Scores by category

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

Safety23#12,077/15,637
Economy1#15,424/15,631
Housing6#14,149/14,977
Health14#13,394/15,609
Healthcare18#12,885/15,650
Environment73#4,114/15,453
Education27#11,479/15,649
Infrastructure3#15,152/15,650
Community48#8,108/15,651
Leisure & amenities19#12,684/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Baldwin, Michigan ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Lake 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

Students per teacher · low10.1×
98/100Michigan 16.5×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsLake County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,634 /100k
94/100Michigan 3,367 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLake County value
Public libraries · high2.3 /10k
93/100Michigan 0.7 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesLake County value
Hot days · low5 days
86/100Michigan 5 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationLake County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Michigan 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLake County value
Dentists · high86 /100k
79/100Michigan 82 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLake County value

Weaknesses

Job growth · low-11.1%
0/100Michigan 0.3%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataLake County value
Grocery stores · low0.0 /10k
0/100Michigan 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLake County value
Median household income · low$25,250
1/100Michigan $72,336United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Average weekly wage · low$824
1/100Michigan $1,362United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLake County value
Primary care shortage · high20.0
1/100Michigan 8.3United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationLake County value
Frequent mental distress · high23.4%
2/100Michigan 20.0%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,149 (2015-2019) → 1,261 (2020-2024)
+9.7%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateImproving
79.8% (2015-2019) → 46.5% (2020-2024)
−33 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
48.9% (2015-2019) → 78.9% (2020-2024)
+30 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
52.7% (2015-2019) → 77.8% (2020-2024)
+25 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Unemployment rateImproving
25.8% (2015-2019) → 6.6% (2020-2024)
−19 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Poverty rateImproving
54.2% (2015-2019) → 38.9% (2020-2024)
−15 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, Baldwin, Michigan improved on 5 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 4 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.

Improved5

Child poverty−33 points79.8% → 46.5%
Poverty−15 points54.2% → 38.9%
Inequality−0.1340.514 → 0.380
Broadband+25 points52.7% → 77.8%
Household income+56%$16,146 → $25,250

Declined2

Rent burden+30 points48.9% → 78.9%
Rent / income+12 points29.8% → 42.3%

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Baldwin, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.6 min2015-2019	21.8 min2020-2024	+6.2 min	Within the margin of error	7%
Broadband subscriptions	52.7%2015-2019	77.8%2020-2024	+25 points	Improved	95%
Child poverty rate	79.8%2015-2019	46.5%2020-2024	−33 points	Improved	99%
Effective property tax rate	1.48%2015-2019	1.92%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	0%
High school diploma or higher	77.7%2015-2019	81.6%2020-2024	+3.9 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Home price to income ratio	3.8×2015-2019	4.2×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	57%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5142015-2019	0.3802020-2024	−0.134	Improved	98%
Median household income	$16,1462015-2019	$25,2502020-2024	+56%	Improved	89%
Poverty rate	54.2%2015-2019	38.9%2020-2024	−15 points	Improved	98%
Rent as share of income	29.8%2015-2019	42.3%2020-2024	+12 points	Declined	6%
Rent-burdened households	48.9%2015-2019	78.9%2020-2024	+30 points	Declined	3%

“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 Baldwin, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Baldwin, 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, Baldwin, Michigan itself moved −4.8 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

1,261 residents (±186)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 40–49 men (+10.3 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,261 residents (±186)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

White63%791
Black16%†207
Hispanic or Latino14%†177

Education

946 residents (±135)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

No high school diploma18%†174
High school or GED36%340
Some college30%†284

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

544 households (±112)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k49%†264
$25k–50k40%†218
$50k–75k3.9%†21
$75k–100k4.2%†23
$100k–150k2.4%†13
$150k–200k0.4%†2
$200k or more0.6%†3

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (+20.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

544 households (±112)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Own41%†224
Rent59%320

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Rent (−14.5 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

320 households (±78)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $75060%†193
$750–1,0005.3%†17
$1,000–1,50031%†99

Home values

224 homes (±91)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $150k85%†191
$150k–250k5.4%†12
$250k–400k6.3%†14

Age of homes

590 homes (±112)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

2010 or later1.7%†10
2000–200915%†86
1980–199926%†154

Size of homes

590 homes (±112)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Studio3.4%†20
1 bedroom32%†188
2 bedrooms16%†97

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

394 workers (±120)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone86%†340
Carpool9.1%†36
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike2.8%†11
Work from home1.8%†7
Other0.0%0

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

387 workers (±120)

Baldwin, Michigan
Michigan share

Under 15 min44%†170
15–29 min24%†94
30–44 min16%†60

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Lake County, the county holding most of Baldwin's residents.

Lake County has 176 employer establishments, 138 for every 10,000 residents (0.55× the US rate of 248; 0.60× Michigan's), with 1,192 paid employees at an average annual pay of $36,467. The Census Bureau also counts 753 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 176; 753 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 138; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 1,192
Average annual pay: $36,467; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	14	11	0.60×Fewer than typical	127	$15,087	—
Religious organizations	12	9.4	1.69×More than typical	32	$15,906	—
Full-service restaurants	11	8.6	1.12×About typical	105	$14,505	—
Specialty trade contractors	11	8.6	0.56×Fewer than typical	27	$63,370	83
Gasoline stations	10	7.8	2.42×More than typical	78	$25,423	—
Ambulatory health care services	8	6.3	0.30×Too few to compare	132	$58,750	24
Construction of buildings	8	6.3	0.83×Too few to compare	31	$60,097	57
General merchandise stores	7	5.5	3.10×Too few to compare	39	$25,487	4
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	6	4.7	1.77×Too few to compare	9	$53,111	6
Other amusement and recreation industries	6	4.7	1.94×Too few to compare	9	$53,111	6
RV parks and recreational camps	6	4.7	19.8×Too few to compare	4	$93,250	4
Automotive repair and maintenance	5	3.9	0.78×Too few to compare	10	$43,900	12

Rank places for an industry Open Lake County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 12,772 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 $1M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Baldwin, Michigan: $813 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1M; +206% vs FY2025
Per resident: $813; US $1,994
Sole-source: 99.9%; 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

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement$1M99.9%
Forest Service$1,1200.1%

Top recipients

THE GEO GROUP, INC.$1M99.9%
JOEL FYOCK$9880.1%
SUPERIOR IMAGE CLEANING SERVICES, LLC$1320.0%
KANOUSE OUTDOOR RESTORATION$00.0%
PEACOCK INDUSTRIES, INC.$00.0%

Spending by fiscal year

4.2KFY2017
4.2KFY2018
2.3KFY2019
2.2KFY2020
7.4KFY2021
4.5KFY2022
2.2KFY2023
2.3KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Investigation and security services · 5616$1M99.9%
Support activities for forestry · 1153$9880.1%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$1320.0%

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 Baldwin, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Baldwin, Michigan's figures are part of those of Lake County, MI ($92.2M in FY2026), never added to them: 1.1% of that total.

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

See federal money in Lake 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.

Baldwin, 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.

Lake County22100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Lake County

Largest first.

Luther303

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
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/2604940

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends