Polish Population in Milwaukee County, WI by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Polish population in Milwaukee County, WI is recorded at 82,589 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Every city in Milwaukee County reports some Polish residents. With no unincorporated share evident in the totals, this points to a completely city-based population. The sections below explores how Polish residents are distributed in Wisconsin and the U.S.

Top 5 cities with the largest Polish population in Milwaukee County

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  • 1
    Milwaukee
    Polish population in Milwaukee is 31,148
    5.47% of Milwaukee population is Polish
  • 2
    West Allis
    Polish population in West Allis is 8,181
    13.73% of West Allis population is Polish
  • 3
    Franklin
    Polish population in Franklin is 6,470
    18.10% of Franklin population is Polish
  • 4
    Greenfield
    Polish population in Greenfield is 6,101
    16.33% of Greenfield population is Polish
  • 5
    Oak Creek
    Polish population in Oak Creek is 5,703
    15.64% of Oak Creek population is Polish

Overview of Polish population in Milwaukee County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data shows Milwaukee County contains 82,589 Polish residents (8.9% of 927,656 total county population), ranking the jurisdiction at the 99th percentile nationally among counties and 98th percentile within Wisconsin for Polish demographic concentrations across both absolute and proportional measures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS show Milwaukee County's Polish population of 8.9% surpassing both Wisconsin's state average of 7.8% and the national average of 2.6%, positioning the county as a high-concentration jurisdiction exceeding demographic benchmarks across all geographic scales.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey indicate Milwaukee County's 82,589 Polish residents constitute 17.9% of Wisconsin's total Polish population of 462,215, placing the county among jurisdictions with the highest demographic concentrations, with 17.9% of all Wisconsin Polish Americans residing within county boundaries.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data shows Milwaukee County maintains 342 Polish Americans per square mile, representing just over forty times Wisconsin's average of 8.5 per square mile, establishing the county as an exceptional concentration center comparable to major metropolitan demographic areas.
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19 Cities in Milwaukee County Ranked by Polish Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] confirm Polish populations in every incorporated city in the county, with the largest counts in Milwaukee, West Allis, Franklin, and Greenfield. The table below provides detailed figures, including total population, density measures, and demographic distributions, based on the current ACS data for all 19 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Milwaukee County, WI ranked by Polish population count
Rank by Polish Population
City
Polish Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Milwaukee County Polish Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Milwaukee 31,148 5.47% 37.71%
2 West Allis 8,181 13.73% 9.91%
3 Franklin 6,470 18.10% 7.83%
4 Greenfield 6,101 16.33% 7.39%
5 Oak Creek 5,703 15.64% 6.91%
6 South Milwaukee 4,474 21.77% 5.42%
7 Wauwatosa 4,470 9.37% 5.41%
8 4,201 23.39% 5.09%
9 2,963 20.22% 3.59%
10 1,685 11.42% 2.04%
11 1,638 21.48% 1.98%
12 1,530 16.42% 1.85%
13 1,057 7.73% 1.28%
14 1,007 7.67% 1.22%
15 540 4.28% 0.65%
15 540 8.00% 0.65%
16 498 11.32% 0.60%
17 205 5.04% 0.25%
18 178 10.86% 0.22%
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Methodology

This ranking list is based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is one of the most reliable sources for understanding population trends across different locations, and it provides estimates for various racial and ethnic groups at city, county, state and all geography levels down to the Census block group.
This list ranks city in Milwaukee County, WI by their Polish population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines Polish population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their ancestry, meaning individuals can write upto ancestries when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as having Polish ancestry, whether alone or in combination with another ancestry.
Here are a few important things to know about how ancestry is reported:
  • Some people identify as Polish alone, while others identify as Polish along with another race (such as Polish and German).
  • We’ve used the “Polish alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Polish population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Polish alone or in combination in city. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total City Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Polish .
  2. % of Total Milwaukee County Polish Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Polish population lives in that state.
To keep things simple, all population numbers have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place. Because of rounding, some percentages may not add up to exactly 100%.

Things to Keep in Mind

Like all survey-based data, ACS estimates come with some limitations. Here are a few things to be aware of:
  • In places with very small Polish populations, the numbers may not be reported at all due to privacy protections or sampling variability in the survey.
  • Since the ACS is based on a sample, the numbers are estimates, not exact counts. That means they may slightly differ from other sources like the decennial U.S. Census.
  • City that don’t have any reported Polish population are not included in the ranking but are listed separately below for reference.
This ranking is meant to provide a clear, data-driven look at where Polish populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

  1. 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.
  2. 2023.