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Towns / Michigan

River Rouge, Michigan

River Rouge is a suburb of about 6,800 people in Wayne County, Michigan, in the Detroit area. It has lost about 5% of its people since 2020. A typical home costs about 1.6 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, Detroit, is about 8 miles away as the crow flies.

Suburb of Detroit

Population
6,814
down 5.1% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$65,100
Wayne County prices up 20% since 2022
Household income
$41,053
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Detroit area
100.3
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
5 miles
Wyandotte, MI
To Detroit
8 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 0.3% above the U.S. average in the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 1.6 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for River Rouge itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town4 public schools: 2 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byWyandotte Hospital and Medical Center in Wyandotte, about 5 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityDetroit is about 8 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 River Rouge 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.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

River Rouge runs into the built-up area around Detroit (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

Worth a closer look

River Rouge has lost about 5% of its people since 2020. A shrinking town can mean bargains, but visit Main Street on a weekday and ask what's closed lately.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$65,100U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 20%Wayne County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$839 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$41,053U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
57%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$1,580 a yearMichigan: $2,904
Homes built before 1940
49%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
1%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
100.3U.S. average = 100 (the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn 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 20% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area, not River Rouge 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
6,8142020: 7,182
Median age
34.4 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
13%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
24%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
7%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
3%U.S.: 6%

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
Manufacturing (20%); schools, health care and social services (16%); transportation, warehousing and utilities (12%)
Unemployment rate
11%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
26 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
8%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
40%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Wyandotte Hospital and Medical Center, Wyandotte, MI, about 5 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

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

4 public schools in River Rouge, run by River Rouge School District of the City of.

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
63%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
81%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
19°F
July average high
84°F
Days 90°F or hotter
17 a year
Nights at or below freezing
125 a year
Rain and melted snow
37.4 inches a year
Snow
54 inches a year
Elevation
577 feet

Weather stations: Dearborn #2 (6 miles away) and Wyandotte (5 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: Wyandotte Hospital and Medical Center, Dearborn, Detroit.

Wayne County is in a metro area of 1 million people or more (USDA rural-urban code 1, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • River Raisin National Battlefield Park28 miles
  • Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial46 miles

Read about River Rouge's history on Wikipedia.

Know River Rouge?

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

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.