Milwaukee-Waukesha → Bloomington
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Milwaukee-Waukesha to Bloomington is less favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 96.9 to 93.5 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $36/mo.
- -$5,362
- BLS median salary lower in Bloomington
- 280 to 277
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 14.4:1 to 14:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $1,001
- DOL infant care higher / yr in Bloomington
BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.
Pros of Moving
- + 3% lower cost of living
Cons of Moving
- - $5K lower median salary
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 96.9 to 93.5 (ratio 0.96), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent barely moves ($1,338 → $1,302); the housing line is not the swing factor on this corridor.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (4 destination wins · 3 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Bloomington sits #143 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (middle third). Milwaukee-Waukesha is #208/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Less Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $5,362 lower ($71,499 → $66,137). Labor-market size: 800,340 tracked jobs at origin vs 70,320 at destination.
State retirement friendliness is near-even: Wisconsin 57 (D, #32/51) vs Illinois 58 (D, #31/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 62
- Property tax
- 56
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 40
- Income tax
- 95
- Property tax
- 46
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 46
Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Milwaukee-Waukesha to see what you'd need to earn in Bloomington to maintain the same purchasing power.
Bloomington metro profile · Livability rankings · Methodology
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026