City · Berrien County, Michigan

Benton Harbor, Michigan

Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County, Michigan, part of the Niles, MI metro area. It has 8,953 residents. Benton Harbor, Michigan has a quality-of-life score of 21 out of 100 (low), ranking #12,323 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Michigan it ranks #383 of 444 cities and towns. It ranks best on distance to an Amtrak station (low), average commute time (low) and drought exposure (low). It ranks worst on lack of reliable transportation (high), food insecurity (high) and adult obesity (high).

21Low

Quality-of-life score: #12,323 of 15,651 cities and towns
Michigan: #383 of 444 in MI
Population: 8,953 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 2,040.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 2607520

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 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.

Safety30#11,006/15,637
Economy2#15,307/15,631
Housing38#9,303/14,977
Health9#14,168/15,609
Healthcare51#7,688/15,650
Environment44#8,702/15,453
Education11#13,899/15,649
Infrastructure30#10,881/15,650
Community51#7,607/15,651
Leisure & amenities76#3,732/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Distance to an Amtrak station · low6 mi
94/100Michigan 25 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauBerrien County value
Average commute time · low18.1 min
88/100Michigan 24.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Drought exposure · low4%
87/100Michigan 13%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAABerrien County value
Natural hazard risk · low8.2
87/100Michigan 10.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencyBerrien County value
Child care cost burden · low22.8%
85/100Michigan 25.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBerrien County value
Time spent in the emergency room · low126 min
84/100Michigan 163 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesBerrien County value

Weaknesses

Lack of reliable transportation · high27.0%
0/100Michigan 8.8%United States 8.3%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · high52.6%
0/100Michigan 16.3%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Adult obesity · high56.0%
0/100Michigan 38.3%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Poverty rate · high40.1%
1/100Michigan 13.4%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Physical inactivity · high46.5%
1/100Michigan 25.0%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Adult smoking · high27.9%
1/100Michigan 17.1%United States 16.1%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.

PopulationFalling
9,843 (2015-2019) → 8,953 (2020-2024)
−9%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
0.4 /1k (2021) → 4.8 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+1,001%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
57.9% (2015-2019) → 78.6% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
66.1% (2015-2019) → 46.8% (2020-2024)
−19 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$21,916 (2015-2019) → $31,117 (2020-2024)
+42%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateWorsening
14.0% (2015-2019) → 21.6% (2020-2024)
+7.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

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, Benton Harbor, Michigan improved on 3 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 10 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.

Improved3

Child poverty−19 points66.1% → 46.8%
Broadband+21 points57.9% → 78.6%
Household income+42%$21,916 → $31,117

Declined1

Unemployment+7.6 points14.0% → 21.6%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Benton Harbor, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.3 min2015-2019	18.1 min2020-2024	+2.7 min	Within the margin of error	21%
Bachelor's degree or higher	8.1%2015-2019	7.4%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Broadband subscriptions	57.9%2015-2019	78.6%2020-2024	+21 points	Improved	91%
Child poverty rate	66.1%2015-2019	46.8%2020-2024	−19 points	Improved	93%
Effective property tax rate	1.52%2015-2019	1.08%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	87%
High school diploma or higher	73.8%2015-2019	80.0%2020-2024	+6.2 points	Within the margin of error	87%
Home price to income ratio	2.9×2015-2019	2.5×2020-2024	−0.4×	Within the margin of error	92%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4872015-2019	0.5162020-2024	+0.029	Within the margin of error	28%
Median household income	$21,9162015-2019	$31,1172020-2024	+42%	Improved	76%
Poverty rate	45.4%2015-2019	40.1%2020-2024	−5.3 points	Within the margin of error	82%
Rent as share of income	41.2%2015-2019	42.8%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	43%
Rent-burdened households	70.1%2015-2019	66.1%2020-2024	−4.1 points	Within the margin of error	69%
Unemployment rate	14.0%2015-2019	21.6%2020-2024	+7.6 points	Declined	1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.3%2015-2019	7.3%2020-2024	−3.1 points	Within the margin of error	77%

“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 Benton Harbor, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Benton Harbor, 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, Benton Harbor, Michigan itself moved +4.1 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

8,953 residents (±28)

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

3,624 households (±281)

Benton Harbor, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k42%1,526
$25k–50k34%1,234
$50k–75k12%†424

Homes

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

Owners and renters

3,624 households (±281)

Benton Harbor, Michigan
Michigan share

Own37%1,329
Rent63%2,295

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,981 workers (±276)

Benton Harbor, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone79%2,354
Carpool10%†299
Public transit0.8%†

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 Niles, 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 Berrien County, the county holding most of Benton Harbor's residents.

Berrien County has 3,561 employer establishments, 234 for every 10,000 residents (0.94× the US rate of 248; 1.02× Michigan's), with 52,794 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,811. The Census Bureau also counts 11,015 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,561; 11,015 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 234; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 52,794
Average annual pay: $53,811; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	290	19	1.04×About typical	4,900	$22,221	43
Ambulatory health care services	243	15.9	0.77×Fewer than typical	3,577	$60,346	483
Specialty trade contractors	184	12.1	0.78×Fewer than typical	1,103	$63,466	736
Lessors of real estate	148	9.7	0.79×Fewer than typical	456	$47,300	1,286
Full-service restaurants	135	8.9	1.15×About typical	2,389	$26,780	20
Limited-service restaurants	126	8.3	1.03×About typical	2,231	$17,678	20
Religious organizations	121	7.9	1.43×More than typical	1,021	$28,040	—
Construction of buildings	116	7.6	1.01×About typical	403	$56,682	472
Services to buildings and dwellings	104	6.8	1.01×About typical	575	$45,390	836
Building equipment contractors	88	5.8	0.96×About typical	673	$61,180	116
Offices of physicians	88	5.8	0.89×About typical	1,995	$71,791	69
Automotive repair and maintenance	84	5.5	1.09×About typical	397	$45,484	133

Rank places for an industry Open Berrien County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 152,384 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 $23.3K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Benton Harbor, Michigan: $2.60 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $23.3K; −90% vs FY2025
Per resident: $2.60; US $1,994
Sole-source: 62%; US 30%
Single offer: 2.0%; 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

Defense Logistics Agency$15.5K67%
Agricultural Marketing Service$7,74333%

Top recipients

US JACK CO$15.5K67%
SMP MARKETING, LLC$7,74333%

Spending by fiscal year

225.4KFY2017
19.3KFY2018
84.9KFY2019
84.1KFY2020
17KFY2021
32.7KFY2022
48.6KFY2023
39.4K

Top industries (NAICS)

Cutlery and handtool manufacturing · 3322$15.1K65%
Other food manufacturing · 3119$7,74333%
Engine, turbine, and power transmission equipment manufacturing · 3336$4622.0%

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 Benton Harbor, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Benton Harbor, Michigan's figures are part of those of Berrien County, MI ($26.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.1% of that total.

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

See federal money in Berrien 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.

Benton Harbor, Michigan is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Berrien County58100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Niles, MI59

Other cities and towns in Berrien 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/2607520

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends