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Midland, Michigan

Midland is a small city of about 43,000 people in Midland County, Michigan. It's the county seat. Its population has held about steady since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.8 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Grand Rapids, is about 85 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
42,806
up 0.4% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$203,900
Midland County prices up 22% since 2022
Household income
$73,325
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Midland area
91.9
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
15 miles
Saginaw, MI
To Grand Rapids
85 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 8.1% below the U.S. average in the Midland metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood49 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 1.1 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 5 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town15 public schools: 9 elementary, 3 middle and 3 high schools.
  • A hospital close byHealthsource Saginaw in Saginaw, about 15 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityGrand Rapids is about 85 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Midland meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$203,900U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 22%Midland County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,048 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$73,325U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
67%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,257 a yearMichigan: $2,904
Homes built before 1940
9%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
7%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
91.9U.S. average = 100 (the Midland metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 22% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Midland metro area, not Midland alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
42,8062020: 42,646
Median age
39.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
20%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
21%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
45%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
7%U.S.: 6%
College students
6%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (26%); manufacturing (19%); professional and business services (12%)
Unemployment rate
4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
20 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
13%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
10%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Healthsource Saginaw, Saginaw, MI, about 15 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

15 public schools in Midland, run by Midland Public Schools and Bullock Creek School District.

Colleges in or next to town: Northwood University (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Michigan's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
78%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
91%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
17°F
July average high
82°F
Days 90°F or hotter
10 a year
Nights at or below freezing
136 a year
Rain and melted snow
32.1 inches a year
Snow
49 inches a year
Elevation
627 feet

Weather stations: Midland (2 miles away) and Saginaw Mbs Intl Ap (10 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Healthsource Saginaw, Flint, Grand Rapids.

Midland County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

25 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including Alden B. Dow House and Studio and the Herbert H. Dow House. Two are National Historic Landmarks, the country's highest honor for a historic place.

Campus life. Check Northwood University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Midland's history on Wikipedia.

Know Midland?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Sanford, MI761 people, 9 miles
  • Hemlock, MI (unincorporated)1,529 people, 14 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.