(414) 279-5510 Call Car Towing Service · Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County · 24/7
Won't start, broke down, or need it moved to a shop — MKE Towing & Recovery's car towing service sends a flatbed or a wheel-lift across Milwaukee and Waukesha counties, gives you an arrival estimate on the call, and a flat price quoted before we hook up: $85 hook-up plus $4 per loaded mile. No surprise fees, ever.
Upfront, no-surprise pricing 4.7 · 5,026 surveys Flatbed & wheel-lift fleet Licensed & Insured
A live Milwaukee dispatcher answers every call — no menus, no call-center. Tell us where you are and what you drive, and the nearest truck rolls.
Need a tow right now? MKE Towing & Recovery dispatches 24/7 across Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County, and the dispatcher gives you an arrival estimate on the call. Flatbed and wheel-lift trucks for cars, trucks, SUVs and AWD vehicles — and a flat price quoted before we hook up, with no surprise fees. See your exact price online in about 60 seconds — computed by the same pricing engine our dispatchers use. Nights, weekends and holidays run out of the same dispatch desk: see 24-hour towing for how the night shift works. Call (414) 279-5510.
Instant quote — free, no phone call needed
Enter pickup and drop-off, pick your vehicle (its weight class is classified automatically), answer what's wrong and whether it rolls — and your exact price is on screen in about 60 seconds. Every quote carries a reference (Q-XXXXXXXX): give it to the dispatcher and we pick up right where you left off. Scheduling a tow instead of stranded? The same quote works for planned moves. Online pricing covers our standard ~30-mile service area; beyond that is long-distance towing, and a dispatcher at (414) 279-5510 prices it personally.
When do you need a tow?
Standard, light-duty towing is the everyday tow — the car that won't go, or needs to be somewhere else. Box trucks and buses go to heavy-duty towing, tractor-trailers to semi truck towing. Recognize your situation below and call; we do these every day across the metro.
Dead in a lot, the driveway, or the garage — turns over but won't go. We load it and run it to your shop, dealer, or home.
Overheated, transmission slipping, or stalled on I-94 or a surface street. We get you out of the way and off the road.
A car that hasn't run in a while and needs to reach a mechanic, dealer, or your driveway. Flatbed, no key needed.
After a minor fender-bender it technically rolls — but a rubbing tire, leak, or light says don't risk it. We move it to the shop.
A non-runner or project that needs to get from A to B — across town or between homes and shops. We haul it level and secure.
You searched it because you're stuck and it's real. One call to a live dispatcher and the nearest truck is on the way.
The kinds of tow
Every job starts from the same $85 hook-up plus $4 per loaded mile. What changes is the truck, the loading and sometimes the add-on, and the dispatcher picks those from what you tell them.
A running front- or rear-wheel-drive car with a straight body is lifted by its drive wheels and towed a short hop to the shop. The everyday tow.
AWD and 4WD, EVs, low or lowered cars, exotics and anything that must not be dragged ride fully on the deck. The flatbed itself costs nothing extra; see flatbed towing.
Seized wheels, a locked transmission or a car stuck in park go on dollies or skates and up the deck on the winch line. The quote asks, so the add-on is in the price before we roll.
A parking structure under 6.8 ft gets a dedicated low-clearance dispatch. The dispatcher confirms the garage height on the call so the truck that arrives actually fits.
A crash-damaged car is loaded by its damage location (front, rear, side or rollover) and often billed to the claim. See accident towing.
A project car between homes, a dealer pickup, or a run to Chicago or Madison. Beyond about 30 miles it is long-distance towing, quoted as one flat number for the whole route.
What we tow
Pick what you drive and we'll show you the right truck and why — the same call the dispatcher makes. A running front- or rear-wheel-drive car can ride on a wheel-lift; anything AWD, low, exotic, or non-running goes flat.
A running front- or rear-wheel-drive car tows safely on a wheel-lift with the drive wheels off the ground. Prefer it ride completely off the road? We'll bring a flatbed instead — your call.
Send this truck — call nowHow the price is built
Two numbers decide a light-duty tow: the $85 hook-up (getting the truck to you and the car on it) and $4 per loaded mile (the distance the car rides), the same rate at any hour. The hook-up steps up modestly with distance from our South Side yard, and the engine measures the real route, so the exact figures for a standard car are $105 at 5 loaded miles, $130 at 10, $200 at 25 and $300 at 50. Your quote is computed by the same pricing engine our dispatchers use; the calculator up this page shows it in about 60 seconds, before any truck rolls, and the Milwaukee towing cost guide lays out the whole math with worked examples.
Straight from the live pricing engine — no estimate ranges, no call-for-price games, and never a different number when the truck arrives.
See my price nowPriced in tiers from our South Side Milwaukee yard — roughly 0–10, 11–22, and 23–30 miles out — plus the measured loaded miles of your actual route, pickup to drop-off. The calculator measures the real route, not a guess.
