City · Wayne County, Michigan

Flat Rock, Michigan

Flat Rock is a city in Wayne County, Michigan, part of the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metro area. It has 10,340 residents. Flat Rock, Michigan has a quality-of-life score of 28 out of 100 (low), ranking #11,325 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Michigan it ranks #337 of 444 cities and towns. It ranks best on pharmacies (high), new business applications (high) and distance to an emergency room (low). It ranks worst on violent crime rate (high), preventable hospital stays (high) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (high).

28Low

Quality-of-life score: #11,325 of 15,651 cities and towns
Michigan: #337 of 444 in MI
Population: 10,340 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 1,574.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 2628360

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.

Safety4#15,019/15,637
Economy52#7,528/15,631
Housing53#7,099/14,977
Health28#11,250/15,609
Healthcare70#4,734/15,650
Environment8#14,175/15,453
Education19#12,634/15,649
Infrastructure50#7,839/15,650
Community54#7,197/15,651
Leisure & amenities36#9,951/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Pharmacies · high3.0 /10k
96/100Michigan 1.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWayne County value
New business applications · high22.3 /1k
94/100Michigan 15.0 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauWayne County value
Distance to an emergency room · low3.0 mi
93/100Michigan 5.8 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesWayne County value
Natural hazard risk · low4.5
92/100Michigan 10.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencyWayne County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low1.9%
92/100Michigan 6.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010High uncertainty
Distance to an Amtrak station · low7 mi
87/100Michigan 25 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauWayne County value

Weaknesses

Violent crime rate · high850 /100k
1/100Michigan 416 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationWayne County value
Preventable hospital stays · high4,880 /100k
2/100Michigan 3,367 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWayne County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.5 µg/m³
4/100Michigan 8.6 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWayne County value
Math scores · low2.52
5/100Michigan 2.85United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWayne County value
Homicide rate · high11.8 /100k
6/100Michigan 4.7 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataWayne County value
Reading scores · low2.64
6/100Michigan 2.99United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWayne County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
1.0 /1k (2021) → 0.1 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−90%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
17.1% (2015-2019) → 29.5% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
80.4% (2015-2019) → 90.6% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
47.5% (2015-2019) → 38.4% (2020-2024)
−9.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$57,080 (2015-2019) → $81,585 (2020-2024)
+43%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Child poverty rateImproving
20.1% (2015-2019) → 14.0% (2020-2024)
−6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%

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, Flat Rock, Michigan improved on 3 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 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

Bachelor's++12 points17.1% → 29.5%
Household income+43%$57,080 → $81,585
Broadband+10 points80.4% → 90.6%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Flat Rock, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.6 min2015-2019	29.0 min2020-2024	+3.3 min	Within the margin of error	17%
Bachelor's degree or higher	17.1%2015-2019	29.5%2020-2024	+12 points	Improved	94%
Broadband subscriptions	80.4%2015-2019	90.6%2020-2024	+10 points	Improved	61%
Child poverty rate	20.1%2015-2019	14.0%2020-2024	−6 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Effective property tax rate	2.01%2015-2019	1.85%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	48%
High school diploma or higher	91.1%2015-2019	92.0%2020-2024	+0.9 points	Within the margin of error	45%
Home price to income ratio	2.6×2015-2019	2.8×2020-2024	+0.2×	Within the margin of error	70%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4212015-2019	0.4502020-2024	+0.029	Within the margin of error	28%
Median household income	$57,0802015-2019	$81,5852020-2024	+43%	Improved	78%
Poverty rate	13.4%2015-2019	10.3%2020-2024	−3 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Rent as share of income	29.2%2015-2019	23.7%2020-2024	−5.5 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Rent-burdened households	47.5%2015-2019	38.4%2020-2024	−9.1 points	Within the margin of error	81%
Unemployment rate	5.2%2015-2019	7.3%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	15%

“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 Flat Rock, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Flat Rock, 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, Flat Rock, Michigan itself moved +6.8 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

10,340 residents (±59)

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

3,924 households (±270)

Flat Rock, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k15%†584
$25k–50k17%671
$50k–75k14%†532

Homes

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

Owners and renters

3,924 households (±270)

Flat Rock, Michigan
Michigan share

Own83%3,263
Rent17%661

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+9.0 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

4,981 workers (±361)

Flat Rock, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone79%3,914
Carpool11%†535
Public transit0.0%0

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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, 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 Wayne County, the county holding most of Flat Rock's residents.

Wayne County has 33,699 employer establishments, 192 for every 10,000 residents (0.77× the US rate of 248; 0.84× Michigan's), with 665,558 paid employees at an average annual pay of $70,068. The Census Bureau also counts 169,690 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 33,699; 169,690 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 192; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 665,558
Average annual pay: $70,068; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	2,972	16.9	0.92×About typical	50,464	$22,311	1,158
Ambulatory health care services	2,904	16.5	0.79×Fewer than typical	40,789	$67,825	9,578
Truck transportation	1,604	9.1	1.80×More than typical	12,438	$59,677	7,358
Limited-service restaurants	1,496	8.5	1.06×About typical	24,633	$20,538	410
Specialty trade contractors	1,391	7.9	0.51×Fewer than typical	14,302	$81,031	8,732
Full-service restaurants	1,181	6.7	0.87×About typical	22,687	$24,721	456
Automotive repair and maintenance	1,108	6.3	1.25×More than typical	5,177	$46,087	2,249
Offices of physicians	1,050	6	0.92×About typical	15,809	$85,878	1,010
Lessors of real estate	1,016	5.8	0.47×Fewer than typical	5,220	$65,449	11,935
Religious organizations	766	4.4	0.79×Fewer than typical	5,720	$26,789	—
Gasoline stations	758	4.3	1.33×More than typical	3,260	$24,940	163
Construction of buildings	729	4.1	0.55×Fewer than typical	5,731	$87,152	4,634

Rank places for an industry Open Wayne County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 1,758,381 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 -$1,446 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Flat Rock, Michigan: -$0.14 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$1,446; −154% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$0.14; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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. Fish and Wildlife Service$1,5000.0%
U.S. Customs and Border Protection$5690.0%

Top recipients

DAMARK MARINE SPECIALTIES INC$1,5000.0%
ELIZAROV CONSULTING GROUP LLC$5690.0%
PLEXUS-AYUDA JOINT VENTURE LLC-$3,5140.0%

Spending by fiscal year

35.2KFY2017
40.6KFY2018
1.8KFY2019
-1.5KFY2020
69.7KFY2021
392.7KFY2022
-908.9FY2023
62.2KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Personal and household goods repair and maintenance · 8114$1,5000.0%
Other miscellaneous manufacturing · 3399$5690.0%

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 Flat Rock, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Flat Rock, Michigan's figures are part of those of Wayne County, MI and Monroe County, MI ($1.7B 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: Flat Rock is mostly in Wayne County.

See federal money in Wayne 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.

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

House

County

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

Wayne County27100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI61

Other cities and towns in Wayne 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/2628360

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends