Pennsylvania vs Wisconsin

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

Pennsylvania

Rank #36

Overall Score

62.1

Category Wins

4/10

Wisconsin

Rank #21

Overall Winner

Overall Score

66.5

Category Wins

5/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

1.58%

Property Tax

1.85%

100

Cost of Living

$6,800

Farm Land $/Acre

$3,800

180 days

Growing Season

170 days

54"

Annual Rainfall

36"

7/10

Soil Quality

8/10

7/10

Safety (Rural)

8/10

7/10

Gun Friendly

7/10

3.8 hrs

Solar (PSH)

3.9 hrs

85%

Broadband

84%

Wisconsin Edges Out Pennsylvania Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 66.5 vs 62.1, Wisconsin comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 5 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: Wisconsin offers cheaper farmland at $3,800/acre vs $6,800/acre. Pennsylvania has a longer growing season (180 vs 170 days). Pennsylvania has lower property taxes (1.58% vs 1.85%).

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	Pennsylvania PA	Wisconsin WI
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	Yes
	3.07%	7.65%
	6.34%	5.43%
	1.58%	1.85%
	100	96
Land & Building
	$6,800	$3,800
	Yes (Statewide)	Yes (Statewide)
	Zoning-dependent; increasingly allowed in some municipalities	Permitted with local approval; increasingly allowed
Climate & Growing
	5a-7a	3a-5b
	180	170
	54"	36"
	7	8
	3	3
	3	4
Water & Energy
	Permitted	Permitted
	3.8	3.9
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	High	Moderate
	7	7
	Strong	Very strong
	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing	Illegal (incidental on-farm sales only)
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	421	299
	43%	37%
Demographics & Community
	297	108
	18%	30%
	85%	84%
Business
	#33	#30
	$125/yr	$130/yr
	3.9%	3.5%

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