Wisconsin to Illinois

Distance from Milwaukee to Rockford

Straight-line distance

78.7mi

Milwaukee, WI and Rockford, IL are 78.7 miles (126.6 km) apart in a straight line. From Milwaukee, the shortest path starts out heading SW (225°).

kilometers
126.6
nautical miles
68.4
heading from Milwaukee
225° SW
heading from Rockford
45° NE
MilwaukeeRockford

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

How far Milwaukee is from Rockford

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Milwaukee and Rockford is 78.7 miles, 126.6 km or 68.4 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 78.7 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
78.7
Kilometers
126.6
Nautical miles
68.4
Bearing from Milwaukee
225.5° SW
Bearing arriving at Rockford
224.7°
Bearing from Rockford
44.7° NE

Halfway between Milwaukee and Rockford

The great-circle midpoint is at 42.662608, -88.518646 (42°39'45.39"N 88°31'7.13"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Elkhorn, WI, with 10,122 residents, 1.1 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, Milwaukee gets 15 h 22 min of daylight and Rockford 15 h 16 min; on December 21, 9 h 00 min and 9 h 05 min. Milwaukee is 0.80° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Milwaukee has 3.8 times the population of Rockford. From July 2020 to July 2024, Milwaukee changed by -2.4% and Rockford by -0.8%. The trip crosses from Wisconsin into Illinois.

  1. 01Milwaukee, WI563,531 (-2.4%)
  2. 02Rockford, IL147,486 (-0.8%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Milwaukee from Rockford?

78.7 miles, 126.6 km or 68.4 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Rockford from Milwaukee?

SW. The great-circle path leaves Milwaukee on a bearing of 225.5° and arrives at Rockford on 224.7°. The return trip starts on 44.7°.

What is halfway between Milwaukee and Rockford?

The midpoint is at 42.662608, -88.518646. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Elkhorn, WI, 1.1 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Milwaukee and Rockford?

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

Which is bigger, Milwaukee or Rockford?

Milwaukee, with 563,531 residents in July 2024 against 147,486 for Rockford, 3.8 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.