Wisconsin manufacturing fact sheet
THE FACTORY CENSUS, Q3 2026 · FACTORYREGISTRY RESEARCH · SNAPSHOT AUG 2026
As of AUG 2026, FactoryRegistry lists 6,832 manufacturing facilities in Wisconsin, of which 3,667 (53.7%) carry a recent operating signal. That is 114.61 facilities per 100,000 residents.
Full census, Q3 2026 · Wisconsin in the registry
Top counties
| COUNTY | FACILITIES |
|---|---|
| Milwaukee | 741 |
| Waukesha | 626 |
| Dane | 389 |
| Brown | 354 |
| Winnebago | 255 |
| Outagamie | 221 |
| Marathon | 207 |
| Washington | 201 |
| Racine | 201 |
| Sheboygan | 166 |
Leading industries
| SUBSECTOR | FACILITIES |
|---|---|
| 332 Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing | 1,555 |
| 311 Food Manufacturing | 924 |
| 333 Machinery Manufacturing | 874 |
| 325 Chemical Manufacturing | 534 |
| 326 Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing | 509 |
Largest listed employers
| FACILITY | CITY | EMPLOYEES |
|---|---|---|
| Abbyland Foods INC | Abbotsford | 500+ |
| Alliance Laundry Systems - Plant 1 | Ripon | 500+ |
| Amcor Oshkosh North | Oshkosh | 500+ |
| American Orthodontics Corporation | Sheboygan | 500+ |
| Ariens CO | Brillion | 500+ |
| Ashley Furniture - Arcadia | Arcadia | 500+ |
| ATI Forged Products - Cudahy Operations | Cudahy | 500+ |
| Barron Plant | Barron | 500+ |
| Bell Laboratories INC | Windsor | 500+ |
| Beloit Plant | Beloit | 500+ |
Ranked by reported employment band. Facilities whose sources report no band are not listed here.
Coverage
The registry lists 6,832 facilities in Wisconsin against a BLS QCEW benchmark of 8,922 manufacturing establishments (2024) — coverage of 76.6%. The benchmark is a floor: QCEW counts establishments covered by unemployment insurance and so excludes most sole proprietors and some contract operations. The real number of manufacturing sites is therefore higher than the benchmark, and this percentage overstates coverage rather than understating it. Where it exceeds 100%, the registry lists more sites than QCEW counts establishments — which is expected in states with many small or single-person operations, and is also where duplicate listings would show up first.
FactoryRegistry Research, The Factory Census, Q3 2026 — factoryregistry.com/census/2026-q3/wi · press@factoryregistry.com