Milwaukee County’s hospitality economy combines visitor spending, hotel demand, conventions, sports, airport traffic, and public revenue. In 2024, the county’s tourism industry reached $4.321 billion in total economic impact, while direct visitor spending totaled $2.439 billion. The figures below separate Milwaukee County measures from city, market, airport, and statewide measures and identify the relevant year or forecast period.
Contents
- Tourism’s economic footprint
- Jobs, taxes, and statewide share
- Hotel occupancy and performance
- Meetings, conventions, and sports
- Travel through Mitchell International Airport
- Visitor marketing and local participation
Tourism’s economic footprint
Visit Milwaukee reported that Milwaukee County tourism generated $4.321 billion in total economic impact in 2024. That was a 3.7% year-over-year increase, according to From ‘Top Chef’ to Top Choice, Milwaukee Tourism Breaks Records in 2024. Direct visitor spending reached $2.439 billion, up 4.1% from the prior year.
The 2024 spending figure works out to an average of $6.6 million per day in Milwaukee County, as reported by Visit Milwaukee. Tourism also generated $242.2 million in state and local tax revenue. Visit Milwaukee said each Milwaukee County household would need to pay $622 to replace the public services supported by tourism in 2024.
The same 2024 report said Milwaukee County represented 16% of all tourism spending in Wisconsin. This is a county share of statewide tourism spending, not a measure of Milwaukee’s share of the state’s population or hotel inventory.
The prior-year figures are presented differently in Tourism Spending in Milwaukee County Sets New Record in 2023. That report said Milwaukee County tourism generated $6.3 billion in economic impact in 2023, an increase of more than $358 million year over year. It also reported more than $4.1 billion in total economic impact, more than $2 billion in direct business spending, more than $231 million in state and local taxes, and more than 27,000 supported jobs.
Because the 2023 report uses multiple economic-impact descriptions, its reported measures should not be combined as though they were one identical series. The 2024 report’s $4.321 billion total-impact figure and $2.439 billion direct-spending figure likewise describe separate measures.
Jobs, taxes, and statewide share
Tourism and hospitality supported 28,091 full-time jobs in Milwaukee County in 2024, according to Visit Milwaukee’s From ‘Top Chef’ to Top Choice, Milwaukee Tourism Breaks Records in 2024. The 2023 report described the employment contribution as more than 27,000 jobs. These figures indicate the reported scale of the workforce supported in each year, but they do not identify a single occupational category or provide a wage breakdown.
The tax contribution increased in the reported year-to-year picture: more than $231 million in state and local taxes was reported for 2023, followed by $242.2 million for 2024. The 2024 household replacement estimate was $622 per Milwaukee County household. That estimate describes the value of public services attributed to tourism; it is not a hotel tax rate or a charge collected from individual visitors.
Milwaukee County’s reported statewide position changed substantially between the two source reports. The 2023 report said the county accounted for 25.5% of all tourism spending in Wisconsin, while the 2024 report said it represented 16%. Since the reports use different measurement years and may use different reporting definitions, the percentages should be read as source-reported annual shares rather than a calculated trend.
Visit Milwaukee also said visitors contribute more than $2 billion in direct spending at Milwaukee County businesses each year, in Visit Milwaukee Unveils Free Summer Savings Pass. That statement is a rounded annual description and should not be added to the separately reported $2.439 billion for 2024.
Hotel occupancy and performance
The Wisconsin Center District Final HBU Report placed Milwaukee’s competitive-set hotel occupancy at 62% in 2024. The same report listed a $171 average daily rate (ADR) and $106 revenue per available room (RevPAR). In 2023, the competitive set recorded 59% occupancy, $163 ADR, and $96 RevPAR.
| Milwaukee competitive-set hotel measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Occupancy | 59% | 62% |
| ADR | $163 | $171 |
| RevPAR | $96 | $106 |
These are competitive-set market measures, not necessarily the results of every hotel in Milwaukee or Milwaukee County. ADR is the reported average daily room rate, while RevPAR is revenue per available room. The supplied report does not provide a hotel-by-hotel breakdown behind the competitive-set totals.
The same Wisconsin Center District report described the hotel supply and development picture within a 2-mile development pipeline area. It listed 6,145 rooms in current supply, 207 rooms delivered in the prior two years, 75 rooms expected to be delivered in the next two years, and 571 rooms proposed for the next two years. “Proposed” and “expected” describe pipeline status, not completed inventory.
Historical hotel data gives additional context. Visit Milwaukee’s 2014 annual report said Milwaukee Downtown reached a record 69.5% annual occupancy, while Milwaukee West reached 68.7% occupancy. Milwaukee West ADR rose to $86.82 and RevPAR rose to $59.68. Milwaukee MSA RevPAR finished at $62.18, up 6.3%, and the MSA ranked fourth in Visit Milwaukee’s nine-city competitive set.
