279Franklin, WI: 277 countFranklin, WI277Menomonee Falls, WI: 272 countMenomonee Falls, WI272West Allis, WI: 247 countWest Allis, WI247Oak Creek, WI: 240 countOak Creek, WI240Howard, WI: 193 countHoward, WI193Onalaska, WI: 181 countOnalaska, WI181DeForest, WI: 176 countDeForest, WI176Wausau, WI: 174 countWausau, WI174Sheboygan, WI: 160 countSheboygan, WI160Baraboo, WI: 151 countBaraboo, WI151Chippewa Falls, WI: 143 countChippewa Falls, WI143Oregon, WI: 139 countOregon, WI139Holmen, WI: 129 countHolmen, WI129Sussex, WI: 125 countSussex, WI125Oshkosh, WI: 124 countOshkosh, WI124Oconomowoc, WI: 123 countOconomowoc, WI123Waunakee, WI: 114 countWaunakee, WI114Kenosha, WI: 113 countKenosha, WI113Appleton, WI: 98 countAppleton, WI98Milwaukee, WI: 97 countMilwaukee, WI97Windsor, WI: 90 countWindsor, WI90Cedarburg, WI: 88 countCedarburg, WI88Harrison, WI: 82 countHarrison, WI82Janesville, WI: 82 countJanesville, WI82Kaukauna, WI: 81 countKaukauna, WI81Grafton, WI: 76 countGrafton, WI76De Pere, WI: 74 countDe Pere, WI74Neenah, WI: 73 countNeenah, WI73New Richmond, WI: 67 countNew Richmond, WI67Muskego, WI: 64 countMuskego, WI64Bellevue, WI: 60 countBellevue, WI60Whitewater, WI: 56 countWhitewater, WI56
count. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2023
count		Change on 2022
1Madison, WI Estimated2,620+11%
2Eau Claire, WI Estimated885+65.4%
3Fitchburg, WI Estimated487+188.2%
4Sun Prairie, WI Estimated445-32%
5Verona, WI Estimated421-30.2%
6Glendale, WI Estimated312n/a
7Racine, WI Estimated308+3,750%
8River Falls, WI Estimated279+71.2%
9Franklin, WI Estimated277+166.3%
10Menomonee Falls, WI Estimated272+8.4%
11West Allis, WI Estimated247+114.8%
12Oak Creek, WI Estimated240-55.8%
13Howard, WI Estimated193+12.2%
14Onalaska, WI Estimated181+201.7%
15DeForest, WI Estimated176+44.3%
16Wausau, WI Estimated174+48.7%
17Sheboygan, WI Estimated160+1,500%
18Baraboo, WI Estimated151+694.7%
19Chippewa Falls, WI Estimated143+123.4%
20Oregon, WI Estimated139+120.6%
21Holmen, WI Estimated129+34.4%
22Sussex, WI Estimated125+19%
23Oshkosh, WI Estimated124+3.3%
24Oconomowoc, WI Estimated123+19.4%
25Waunakee, WI Estimated114+15.2%
26Kenosha, WI Estimated113-12.4%
27Appleton, WI Estimated98-31%
28Milwaukee, WI Estimated97-44.9%
29Windsor, WI Estimated90-29.1%
30Cedarburg, WI Estimated88+31.3%
31Harrison, WI Estimated82+28.1%
31Janesville, WI Estimated82-60%
33Kaukauna, WI Estimated81+24.6%
34Grafton, WI Estimated76-25.5%
35De Pere, WI Estimated74+111.4%
36Neenah, WI Estimated73+87.2%
37New Richmond, WI Estimated67-23%
38Muskego, WI Estimated64-29.7%
39Bellevue, WI Estimated60-36.8%
40Whitewater, WI Estimated56+2,700%
41Waukesha, WI Estimated53-31.2%
42Hartford, WI Estimated52-11.9%
42Plover, WI Estimated52-70.8%
44Pewaukee, WI Estimated50-29.6%
44Weston, WI Estimated50-25.4%
46Germantown, WI Estimated410%
47Green Bay, WI Estimated370%
47Hartland, WI Estimated37-26%
49Reedsburg, WI Estimated36-64.7%
50Manitowoc, WI Estimated35+84.2%
51Mequon, WI Estimated33-64.9%
51Stevens Point, WI Estimated33-65.3%
53Suamico, WI Estimated32-5.9%
54Pleasant Prairie, WI Estimated31-29.5%
55Ashwaubenon, WI Estimated29-74.3%
55Port Washington, WI Estimated29+31.8%
57Hobart, WI Estimated28-85.9%
57La Crosse, WI Estimated28-73.1%
59Menasha, WI Estimated27-65.4%
59Mount Pleasant, WI Estimated27-6.9%
61Beaver Dam, WI Estimated25+177.8%
61Fond du Lac, WI Estimated25-19.4%
63Fox Crossing, WI Estimated23-51.1%
64Beloit, WI Estimated22+10%
65Greenfield, WI Estimated20+122.2%
65New Berlin, WI Estimated20+11.1%
67Brookfield, WI Estimated19+46.2%
67Menomonie, WI Estimated19-13.6%
69Salem Lakes, WI Estimated18-5.3%
70Platteville, WI Estimated17+1,600%
70Richfield, WI Estimated17+21.4%
72Hudson, WI Estimated16-91.2%
72Watertown, WI Estimated16-11.1%
74Wisconsin Rapids, WI Estimated13-35%
75Superior, WI Estimated110%
76Two Rivers, WI Estimated10+11.1%
76West Bend, WI Estimated10-94.8%
78Fort Atkinson, WI Estimated8+14.3%
78Little Chute, WI Estimated8-57.9%
80Marinette, WI Estimated7n/a
81Cudahy, WI Estimated6n/a
81Marshfield, WI Estimated6-45.5%
83Allouez, WI Estimated4+100%
83Middleton, WI Estimated4-99%
85Burlington, WI Estimated2-60%
85South Milwaukee, WI Estimated2n/a
85Waupun, WI Estimated2-93.9%
85Wauwatosa, WI Estimated20%
89Greendale, WI Estimated1n/a
89Monroe, WI Estimated1n/a
89Whitefish Bay, WI Estimated1-50%
92Brown Deer, WI Estimated0-100%
92Elkhorn, WI Estimated0-100%
92Shorewood, WI Estimated0-100%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of new privately owned housing units authorized by building permits in the year or month, from the US Census Bureau Building Permits Survey. Annual totals for the nation, states and counties; monthly counts for the nation and states.

