Property tax in Dane County, Wisconsin
In Dane County, the property tax bill comes from your city, village or town treasurer for the first installment or full payment; the Dane County Treasurer for the final installment and any late taxes (in the City of Madison, the City Treasurer collects every installment). The 2026 taxes bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due January 31, 2027. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Dane County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Dane County, Wisconsin is $6,420 a year, which is about 1.63% of the county's median home value of $394,800. That effective rate is higher than the typical Wisconsin county (1.36%) and higher than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.
Who sends the property tax bill in Dane County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from your city, village or town treasurer for the first installment or full payment; the Dane County Treasurer for the final installment and any late taxes (in the City of Madison, the City Treasurer collects every installment). The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the assessor for your city, village or town (each municipality in Dane County values its own properties; the county does not), which is who to ask if the value looks wrong. For how to look up and pay the bill, go to the county's own payment information.
In Dane County outside Madison, the tax bill has two collectors: the first installment or full payment goes to your city, village or town, and the final installment and any late taxes go to the Dane County Treasurer. In the City of Madison, the City Treasurer collects all four installments of the current year's taxes and the county collects only after July 31, so a Madison payment sent to the county before then goes to the wrong office. The county's online system accepts current-year payments only after February 20, and never for current-year Madison taxes. Online payments to the county run through Point and Pay, which charges the greater of $1.50 or 2.39% for a card and $1.50 for an electronic check; the county does not accept wire, ACH or savings account transfers.
When are property taxes due in Dane County?
For the 2026 taxes (billed in December 2026, payable in 2027) bill, Dane County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due January 31, 2027 and the last July 31, 2027. If at least the installment amount is not paid on time, the full remaining balance comes due immediately. Dane County then charges combined interest and penalty of 1.5% a month on the unpaid principal, counted back to February 1, so a missed July installment starts with 7 months, or 10.5%, in August, and another 1.5% is added at the start of each month until the bill is paid. Late taxes go to the Dane County Treasurer, except that in the City of Madison late payments made through July 31 go to the City Treasurer.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Full payment, or first installment (paid to your municipal treasurer) | January 31, 2027 | Bills are mailed by the third Monday in December. Payments due by January 31 go to the treasurer of your city, village or town; in December and January the county's online system takes only late taxes from earlier years. January 31, 2027 is a Sunday; Wisconsin law moves a deadline that falls on a Sunday to the next business day, Monday, February 1, 2027. State law also does not treat the first installment as late if the treasurer receives it within 5 working days after January 31, which in 2027 ends at the close of business on Friday, February 5. A mailed payment counts as on time if it is postmarked by the due date, but a postmark is not always applied the day the envelope is mailed, so the county recommends paying in person or by electronic check near a due date. Paying in two installments is allowed only when the real estate tax on the parcel is $100 or more. |
| Second and final installment (paid to the Dane County Treasurer) | July 31, 2027 | July 31, 2027 is a Saturday. The county treasurer's office is closed on Saturdays, and Wisconsin law then moves the deadline to the next business day, Monday, August 2, 2027. State law does not treat the second installment as late if the county treasurer receives it within 5 working days after July 31, which in 2027 ends at the close of business on Friday, August 6. The City of Madison does not use this two-payment schedule: Madison homeowners pay the full bill by January 31 or in four installments due January 31, March 31, May 31 and July 31, all to the Madison City Treasurer. May 31, 2027 is Memorial Day, and Wisconsin law moves a deadline that falls on a legal holiday to the next business day. |
From Dane County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. If a date falls on a weekend or holiday, the county's own rules on the next business day apply.
Estimate the property tax on a home in Dane County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Dane County's average effective rate of 1.63% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $6,435 / year
Property tax in Dane County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $6,420 |
| Median home value | $394,800 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.63% |
| Typical Wisconsin county rate | 1.36% |
| National median county rate | 0.81% |
Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.
How does Dane County compare in Wisconsin?
Among Wisconsin's 72 counties, Dane County has the 3rd highest effective property-tax rate: 2 rank higher and 69 rank lower. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 240th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Wisconsin county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Dane County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Dane County's 143,682 owner-occupied homes, 91.4% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 94.8% pay at least $2,000, and 1.4% pay under $800. Another 1.8% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 1,968 | 1.4% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 1,220 | 0.8% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 1,696 | 1.2% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 4,930 | 3.4% |
| $3,000 or more | 131,326 | 91.4% |
| No property tax paid | 2,542 | 1.8% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $6,441 and owners without one pay $6,374. That is within 10% either way, so in Dane County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.
How does the Dane County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $6,420 is about 5.1% of the median income of Dane County homeowner households, $124,753 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 57.1% of Dane County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.
Have property taxes gone up in Dane County?
Yes. The median bill went from $5,145 in 2015-2019 to $6,420 in 2020-2024, a 24.8% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 48.6%, from $265,600 to $394,800. Bills rose more slowly than values, which is what assessment caps and falling millage rates do: the county is taxing a smaller share of each home's worth.
Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.
Property tax in counties next to Dane County
Dane County borders 7 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dane County, WI (this county) | 1.63% | $6,420 | $394,800 |
| Green County, WI | 1.6% | $4,003 | $250,200 |
| Rock County, WI | 1.6% | $3,703 | $231,600 |
| Iowa County, WI | 1.52% | $4,038 | $265,000 |
| Dodge County, WI | 1.48% | $3,422 | $231,900 |
| Jefferson County, WI | 1.46% | $4,005 | $274,100 |
| Sauk County, WI | 1.45% | $3,755 | $258,600 |
| Columbia County, WI | 1.36% | $3,855 | $283,200 |
How is a home assessed in Dane County?
Wisconsin assesses homes at 100% of market value in every county, Dane County included. How Wisconsin assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Dane County?
No. Wisconsin has no homestead exemption; owner-occupants instead see the Lottery and Gaming Credit and the School Levy Tax Credit printed on the bill. That is the Wisconsin rule, and it applies in Dane County. Wisconsin's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Dane County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Wisconsin ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Dane County property assessment
In Dane County you appeal to the The Board of Review of your city, village or town (in the City of Madison, the city's Board of Assessors first, then the Board of Review). The deadline: Talk to your municipal assessor first, during the open book period. To appeal to the Board of Review, give the board's clerk written or oral notice of your intent to object at least 48 hours before the board's first meeting, then file a written objection within the first 2 hours of that meeting. State law lets each board meet at any time during the 45 days starting on the fourth Monday in April and requires the date to be published at least 15 days ahead (30 days in a revaluation year). In the City of Madison, objections go first to the Board of Assessors by a mid-May deadline the city assessor publishes each year (4:30 p.m. on May 15 in 2026); missing it means asking the Board of Review for a waiver. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Wisconsin's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Wisconsin rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Wisconsin page.
Work out your own numbers
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How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with Dane County's tax rate to hand.
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Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
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Wisconsin income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Wisconsin actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Dane County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Dane County, Wisconsin: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.