Pictured Rocks, Bridalveil Falls, MichiganPhoto: National Park Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Downtown in Oakland County, MichiganPhoto: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Courthouse in Wayne County, MichiganPhoto: Christopher L. Riley, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cost of living in Michigan

Rent, income, home value and property tax for Michigan, home to 10.1M people, then the same for each of its 83 counties. Every figure is the published one, with its source named.

Median rent: $1,129; Census ACS, B25064, monthly
Median household income: $72,875; Census ACS, B19013, yearly
Median home value: $231,600; Census ACS, B25077
Median property tax bill: $2,904; Census ACS, B25103, yearly, current owners
Mean commute: 24 min; Census ACS, DP03, one way
Unemployment: 5.7%; Census ACS, DP03

Michigan's own published state rows, never an average of its counties. Prices overall run 4% below the national average (BEA regional price parity, 2024).

Census ACS 2024 five-year estimates, checked November 2026.

The three most populous counties in Michigan

These are the most populous places in Michigan, not a match to you. Set what matters to you on Find your fit and this becomes your three closest matches here. Made-up answers work too. This is a tool, not a survey.

Wayne County
Population
1.77M
Rent
$1,132
Household income
$60,539
Prop. tax (yearly)
$2,904
Plan
Oakland County
Population
1.28M
Rent
$1,376
Household income
$97,760
Prop. tax (yearly)
$4,371
Plan
Macomb County
Population
880K
Rent
$1,211
Household income
$77,837
Prop. tax (yearly)
$3,404
Plan

Michigan, worth the trip

Admitted to the Union on January 26, 1837, as the 26th state. The French founded Sault Sainte Marie in 1668, the oldest European settlement in Michigan. Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac established Detroit in 1701 as a fur-trading center and administrative post.

Isle Royale National Park
An isolated island wilderness in Lake Superior for backpackers, hikers, boaters, paddlers and divers.
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Sandstone cliffs, beaches, waterfalls and sand dunes along the Lake Superior shore.
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
Sand beaches, bluffs 450 feet above Lake Michigan, inland lakes, an island lighthouse and old farmsteads.

History: Encyclopaedia Britannica. Each place links to the page of the agency that looks after it.

Property tax in Michigan

Current owners in Michigan pay a median 1.25% of home value a year in property tax. Example: $2,904 a year, the median bill. By county, the median bill runs from $1,097 in Luce County to $5,678 in Washtenaw County. These are bills that current owners pay, as the Census measures them. Each county's own figure is in the table below.

A buyer in Michigan should expect a higher bill than these: the taxable value is reset to the state equalized value the year after the home changes hands. Source: Michigan Department of Treasury, changes in ownership and uncapping.

Health in Michigan

Life expectancy: 76.2 yrs; County Health Rankings, from CDC NCHS vital statistics
No health insurance: 5.5%; County Health Rankings, from Census SAHIE, people under 65
Poor or fair health: 16.3%; County Health Rankings, from CDC BRFSS. Modeled, not counted
Injury deaths per 100K people: 86; County Health Rankings, from CDC NCHS, counted deaths

Each is the figure County Health Rankings publishes for Michigan as a whole, never an average of its counties. Each county's own health readings are on its page.

Natural hazards in Michigan

Expected yearly loss, statewide: $2.9B; All natural hazards, an average year. Larger states lose more
Building loss rate: $0.95; Per $1,000 of building value, each year. Fair to compare between states
Costliest hazard: Inland flooding; $1.5B of the expected yearly loss, the largest share of any hazard FEMA assesses
Air quality: —; The EPA publishes air quality by county and metro area, never by state. It is on each county's page

FEMA publishes a risk score for counties and none for states, so none is shown here. Each county's score is on its own page.

New homes permitted in Michigan

Permitted in 2025

23,075homes

Per 1,000 residents

2.3

Single-family · larger buildings

15,566 · 7,509

20K2020
22K2021
22K2022
21K2023
22K2024
23K2025

Michigan approved permits for 23,075 new homes in 2025. That is about 2.3 homes for every 1,000 people. 15,566 were single-family houses, and 7,509 were in buildings with two or more homes. From 2020 to 2025 the yearly count stayed between 19,735 and 23,075.

41st of the 50 states and DC by homes permitted per 1,000 residents in 2025.