The 2014 report also said Milwaukee County and the City of Milwaukee experienced 3.7% occupancy growth. These 2014 market figures are legacy measures from that annual report and are not direct substitutes for the 2023 and 2024 competitive-set statistics.
Meetings, conventions, and sports
Visit Milwaukee booked 328,659 room nights in 2025, reaching 114% of its goal. Milwaukee Steps into the Flavor Era After Record-Breaking Year reported that 2025 room-night production was up 14.4% year over year. Sports Milwaukee generated 79,424 room nights and $125 million in economic impact in 2025.
For comparison, Visit Milwaukee booked 287,000 hotel room nights in 2024 and reported that the total reached 117% of its annual goal, according to Business of Travel Series: The Strategy That Turned Milwaukee into a Meetings Destination to Watch. The two reports use different goal-attainment percentages, so the totals and percentages should remain tied to their respective source reports.
The 2024 Republican National Convention generated $321.5 million in total economic impact, according to REPORT: 2024 RNC Convention Economic Impact Exceeds $320 Million. The report specified that this impact applied to the state and local economy, not only the city of Milwaukee.
Visit Milwaukee’s 2014 annual report recorded 195,907 convention room nights, equal to 100.47% of goal. It listed 885,831 lead tentative room nights, or 126.55% of goal, and 203,502 actualized group room nights, representing $148.5 million in economic impact. The sports market delivered more than 35,000 room nights that year.
The same 2014 report said the convention services department assisted 472,201 attendees through 273 conventions, meetings, and events. Individual bookings included 14,000 room nights for the Christian Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 9,068 for Deere & Company, 3,945 for the International Society for Arboriculture, 3,751 for USA Triathlon, 3,105 for BRP, and 2,014 for SVP Worldwide.
Travel through Mitchell International Airport
General Mitchell International Airport handled 6.316 million passengers in 2024, up from 6.016 million in 2023, according to the County of Milwaukee 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. These are annual passenger totals for the airport and are not equivalent to hotel guests or tourism-only visitors.
The report presented airport financial amounts in thousands. Operating revenue was $86,954 thousand in 2024, compared with $88,023 thousand in 2023. Operating expenses were $100,864 thousand in 2024, down from $110,591 thousand. Net operating income or loss improved by $8,658 thousand, or 38.4%, to a negative $13,910 thousand in 2024.
Capital grants and contributions rose to $21,005 thousand in 2024 from $11,918 thousand in 2023. Net nonoperating revenues or expenses fell by $2,950 thousand, or 24.3%, to $9,206 thousand. Interest expense rose to $3,374 thousand from $2,331 thousand.
The Milwaukee County 2024 Recommended Operating Budget - Airport forecast 3,262,320 enplanements and 6,524,640 total passengers for 2024. It targeted an airport cost per enplanement of $30, budgeted 231.00 full-time-equivalent positions, and listed $97,325,511 in expenditures against $98,437,212 in revenues. The budgeted tax levy was negative $1,111,701. These are budget figures, distinct from the passenger and financial results reported after the year.
Visitor marketing and local participation
Visit Milwaukee’s 2025 City of Festivals campaign delivered 11.4 million impressions, according to Milwaukee Steps into the Flavor Era After Record-Breaking Year. Visit Milwaukee said website growth influenced 9.4 million visitors, a 10% year-over-year increase, and that digital traffic generated $10.5 million in direct visitor spending.
The Visit Milwaukee Unveils Free Summer Savings Pass release said nearly 60 local businesses participated when the pass launched. It also said past passes had generated more than 35,000 combined sign-ups. These participation and sign-up counts describe the pass program, not total Milwaukee visitor volume.
The 2020 annual report, Tourism is Vital to Milwaukee’s Future, shows the disruption and planning measures recorded for that year. Visit Milwaukee’s operating budget was $6.4 million, down 34% from 2019. Direct visitor spending in Milwaukee County totaled $1.33 billion, down 39.32% from 2019, while state and local taxes generated from tourism were down 32% from 2019.
That report said Visit Milwaukee booked 118 future groups and conventions in 2020 and set a 151,507 room-booking goal for 2022–2026. Its meetings and convention advertising budget increased 56% over 2019. Funding was 83.6% hotel occupancy taxes and public funding, while spending was 83.5% convention sales and destination marketing.
Visit Milwaukee’s 2017 annual report recorded $192,292,564 in economic impact from hotel rooms, 236,475 definite room nights, 761,480 tentative room nights, and $173,545,468 booked for future business. It also reported hosting 446 meeting planners at ASAE and serving 700 Bloody Marys there. These legacy figures remain tied to the 2017 annual report and should not be treated as current hotel-market measures.