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Jobs in the Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI area: pay, hiring and remote work
The Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI metro area has 796 open job postings from 155 employers in our data. 15.6% list a pay range, the median posted pay is $111,000 a year, 4.3% are remote and 27% have been open more than 60 days (data as of October 2026).
What stands out
- A $111,000 posted salary in the Milwaukee area buys about what $114,500 buys in the average US metro area, because prices here run 3% below the national average.
- 15.6% of open job postings list a pay range, 74th of 99 metro areas.
- After adjusting for local prices, the typical worker's official median wage ($51,000) is worth $53,000 in average-US dollars, 36th of 99 metro areas.
- 4.3% of postings are remote, 43rd highest of 99 metro areas.
- 27% of open postings have been listed for more than 60 days (median 24 days), 56th highest of 99 metro areas.
The metro area's unemployment rate was 3.8% in 2026-08 (3.6% a year earlier) (BLS, not seasonally adjusted). Across Wisconsin, employers had 115,000 job openings in 2025-12, an openings rate of 3.7% (BLS JOLTS). Indeed's own measure of job postings in the metro area is 1.5% above its February 2020 level and 7.5% higher than a year ago (Indeed Hiring Lab, 2026-10-02).
City by city inside the metro area
| Place | Postings | Employers | Pay listed | Median posted pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee, WI | 320 | 102 | 19.6% | $125,000 |
| Wauwatosa, WI | 63 | 11 | n/a | – |
| Brookfield, WI | 61 | 14 | n/a | – |
| West Bend, WI | 52 | 8 | n/a | – |
| New Berlin, WI | 35 | 6 | n/a | – |
| Menomonee Falls, WI | 31 | 10 | n/a | – |
| Cudahy, WI | 29 | 3 | n/a | – |
| Franklin, WI | 28 | 5 | n/a | – |
| Waukesha, WI | 28 | 11 | n/a | – |
| Oak Creek, WI | 23 | 9 | n/a | – |
| Oconomowoc, WI | 19 | 5 | n/a | – |
| Pewaukee, WI | 17 | 6 | n/a | – |
| Grafton, WI | 15 | 3 | n/a | – |
Places with at least 15 postings from 3 employers. Shading shows where median posted pay is higher. Pay figures need 8 postings with pay.
City pages: Milwaukee.
Posted pay by kind of job
| Kind of job | Median posted pay | Postings with pay |
|---|---|---|
| Sales | $97,500 | 15 |
Who is hiring, by industry
| Industry | Postings |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing & Industrial | 170 |
| Retail & E-commerce | 163 |
| Software & Technology | 66 |
| Insurance | 66 |
| Financial Services | 64 |
| Healthcare & Life Sciences | 60 |
| Other | 53 |
| Consulting & Professional Services | 38 |
| Real Estate & Construction | 37 |
| Media & Entertainment | 29 |
| Energy & Utilities | 26 |
| Logistics & Transportation | 17 |
Employers with the most openings
- Northwestern Mutual: 60 postings
- Meijer: 58 postings
- Mypath: 38 postings
- Abb: 30 postings
- Langanengineeringandenvironmentalservicesllc: 26 postings
Federal government hiring
71 federal job announcements open to the public list Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI, with a median posted salary range midpoint of $110,000. Agencies hiring most: Veterans Health Administration (30), Federal Aviation Administration (17), Internal Revenue Service (5), Air National Guard Units (3), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (2). Source: USAJOBS, 2026-10-10.
What your paycheck buys here
Prices in the Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI area run 3% below the national average, and housing runs 3% below it. The official median wage for all jobs is $51,000, which is worth $53,000 in average-US dollars. The median posted pay of $111,000 is worth $114,500.
How it compares with similar-sized metro areas
| Metro area | Pay listed | Posted pay | Official wage | Prices | Paycheck power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee | 15.6% | $111,000 | $51,000 | 96.9 | $53,000 |
| Salt Lake City | 28% | $120,000 | $55,000 | 100.9 | $55,000 |
| Jacksonville | 15.8% | $103,000 | $49,000 | 99.5 | $49,000 |
| Virginia Beach | 30.7% | $91,500 | $49,500 | 97.9 | $50,500 |
| Raleigh | 25.5% | $140,000 | $52,000 | 98.2 | $53,000 |
| Providence | 26.3% | $80,000 | $53,500 | 101.8 | $52,500 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County | 12.9% | – | $48,500 | 93.1 | $52,000 |
Compare any metro areas side by side
Download this data
Free to use with credit: Second Summit, October 2026. Data (CSV) · Data (JSON) · paycheck power chart (SVG) · prices chart (SVG) · industries chart (SVG) · biggest jobs chart (SVG)
Related pages
A posting that lists several places counts once in the metro. Metro areas are the Census Bureau's 2023 definitions. This covers employers whose career pages we read, not every job in the area. Methodology · All metro areas (CSV)