Counts housing units, not buildings, starts, completions or sales. Monthly counts are not seasonally adjusted and do not add up exactly to the annual total, which includes later corrections; the national seasonally adjusted annual rate in the monthly New Residential Construction release is a different measure.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. 2 cities with data in other periods have no value for 2023 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2024). Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation (Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt

MLA 9

Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation, Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023. U.S. Census Bureau, 24 Apr. 2024, https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/wisconsin-cities?period=2023. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2024. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/wisconsin-cities?period=2023.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2024) Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation, Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/wisconsin-cities?period=2023 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_wisconsin_by_2023,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation: Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023}},
  year = {2024},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/wisconsin-cities?period=2023. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest\%20Region/mw2023a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation: Cities in Wisconsin by housing units authorized by building permits, 2023
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/04/24
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/wisconsin-cities?period=2023
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/building-permit-housing-units/wisconsin-cities?period=2023.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. https://www2.census.gov/econ/bps/Place/Midwest%20Region/mw2023a.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which city has the highest housing units authorized by building permits?

Madison, WI, with 2,620 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which city has the lowest housing units authorized by building permits?

Shorewood, WI, with 0 in 2023.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey: final annual estimates of new privately owned housing units authorized by permit-issuing place, including imputation. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 2 cities have no value for 2023 and are not ranked.

Housing units authorized by building permits: other rankings

Cities in Wisconsin: more rankings