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Pawn Shops vs Payday Loans in Milwaukee, WI
6 pawn shops in and around Milwaukee — 0.8 per 100,000 residents, compared with 0.8 across Wisconsin. Call ahead to ask what they're buying and lending on today: inventory needs change weekly. Milwaukee ranks #10 of 10 Wisconsin cities with pawn shops by shops per resident.
- Pawn shops
- 6
- Pawn shops per 100k
- 0.8
- Wisconsin: 0.8
- Big-chain shops
- 2
- Payday & loan stores
- 17
- Population
- 785,981
Pawn shops in Milwaukee: addresses and phone numbers
| Pawn shop | Address | Phone | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Wreck | 5140 N Teutonia Ave Milwaukee, WI 53209 | (414) 252-0562 | digitalwreck.com |
| Neighborhood Pawn | 5424 N Lovers Lane Rd Milwaukee, WI 53225 | (414) 763-7843 | pawn-milwaukee.com |
| Pawn AmericaChain | 6574 N 76th St Milwaukee, WI 53223 | (414) 644-5761 | pawnamerica.com |
| Pawn AmericaChain | 7530 W Lincoln Ave West Allis, WI 53219 | (414) 327-1825 | pawnamerica.com |
| Reflections Jewelry | 1306 W Forest Home Ave Milwaukee, WI 53204 | (414) 672-6108 | pawnmilwaukee.com |
| Stein's Jewelry & Loan | 715 W Wisconsin Ave Milwaukee, WI 53233 | (414) 276-7296 | steinsjewelryandloan.com |
Pawn shops vs payday loan stores in Milwaukee
Milwaukee has 17 payday, installment and title loan stores but only 6 pawn shops.
Pawn shops
6
0.8 per 100k residents
Payday & loan stores
17
2.2 per 100k residents
6 store chains
Biggest loan store chains in Milwaukee: Check 'n Go (7), OneMain Financial (4), Advance America (2), TitleMax (2), Check Into Cash (1).
Borrowing $500 for one month: payday vs pawn vs credit union
| Option | How it works | Cost for one month |
|---|---|---|
| Payday loan (~574%+ APR) | $75.00 fee every 2 weeks, renewed once | $150.00 |
| Pawn loan (example: 20% a month) | You leave an item worth more than the loan; repay to get it back | $100.00 |
| Credit union PAL (28% APR + $20 fee) | Repaid in installments; membership required | $31.67 |
- Payday cost, share of monthly household income in Milwaukee
- 2.9%
- Pawn cost, share of monthly household income in Milwaukee
- 2.0%
- A $400 emergency equals
- 2.4 days of income
Payday: a typical fee of $75 on a $500 loan for 2 weeks, paid twice for a one-month loan (Wisconsin payday rules are not set in dollars or payday loans are not allowed). Pawn: an example rate of 20% a month; pawn fees and interest are set by Wisconsin law and vary by shop — ask for the total in writing. PAL: payday alternative loan from a federal credit union, capped at 28% APR plus an application fee of up to $20.
Pawn loan vs payday loan: the key differences
| Pawn loan | Payday loan in WI | |
|---|---|---|
| What you need | An item of value (jewelry, gold, electronics, tools, firearms) and an ID | A bank account, proof of income and an ID |
| Credit check | None | Usually none |
| How much you get | A fraction of the item's resale value | Based on your income, up to the state limit |
| If you can't repay | The shop keeps the item; no collections and no credit damage | Fees pile up with renewals; the debt can go to collections |
| Bank account access | None | Lender can debit your account or cash your check |
| Rules in Wisconsin | Pawnbrokers are licensed and regulated by Wisconsin; fees, terms and holding periods are set by state law | Allowed, up to No state limit; typical APR ~574%+ |
Milwaukee at a glance
- Median household income
- $61,330
- Wisconsin: $78,208
- Poverty rate
- 19.4%
- Wisconsin: 10.8%
- Households under $25,000
- 21.3%
- Wisconsin: 13.5%
- A $400 emergency equals
- 2.4 days of income
Payday and installment loan stores in Milwaukee
For comparison: storefront payday, installment and title lenders in Milwaukee with addresses, phone numbers and hours.
| Address | Phone | Hours | Google rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10712 W Oklahoma Ave Milwaukee, WI 53227 | (414) 328-1111 | — | 4.9 |
| 344 E Capitol Dr Milwaukee, WI 53212 | (414) 332-1100 | — | 4.9 |
| 4847 N 76th St Milwaukee, WI 53218 | (414) 536-1111 | — | 4.9 |
| 6532 W Brown Deer Rd Milwaukee, WI 53223 | (414) 371-9999 | — | 4.9 |
| 7311 N Teutonia Ave Milwaukee, WI 53209 | (414) 228-7788 | — | 4.9 |
| 7600 W Capitol Dr Milwaukee, WI 53222 | (414) 466-1000 | — | 4.9 |
| 807 S Layton Blvd Milwaukee, WI 53215 | (414) 384-5400 | — | 4.9 |
| 2448 S 102nd St #100 West Allis, WI 53227 | (414) 744-7600 | — | 4.1 |
| 2675 N Mayfair Rd Ste 106 Wauwatosa, WI 53226 | (414) 442-4243 | — | 4.4 |
| 4869 S 27th St Greenfield, WI 53221 | (414) 281-4747 | — | 4.7 |
| 6811 N Green Bay Ave Unit 6 Glendale, WI 53209 | (414) 540-1424 | — | 4.5 |
| 3730 S. 27th Street, Ste. 110 Milwaukee, WI 53221 | (414) 282-9539 | Mon–Fri 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM Sat–Sun closed |
— |
| 8066 N. 76th Street Milwaukee, WI 53223 | (414) 371-1427 | Mon–Fri 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM Sat–Sun closed |
— |
| 4750 N 76th St Milwaukee, WI 53218 | (414) 296-4885 | — | 5.0 |
| 7250 N 76th St Milwaukee, WI 53223 | (414) 760-0910 | — | 4.9 |
| 2715 S 108th St West Allis, WI 53227 | (414) 604-9051 | — | 4.9 |
| 10125 W North Ave #200 Wauwatosa, WI 53226 | (715) 903-6700 | — | 4.3 |
Pawn shops near Milwaukee
More about Milwaukee
Pawn shop listings: © Overture Maps Foundation (CDLA-Permissive 2.0), including Foursquare OS Places and © OpenStreetMap contributors; filtered and de-duplicated by us. Population, income and poverty: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Call ahead to confirm hours and what a shop buys or lends on.