A permit lets a home be built. It does not mean the home is finished. Some offices did not report, so part of this figure is a Census estimate. The offices that did report account for 19,826. Source: US Census Building Permits Survey, annual 2025 data.

Side by side

Wayne County, MI is the largest county here. Set it beside another place, reading by reading.

The largest counties in Michigan

By population, from the Census release named below. Each opens its own page.

All 83 counties in Michigan

Each has its published readings on its own page. Press a column to sort by it. Pick one, or open the map to see them shaded side by side.


Alcona County	$867	$54,993	$162,800	$1,341	10.4K	48
Alger County	$714	$61,286	$176,200	$1,656	8,762	32
Allegan County	$1,100	$83,283	$267,100	$2,884	121K	399
Alpena County	$673	$53,950	$153,900	$1,639	28.9K	72
Antrim County	$902	$72,054	$255,500	$2,157	24.1K	105
Arenac County	$761	$58,811	$150,600	$1,707	15.1K	43
Baraga County	$616	$55,327	$138,100	$1,679	8,191	12
Barry County	$972	$77,500	$264,100	$2,769	63.4K	157
Bay County	$860	$61,763	$152,200	$2,271	103K	67
Benzie County	$1,026	$74,834	$285,700	$2,262	18.3K	136
Berrien County	$942	$65,425	$224,300	$2,429	153K	372
Branch County	$959	$63,724	$162,500	$1,879	45.3K	44
Calhoun County	$968	$63,177	$162,800	$2,368	134K	120
Cass County	$916	$70,443	$218,000	$2,116	51.5K	140
Charlevoix County	$949	$76,531	$276,800	$2,493	26.1K	111
Cheboygan County	$773	$62,875	$192,500	$1,704	25.9K	74
Chippewa County	$797	$62,217	$161,900	$2,038	36.3K	86
Clare County	$765	$49,384	$133,800	$1,489	31.2K	23
Clinton County	$1,092	$88,210	$259,500	$3,185	79.6K	197
Crawford County	$862	$60,392	$163,000	$1,734	13.4K	27
Delta County	$692	$57,809	$157,100	$1,771	36.8K	58
Dickinson County	$797	$65,156	$153,300	$1,940	26K	46
Eaton County	$1,092	$79,597	$216,900	$3,067	109K	106
Emmet County	$1,112	$78,112	$315,700	$2,634	34.1K	135
Genesee County	$989	$62,281	$182,400	$2,487	403K	444
Gladwin County	$690	$55,349	$162,300	$1,867	25.7K	93
Gogebic County	$623	$52,732	$107,200	$1,535	14.3K	23
Grand Traverse County	$1,288	$81,647	$339,400	$3,010	96.2K	475
Gratiot County	$834	$63,556	$147,500	$1,826	41.4K	48
Hillsdale County	$832	$64,242	$176,100	$1,738	45.7K	99
Houghton County	$840	$58,899	$159,900	$1,858	37.7K	170
Huron County	$788	$58,870	$154,300	$1,829	31.1K	69
Ingham County	$1,084	$65,526	$198,800	$3,640	284K	558
Ionia County	$884	$75,611	$198,500	$2,237	66.6K	100
Iosco County	$719	$50,066	$142,200	$1,359	25.3K	47
Iron County	$716	$55,940	$109,100	$1,467	11.7K	161
Isabella County	$913	$55,237	$170,400	$2,276	64.6K	90
Jackson County	$985	$66,073	$193,700	$2,432	160K	303
Kalamazoo County	$1,093	$72,532	$241,800	$3,498	262K	487
Kalkaska County	$853	$68,578	$188,900	$1,646	18.2K	38
Kent County	$1,243	$82,631	$289,900	$3,217	663K	2,398
Keweenaw County	$688	$52,583	$169,800	—	2,133	6
Lake County	$875	$50,805	$133,900	$1,456	12.6K	30
Lapeer County	$988	$77,306	$239,000	$2,202	88.8K	179
Leelanau County	$1,228	$99,422	$458,400	$3,118	22.7K	159
Lenawee County	$987	$70,518	$196,800	$2,492	98.4K	184
Livingston County	$1,287	$103,039	$356,800	$3,454	196K	531
Luce County	$675	$54,893	$112,000	$1,097	6,271	none
Mackinac County	$760	$63,909	$174,500	$1,863	11K	45
Macomb County	$1,211	$77,837	$243,900	$3,404	880K	1,931
Manistee County	$842	$63,516	$182,200	$1,898	25.4K	132
Marquette County	$949	$65,429	$216,500	$2,109	67.1K	106
Mason County	$896	$64,748	$219,600	$2,334	29.2K	66
Mecosta County	$934	$60,951	$178,900	$1,778	41.2K	99
Menominee County	$692	$56,435	$151,800	$1,537	23.2K	28
Midland County	$1,016	$77,705	$195,400	$2,875	83.8K	128
Missaukee County	$891	$66,194	$170,400	$1,675	15.2K	35
Monroe County	$1,059	$77,335	$228,900	$2,648	156K	191
Montcalm County	$869	$67,344	$185,500	$1,876	67.8K	201
Montmorency County	$686	$49,756	$158,600	$1,364	9,516	none
Muskegon County	$1,028	$65,024	$198,300	$2,348	176K	451
Newaygo County	$904	$63,304	$186,700	$2,055	50.8K	111
Oakland County	$1,376	$97,760	$343,600	$4,371	1.28M	2,023
Oceana County	$759	$62,417	$190,100	$1,914	26.9K	136
Ogemaw County	$823	$54,666	$154,900	$1,464	20.9K	62
Ontonagon County	$540	$54,398	$111,700	$1,294	5,850	10
Osceola County	$807	$58,267	$155,400	$1,584	23.2K	none
Oscoda County	$681	$49,515	$125,500	$1,177	8,425	24
Otsego County	$1,008	$68,183	$219,700	$1,755	25.6K	25
Ottawa County	$1,211	$90,502	$323,400	$3,313	301K	1,411
Presque Isle County	$683	$59,321	$151,300	$1,432	13.2K	50
Roscommon County	$816	$55,246	$158,700	$1,604	23.7K	75
Saginaw County	$947	$60,622	$152,800	$2,284	189K	210
Sanilac County	$807	$58,863	$168,300	$1,520	40.5K	74
Schoolcraft County	$705	$56,782	$141,800	$1,407	8,128	12
Shiawassee County	$899	$67,404	$171,600	$2,251	68K	71
St. Clair County	$1,029	$71,270	$224,600	$2,562	160K	219
St. Joseph County	$849	$66,425	$178,300	$1,959	61K	240
Tuscola County	$819	$63,811	$149,500	$1,812	53K	61
Van Buren County	$870	$68,114	$206,500	$2,536	75.8K	210
Washtenaw County	$1,463	$89,180	$374,100	$5,678	370K	1,088
Wayne County	$1,132	$60,539	$178,500	$2,904	1.77M	3,922
Wexford County	$897	$61,085	$170,400	$1,927	34.1K	191

