Five years ago, with spring on the horizon, the world changed in ways few of us ever anticipated. A mysterious illness, dubbed COVID-19, began to spread and created a pandemic that would shut down many Milwaukee area businesses and confine most of us to our residences.
Hospitals began to fill with patients. People hoarded toilet paper as they hunkered down at home. Remote work and schooling became commonplace as offices and school buildings became ghost towns. Sports leagues’ seasons were canceled, postponed or truncated. Flights, for the most part, were grounded. Health officials and city leaders held regular briefings to keep the public informed of the work being done to control the spread of the pandemic and to report the number of cases and, unfortunately, the death toll. Masking and social distancing ordinances were implemented. Vaccines were developed and administered.
Now five years later, here’s a look at where things stood before the pandemic, in its early days, one year later and today.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
Wisconsin’s Unemployment Rate
- April 2019: 3.2%
- April 2020: 14.1%
- April 2021: 4.3%
- Current: 3.1%
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Milwaukee’s Unemployment Rate
- April 2019: 3.1%
- April 2020: 15.8%
- April 2021: 7.5%
- Current: 4.0%
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Passengers at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport
- April 2019: 585,577
- April 2020: 23,664
- April 2021: 344,791
- February 2025: 400,780
Source: Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport
Milwaukee Film Festival Attendees
- October 2019: In-person, 87,618
- October 2020: Entirely virtual, 66,286
- May 2021: Entirely virtual, 41,999
- May 2024: In-person, 32,624
Source: Milwaukee Film
Hotel Occupancy/Rates/Room Revenue
- April 2019
- Occupancy: 50.6%
- Average daily rate: $101.17
- Revenue per available room: $51.14
- April 2020
- Occupancy: 21.4%
- Average daily rate: $68.24
- Revenue per available room: $14.60
- April 2021
- Occupancy: 45.1%
- Average daily rate: $87.67
- Revenue per available room: $39.54
- February 2025
- Occupancy: 54%
- Average daily rate: $121.87
- Revenue per available room: $65.81
Source: CoStar
Live Sports Attendance
Milwaukee Brewers
- 2019: 2,923,333
- 2020: 0
- A shortened season was played without fans being permitted to attend games.
- 2021: 1,978,934
- Team began the season with capacity at American Family field capped at 25%. A “re-opening day” was held in June 25 when the ballpark returned to full capacity.
- 2024: 2,537,202
Source: Major League Baseball
Milwaukee Bucks
- 2018-19: 721,692
- 2019-2020: 549,036
- The NBA suspended the 2019-20 season on March 11. The Bucks had played 35 of a scheduled 41 home games at Fiserv Forum at that point. The season resumed that summer with a select number of teams invited to finish the season and compete in the playoffs in a bio-secure “bubble” at Walt Disney World in Florida.
- 2020-21: 64,780
- The NBA played a 72-game regular season (36 home games) in 2020-21 instead of the normal 82-game slate. The Bucks initially played their home games at Fiserv Forum without fans, but later allowed limited attendance with health and safety protocols in place. Capacity was eventually increased for the playoffs. The Bucks would go on to win the NBA title, the franchise’s first in 50 years.
- 2023-24: 740,885
Source: National Basketball Association
Milwaukee Admirals
- 2018-19: 205,637
- 2019-20: 150,990
- Season not completed. Remainder of season was suspended on March 12, 2020, and eventually canceled on May 11.
- 2020-21: Team opted out of season due to financial concerns.
- 2023-24: 221,000
Source: American Hockey League/Milwaukee Admirals
