City · Gratiot County, Michigan

Alma, Michigan

Alma is a city in Gratiot County, Michigan, part of the Alma, MI metro area. It has 9,396 residents. Alma, Michigan has a quality-of-life score of 29 out of 100 (low), ranking #11,131 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Michigan it ranks #324 of 444 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), drinking water violations (low) and public libraries (high). It ranks worst on new business applications (low), pharmacies (low) and child poverty rate (high).

29Low

Quality-of-life score: #11,131 of 15,651 cities and towns
Michigan: #324 of 444 in MI
Population: 9,396 (2020-2024)
Land area: 6 mi²
Density: 1,561.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 2601540

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety59#6,399/15,637
Economy11#13,849/15,631
Housing46#8,066/14,977
Health35#10,181/15,609
Healthcare46#8,400/15,650
Environment35#10,025/15,453
Education37#9,891/15,649
Infrastructure65#5,546/15,650
Community34#10,255/15,651
Leisure & amenities5#14,915/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Alma, Michigan ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Gratiot County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Home price to income ratio · low2.2×
89/100Michigan 3.2×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Michigan 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGratiot County value
Public libraries · high1.5 /10k
85/100Michigan 0.7 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesGratiot County value
Average commute time · low19.4 min
85/100Michigan 24.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low3.3%
83/100Michigan 6.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Mammography screening · high52.0%
81/100Michigan 49.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGratiot County value

Weaknesses

New business applications · low6.8 /1k
2/100Michigan 15.0 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauGratiot County value
Pharmacies · low0.5 /10k
4/100Michigan 1.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGratiot County value
Child poverty rate · high40.1%
5/100Michigan 17.7%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Grocery stores · low0.7 /10k
5/100Michigan 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGratiot County value
Food environment index · low6.5
8/100Michigan 7.1United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGratiot County value
Depression · high29.1%
8/100Michigan 26.5%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
74.1% (2015-2019) → 92.6% (2020-2024)
+19 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$36,408 (2015-2019) → $53,307 (2020-2024)
+46%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
21.4% (2015-2019) → 28.0% (2020-2024)
+6.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateWorsening
34.7% (2015-2019) → 40.1% (2020-2024)
+5.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
55.7% (2015-2019) → 50.7% (2020-2024)
−5 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Poverty rateImproving
24.7% (2015-2019) → 21.7% (2020-2024)
−3 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Alma, Michigan improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 12 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Broadband+19 points74.1% → 92.6%
Household income+46%$36,408 → $53,307

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Alma, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.9 min2015-2019	19.4 min2020-2024	+1.5 min	Within the margin of error	31%
Bachelor's degree or higher	21.4%2015-2019	28.0%2020-2024	+6.6 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Broadband subscriptions	74.1%2015-2019	92.6%2020-2024	+19 points	Improved	88%
Child poverty rate	34.7%2015-2019	40.1%2020-2024	+5.5 points	Within the margin of error	19%
Effective property tax rate	1.95%2015-2019	1.73%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	61%
High school diploma or higher	94.8%2015-2019	95.1%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	2.2×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	85%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4532015-2019	0.4142020-2024	−0.039	Within the margin of error	79%
Median household income	$36,4082015-2019	$53,3072020-2024	+46%	Improved	81%
Poverty rate	24.7%2015-2019	21.7%2020-2024	−3 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Rent as share of income	32.9%2015-2019	30.2%2020-2024	−2.7 points	Within the margin of error	73%
Rent-burdened households	55.7%2015-2019	50.7%2020-2024	−5 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Unemployment rate	9.1%2015-2019	6.9%2020-2024	−2.1 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	5.1%2015-2019	3.3%2020-2024	−1.8 points	Within the margin of error	67%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Alma, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Alma, Michigan in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Alma, Michigan itself moved +12.2 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

9,396 residents (±21)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

3,545 households (±212)

Alma, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k21%†757
$25k–50k27%970
$50k–75k17%590

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

3,545 households (±212)

Alma, Michigan
Michigan share

Own66%2,337
Rent34%1,208

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+9.1 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

4,281 workers (±344)

Alma, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone72%3,100
Carpool5.7%†243
Public transit0.3%†11

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Alma, MI

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Gratiot County, the county holding most of Alma's residents.

Gratiot County has 725 employer establishments, 175 for every 10,000 residents (0.70× the US rate of 248; 0.77× Michigan's), with 10,633 paid employees at an average annual pay of $48,071. The Census Bureau also counts 2,353 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 725; 2,353 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 175; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 10,633
Average annual pay: $48,071; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Gratiot County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	57	13.8	0.66×Fewer than typical	525	$66,596	75
Restaurants and other eating places	49	11.8	0.64×Fewer than typical	798	$17,174	8
Specialty trade contractors	47	11.3	0.73×Fewer than typical	218	$48,220	191
Truck transportation	34	8.2	1.62×More than typical	223	$64,363	71
Religious organizations	33	8	1.44×More than typical	164	$21,061	—
Limited-service restaurants	25	6	0.75×Fewer than typical	469	$15,823	3
Offices of physicians	21	5.1	0.78×Fewer than typical	166	$114,795	9
Building equipment contractors	20	4.8	0.80×About typical	118	$50,305	25
Full-service restaurants	20	4.8	0.63×Fewer than typical	287	$20,136	4
Automotive repair and maintenance	17	4.1	0.82×About typical	132	$41,644	42
Services to buildings and dwellings	17	4.1	0.61×Fewer than typical	84	$41,417	165
Banks and credit unions	16	3.9	1.20×About typical	228	$53,789	—

Rank places for an industry Open Gratiot County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 41,422 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $232 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Alma, Michigan: $0.02 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $232
Per resident: $0.02; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of Veterans Affairs$232100%

Top recipients

FOOT CARE INC$232100%

Spending by fiscal year

1.3KFY2021
1.4KFY2023
232.3FY2026

What was bought

Health & medical$232100%

Top industries (NAICS)

Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$232100%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Alma, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Alma, Michigan's figures are part of those of Gratiot County, MI ($5.1M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Alma is mostly in Gratiot County.

See federal money in Gratiot County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Alma, Michigan is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

John R. MoolenaarR-MI-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 0.3%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Gratiot County40100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Alma, MI34

Other cities and towns in Gratiot County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/2601540

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends