Foliage map › Destinations › Wisconsin › Madison
Madison, Wisconsin fall foliage
In a typical year, fall color around Madison peaks about October 12, with the best viewing from roughly October 11 to October 19.
- Typical peak
- October 12
- Best viewing
- Oct 11 – Oct 19
- Color starts
- Around Sep 30
- Leaves mostly down
- Around Oct 25
- Elevation
- 870 ft
- Color potential
- Strong
Updated
Typical season
Peak around October 12. Turn on JavaScript to see today’s status and the five-week outlook.
The season at a glance
Bar height shows how good the viewing typically is on each day, from September 1 through November 30. Colors show the stage, from green through peak red to bare.
Open Madison on the live mapNearby destinations
- Galena, ILTypical peak Oct 16, 4 days later. 69 miles away.
- Milwaukee, WITypical peak Oct 17, 5 days later. 75 miles away.
- Decorah, IATypical peak Oct 11, about the same time. 121 miles away.
- Chicago, ILTypical peak Oct 22, 10 days later. 122 miles away.
- Sturgeon Bay (Door County), WITypical peak Oct 9, 3 days earlier. 158 miles away.
Trees you’ll see turning
Common questions
When is peak fall foliage in Madison?
In a typical year, fall color around Madison peaks about October 12, with the best viewing from roughly October 11 to October 19. Weather can shift the timing by about a week either way.
How long does peak color last in Madison?
Near-peak color usually holds for about 9 days. Color starts to show around September 30, and most leaves are down by about October 25.
Is Madison early or late compared with the rest of Wisconsin?
Madison typically peaks about 3 days later than the Wisconsin average of Oct 9. It ranks 3 of 4 Wisconsin destinations from earliest to latest.
What trees color up around Madison?
The main fall color in this area comes from sugar maple, red maple, quaking aspen, paper birch. See the leaf guide to identify them.
Estimates come from the Leaves.com model of typical years, based on latitude, elevation, and distance from large bodies of water. They are not live observations. How it works.