Household income, home value and population are on each county's own page, and in this table on a wider screen.

Where these numbers come from

Each reading is the published figure, not an estimate. A dash means the source did not publish one, or published one too uncertain to print.

State figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 20245-year estimates, the state's own row (tables B25064, B19013, B25077, B25103, B01003, DP03).
County figures: the same survey, each county's own row, as on every county page.
Price level: Bureau of Economic Analysis, regional price parities, 2024, all items, state-level.
Health: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025, University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, the state's own row. Poor or fair health is a modeled estimate from CDC survey data. The other three are counted or calculated.
Natural hazards: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025, state table, expected annual loss. This product uses FEMA data but is not endorsed by FEMA.
Air quality has no state figure: the EPA publishes it by county and metro area only.
Photographs: Wikimedia Commons and the county photo feed, each credited to its photographer under its own licence, beneath the picture.

What to do with these numbers

Every number here is public. The site adds your side of it: Michigan next to your own state, by what you value.

See Michigan beside your own state
Find your fit puts it next to where you live and the states next door, by what matters to you. Made-up answers are fine, since this is a tool, not a survey. No account needed.
Find your fit
Pick a county here and make it your target
The three counties above each carry Set as target. From there the Journey lays out the runway and the steps. An account keeps it private and yours across devices.
See the three counties

Michigan at a glance

The three most populous counties in Michigan

Wayne County

Oakland County

Macomb County