Wisconsin title and registration fees

Sales tax follows the garage, not the dealer

Wisconsin charges 5% on a car purchase, then adds the tax of the county where the car will be customarily kept, wherever you buy it. The Department of Revenue rate chart lists 70 counties at 0.5%, Milwaukee County at 0.9% since January 2024, and Waukesha and Winnebago counties at zero. The city of Milwaukee is the only city with its own sales tax, 2%, and it applies to cars kept in the city. A trade-in in the same deal comes off the price first, and private sales are taxed too, at the DMV when you title the car.

Title, plates and the 2025-2026 increases

The title fee went up by $50 on October 1, 2025, to $214.50, and listing a loan adds $10. Since April 13, 2026, every new plate costs $6 to issue, so a car with front and rear plates pays $12 unless you transfer plates from a car you sold. The yearly registration for a passenger car stays at $85. Electric cars pay a $175 surcharge each year and hybrids or plug-in hybrids $75, collected with the registration, which puts a new 4,200 lb EV at $2,581.50 at purchase in Milwaukee County. The WisDOT title fee page has the current amounts.

Wheel taxes and the emissions test

Counties and municipalities can add a wheel tax of their choosing, collected by WisDOT with the registration. Fourteen counties charge one, from $15 in Langlade to $40 in Dane, and dozens of cities and villages stack their own on top: a car registered in Madison pays $40 to the city and $40 to Dane County, for $2,316.50 at purchase. Our county list includes the county wheel taxes and the cities of Milwaukee, Madison and Green Bay; check the WisDOT wheel tax list for any other town. In Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Sheboygan, Washington and Waukesha counties, cars are tested from their fourth model year, then every other year before renewal. Compare the whole bill with other states in the DMV fees calculator.

What sets Wisconsin apart

• Wisconsin taxes a car at 5% plus the county tax where the car is customarily kept, not where the dealer is (Wisconsin Department of Revenue).
• Seventy counties add 0.5%, Milwaukee County adds 0.9% since January 1, 2024, and Waukesha and Winnebago counties add nothing (Wisconsin Department of Revenue).
• The city of Milwaukee is the only Wisconsin city with its own sales tax, 2% since January 1, 2024, which also applies to cars kept in the city (Wisconsin Department of Revenue).
• A trade-in made in the same transaction is subtracted from the price before the tax is figured (Wisconsin Department of Revenue).
• The title fee rose by $50 on October 1, 2025, to $214.50 for an original title or a transfer (WisDOT).
• Since April 13, 2026, new plates carry a $6 issuance fee per plate, $12 for a car with two plates (WisDOT).
• A passenger car registration is $85 a year, and electric cars add a $175 surcharge while hybrids and plug-in hybrids add $75 (WisDOT).
• Counties and municipalities may add a wheel tax of their own choosing; Milwaukee County charges $30 and the city of Milwaukee another $41 (WisDOT).
• Cars in seven southeastern counties need an emissions test from their fourth model year and every two years after that (Wis. Adm. Code Trans 131.03).
• Dealers may charge an optional service fee with no state cap, but WisDOT reserves the right to audit it for reasonableness (WisDOT).

What the Wisconsin calculation cannot know

• Emissions test prices in the seven southeastern counties were not found on an official page (the WIVIP site refused automated reading), so the test is shown without an amount.
• About 60 towns, villages and cities add their own wheel tax on top of any county wheel tax; the calculator lists the county wheel taxes plus the cities of Milwaukee, Madison and Green Bay. For any other municipality, add its wheel tax from the WisDOT list.
• Wisconsin sets no cap on the dealer service fee; WisDOT only requires it to be reasonable and disclosed, so type the dealer's fee. The engine taxes it, as the Department of Revenue does for service fees for forms and inspections; a separate fee for filing the title application electronically is not taxable.
• The $12 plate issuance fee and the $85 registration are left out by DMV when plates are transferred from a car you no longer own; the engine assumes new plates.
• A $3 temporary plate fee at an agent and a $5 counter fee at a DMV service center depend on how you apply and are not added.