Where Wisconsin Gets Its Electricity
Net generation by source · 12-month average, June 2025 – May 2026.
Generation mix
| Source | Share | Generation |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 36.7% | 24,112 GWh |
| Coal | 33.1% | 21,740 GWh |
| Nuclear | 15.3% | 10,043 GWh |
| Wind | 2.9% | 1,891 GWh |
| Solar | 6.4% | 4,212 GWh |
| Hydro | 3.7% | 2,465 GWh |
| Other | 2.0% | 1,305 GWh |
65.8 TWh generated over the 12 months to May 2026. Shares are of net generation within Wisconsin, which is not the same as what the state consumes — power crosses state lines.
Counting rooftop solar
EIA reports small-scale solar — mostly rooftop panels on homes and businesses — separately, and leaves it out of the state generation total that the mix above is a share of. Wisconsin generated 440 GWh that way. Counting it on both sides of the ratio takes solar from 6.4% to 7.0%.
How the mix has shifted since 2016
| Source | 2016 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 23.8% | 35.6% | +11.7 pts |
| Coal | 51.4% | 35.0% | −16.4 pts |
| Nuclear | 15.6% | 15.3% | −0.4 pts |
| Wind | 2.3% | 2.9% | +0.6 pts |
| Solar | 0.0% | 6.0% | +6.0 pts |
| Hydro | 4.3% | 3.3% | −1.0 pts |
| Other | 2.6% | 1.9% | −0.6 pts |
Compared with the U.S. and nearby states
Wisconsin's generation mix in context
Natural gas supplies 36.7% of Wisconsin's electricity generation, making it the largest source. Nuclear provides 15.3%, and coal 33.1%. Renewables account for 14.8% of the total, while carbon-free sources—renewables and nuclear combined—make up 30.1%. Wisconsin ranks 29th among the 51 states and DC for renewable share, 10.1 percentage points below the national average of 24.9%.
Solar has grown substantially over the past decade. Utility-scale solar alone comprises 6.4% of generation, though when rooftop installations are included the solar share reaches 7.0%. In 2016, solar contributed nothing to the state's mix. Wind has inched upward to 2.9% in the trailing twelve months from 0.6% in 2016, while hydro declined from 4.3% to 3.3%. The most dramatic shift has been in coal, which fell from 51.4% in 2016 to 35.0% in 2025, offset partly by natural gas climbing from 23.8% to 35.6% over the same period.
Wisconsin's renewable share trails most neighbouring states. Iowa generates 61.5% of its electricity from renewables, Minnesota 33.9%, and Illinois 17.4%. Only Michigan, at 13.5%, falls below Wisconsin's 14.8%. Nationally, gas remains the largest source at 40.8%, but coal plays a much smaller role at 15.8%, and renewables reach 24.9%. Wisconsin ranks 21st for solar generation among all states and DC.
Written from the EIA figures on this page, covering data through May 2026.
Frequently asked questions
›What percentage of Wisconsin's electricity comes from renewable energy?
›What percentage of Wisconsin's power comes from solar?
›Where does Wisconsin get most of its electricity?
›Does Wisconsin still burn coal for electricity?
›Is Wisconsin getting greener?
How this is measured
Figures are net generation reported to the U.S. Energy Information Administration for all sectors — utilities, independent power producers, and industrial and commercial plants that generate their own power. Shares are of the 12 months to May 2026, rather than a single month, because generation is strongly seasonal: solar peaks in summer and hydro with the spring melt, so one month says more about the weather than about the grid.
“Other” is the reported total minus the six named sources, so the shares add to exactly 100%. It holds geothermal, biomass, petroleum, other gases, and pumped storage — the last of which consumes more electricity than it returns, and so can be negative. Geothermal and biomass are renewable, which is why the renewable share above is slightly larger than wind, solar and hydro added together.
This is generation, not consumption. Electricity crosses state lines freely, so a state can generate more than it uses or rely on imports for a large part of its supply; neither shows up here.