Year, make, and model resolve your GVWR duty class automatically — the same government-data pipeline our dispatchers use — so a light-duty sedan, a heavy pickup, and a commercial van each get the right truck and the right rate the first time.
Same rate day or night — we run 24/7, and a 3 a.m. tow is priced like a 3 p.m. tow. Nothing sprung on the invoice.
“Can it roll and steer?” is a real cost input — seized wheels need dollies or a winch load, and ride-along passengers (most trucks seat 1–2) are priced transparently. The quote asks up front so there are no on-site surprises.
Do we cover your area?
We run a ~25-mile dispatch radius from Milwaukee. Tap your area to see what we cover there. The dispatcher gives you an arrival estimate for your exact spot when you call. Farther out, see every city we cover.
Yes. It is the question callers ask us most. A car stuck in park, a dead EV that will not release its parking lock, or a locked transmission still gets towed: the wheels that will not turn go on dollies or skates, and the car is winched up the flatbed on a rated line. Tell the quote flow it will not roll and the add-on is in the price up front. The full explanation, including how a dead electric car is put into tow mode, is in our guide: My car won't go into neutral: how we tow it.
What happens when you call
A real Milwaukee dispatcher picks up — no menus. Tell us where you are, what you drive, and where it's going.
We confirm the truck for your vehicle, give you a flat price before we hook up, and an arrival estimate for your spot.
The nearest flatbed or wheel-lift heads your way. The driver calls as they get close.
Loaded carefully and dropped where you need — shop, dealer, or home. Pay on the spot; receipt for your records or claim.
While you wait
A few quick moves keep you safe while we're on the way. Then sit tight — the driver will call as they get close.
Why MKE for towing
A person picks up any day, at any hour, and gives you an arrival estimate from where the closest truck is.
A flat hook-up plus per-loaded-mile, quoted before we hook up. The number you hear is the number you pay.
Thousands of tows across Milwaukee and Waukesha counties — freeways, side streets, and driveways.
A 5-truck fleet of flatbeds and wheel-lifts means the correct truck the first time. Licensed & Insured in Wisconsin.
Towing questions
A hook-up fee plus measured loaded miles, sized to your vehicle’s weight class (resolved automatically from year, make, and model) — at the same rate any hour. The calculator on this page itemizes the whole thing in about a minute — free, no phone call needed. Prefer to talk? A dispatcher at (414) 279-5510 quotes the same number from the same pricing engine.
Call and the dispatcher gives you an arrival estimate for your exact spot, based on where the nearest available truck is. Traffic, weather and calls ahead of yours can move it, and the driver calls as they get close.
A running front- or rear-wheel-drive car can ride safely on a wheel-lift. AWD/4WD, low-clearance, exotic, EV, or non-running vehicles go on a flatbed so all four wheels are off the ground. Tell us what you drive and we send the right truck the first time.
Yes. AWD/4WD, low-clearance, and EV cars ride fully on a flatbed (or on wheel dollies) so the drivetrain stays protected. Tell dispatch your vehicle and we send the right truck.
Yes — we run true 24 hour towing: nights, weekends, and every holiday, with a live dispatcher answering every call. There is no evening or overnight surcharge — the same published rate applies at 3 a.m. as at 3 p.m., quoted before the truck rolls and never changed at drop-off.
Day to day they mean the same thing — “wrecker” is the older trade word for a tow truck, usually one with a boom and winch for recovery work. Our fleet runs both flatbeds (the whole car rides on a level deck) and wreckers/wheel-lifts (the car is lifted by its wheels). Ask for a tow truck or a wrecker and the same dispatcher sends whichever your vehicle actually needs.
Wherever you need — your repair shop, dealer, home, or another spot. Tell the dispatcher the drop-off when you call.
Yes — most of our trucks seat 1–2 passengers. Add ride-alongs in the quote and the price updates transparently. A larger group? Tell dispatch on the call and we’ll arrange it.
Yes, with dollies or winch loading. Tell the quote flow it won’t roll and the price includes that work up front — no on-site surprises.
Yes. Garages under 6.8 ft of clearance get a dedicated low-clearance dispatch — the dispatcher confirms the garage height on the call so the truck that arrives actually fits.
Many policies and motor clubs (AAA, Agero, Urgently, NSD, HONK) cover towing. We bill the provider directly where supported, or give you an itemized receipt for reimbursement — confirm the details with your provider and we’ll give you what you need.
Answers reviewed July 2026. Pricing model and hours are checked quarterly.
Jump back to the calculator — free, no phone call, and your quote reference (Q-XXXXXXXX) holds your place with dispatch.
A live Milwaukee dispatcher answers 24/7 — the right truck for your vehicle, an arrival estimate on the call across Milwaukee and Waukesha counties, and a flat price quoted before we hook up. No surprises.