Illinois to Wisconsin

Distance from Chicago to Milwaukee

Straight-line distance

85.9mi

Chicago, IL and Milwaukee, WI are 85.9 miles (138.3 km) apart in a straight line. From Chicago, the shortest path starts out heading N (350°).

kilometers
138.3
nautical miles
74.7
heading from Chicago
350° N
heading from Milwaukee
170° S
ChicagoMilwaukee

Orange line: great-circle path · ring: midpoint · thin lines: county borders

How far Chicago is from Milwaukee

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Chicago and Milwaukee is 85.9 miles, 138.3 km or 74.7 nautical miles. That is the shortest path over the Earth's surface, computed with the haversine formula on a sphere with the mean Earth radius, 6,371.0 km. A course held on one compass bearing (a rhumb line) would be 85.9 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
85.9
Kilometers
138.3
Nautical miles
74.7
Bearing from Chicago
350.5° N
Bearing arriving at Milwaukee
350.3°
Bearing from Milwaukee
170.3° S

Halfway between Chicago and Milwaukee

The great-circle midpoint is at 42.450236, -87.824421 (42°27'0.85"N 87°49'27.91"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Zion, IL, with 24,583 residents, 1.5 miles from the midpoint. To find towns near the midpoint of any two places, use the halfway tool.

Time zones and daylight

Both use America/Chicago, so there is no time difference. On June 21, Chicago gets 15 h 13 min of daylight and Milwaukee 15 h 22 min; on December 21, 9 h 08 min and 9 h 00 min. Milwaukee is 1.23° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Chicago has 4.8 times the population of Milwaukee. From July 2020 to July 2024, Chicago changed by -0.9% and Milwaukee by -2.4%. The trip crosses from Illinois into Wisconsin.

  1. 01Chicago, IL2,721,308 (-0.9%)
  2. 02Milwaukee, WI563,531 (-2.4%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Chicago from Milwaukee?

85.9 miles, 138.3 km or 74.7 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Milwaukee from Chicago?

N. The great-circle path leaves Chicago on a bearing of 350.5° and arrives at Milwaukee on 350.3°. The return trip starts on 170.3°.

What is halfway between Chicago and Milwaukee?

The midpoint is at 42.450236, -87.824421. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Zion, IL, 1.5 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Chicago and Milwaukee?

Both use America/Chicago, so there is no time difference.

Which is bigger, Chicago or Milwaukee?

Chicago, with 2,721,308 residents in July 2024 against 563,531 for Milwaukee, 4.8 times as many.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census 2024 Gazetteer internal points and Vintage 2024 estimates; time zones from Open-Meteo.

  1. 01Census 2024 Gazetteer, places
  2. 02Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  3. 03SunCalc library (Vladimir Agafonkin), algorithms after Jean Meeus
  4. 04IANA time zone database (clock times and daylight saving rules)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.