Scores by category

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

Safety20#12,543/15,637
Economy70#4,628/15,631
Housing58#6,311/14,977
Health45#8,537/15,609
Healthcare46#8,375/15,650
Environment42#8,917/15,453
Education35#10,099/15,649
Infrastructure48#8,162/15,650
Community53#7,376/15,651
Leisure & amenities14#13,467/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Grass Lake, Michigan ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Jackson 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
93/100Michigan 25 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauJackson County value
Child care cost burden · low21.0%
92/100Michigan 25.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJackson County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low2.7%
87/100Michigan 6.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010High uncertainty
Mammography screening · high53.0%
85/100Michigan 49.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJackson County value
Natural hazard risk · low10.0
83/100Michigan 10.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencyJackson County value
Hot days · low6 days
82/100Michigan 5 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationJackson County value

Weaknesses

Depression · high27.9%
13/100Michigan 26.5%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.4 /10k
14/100Michigan 1.0 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsJackson County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,694 /100k
15/100Michigan 3,367 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJackson County value
Violent crime rate · high409 /100k
16/100Michigan 416 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationJackson County value
Time spent in the emergency room · high213 min
16/100Michigan 163 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesJackson County value
Pharmacies · low1.1 /10k
17/100Michigan 1.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsJackson County value

Trends

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

Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
24.7% (2015-2019) → 31.5% (2020-2024)
+6.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateWorsening
2.0% (2015-2019) → 6.1% (2020-2024)
+4.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$67,619 (2015-2019) → $80,938 (2020-2024)
+20%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
43.7% (2015-2019) → 40.0% (2020-2024)
−3.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Poverty rateWorsening
2.8% (2015-2019) → 5.6% (2020-2024)
+2.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Income inequality (Gini index)Worsening
0.379 (2015-2019) → 0.423 (2020-2024)
+12%5 yearsCensus table B19083US 0.482 → 0.483

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, Grass Lake, Michigan improved on 0 of 12 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Grass Lake, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	27.8 min2015-2019	29.1 min2020-2024	+1.3 min	Within the margin of error	33%
Bachelor's degree or higher	24.7%2015-2019	31.5%2020-2024	+6.8 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Broadband subscriptions	89.4%2015-2019	88.5%2020-2024	−0.9 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Effective property tax rate	1.66%2015-2019	1.52%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	45%
High school diploma or higher	96.2%2015-2019	96.9%2020-2024	+0.7 points	Within the margin of error	41%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	2.5×2020-2024	+0.2×	Within the margin of error	66%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3792015-2019	0.4232020-2024	+0.044	Within the margin of error	19%
Median household income	$67,6192015-2019	$80,9382020-2024	+20%	Within the margin of error	32%
Poverty rate	2.8%2015-2019	5.6%2020-2024	+2.8 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	28.2%2015-2019	27.9%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	58%
Rent-burdened households	43.7%2015-2019	40.0%2020-2024	−3.7 points	Within the margin of error	68%

“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 Grass Lake, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Grass Lake, 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, Grass Lake, Michigan itself moved −6.2 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

1,186 residents (±310)

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: 10–19 women (−3.9 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

1,186 residents (±310)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

White95%1,131
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino1.3%†15

Education

831 residents (±198)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

No high school diploma3.1%†26
High school or GED29%†239
Some college24%†

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

532 households (±122)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k19%†100
$25k–50k14%†74
$50k–75k14%†72
$75k–100k20%†106
$100k–150k18%†98
$150k–200k5.3%†28
$200k or more10%†54

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $50k–75k (−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 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

532 households (±122)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Own75%398
Rent25%†134

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 B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

130 households (±54)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $7505.4%†7
$750–1,00061%†79
$1,000–1,50020%†26

Home values

398 homes (±105)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $150k17%†69
$150k–250k53%†210
$250k–400k25%†100

Age of homes

571 homes (±128)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

2010 or later1.6%†9
2000–200912%†70
1980–199913%†74

Size of homes

571 homes (±128)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom6.3%†36
2 bedrooms33%†186

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

651 workers (±204)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone74%482
Carpool6.0%†39
Public transit0.0%0
Walk3.7%†24
Bike0.0%0
Work from home15%†97
Other1.4%†9

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+11.2 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 B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

554 workers (±172)

Grass Lake, Michigan
Michigan share

Under 15 min15%†84
15–29 min40%†220
30–44 min22%†122

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

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

Jackson County has 2,991 employer establishments, 187 for every 10,000 residents (0.75× the US rate of 248; 0.82× Michigan's), with 50,612 paid employees at an average annual pay of $57,806. The Census Bureau also counts 9,813 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,991; 9,813 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 187; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 50,612
Average annual pay: $57,806; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	272	17	0.82×About typical	4,049	$79,687	479
Restaurants and other eating places	213	13.3	0.73×Fewer than typical	4,266	$18,796	42
Specialty trade contractors	186	11.7	0.75×Fewer than typical	1,507	$73,345	750
Fabricated metal product manufacturing	103	6.5	4.04×More than typical	3,219	$58,275	32
Limited-service restaurants	96	6	0.75×Fewer than typical	1,943	$17,316	22
Lessors of real estate	93	5.8	0.47×Fewer than typical	406	$42,468	929
Religious organizations	91	5.7	1.03×About typical	622	$22,744	—
Full-service restaurants	86	5.4	0.70×Fewer than typical	1,970	$21,228	13
Offices of other health practitioners	85	5.3	0.88×About typical	563	$41,973	222
Building equipment contractors	83	5.2	0.86×About typical	779	$79,172	120
Offices of physicians	83	5.2	0.80×About typical	1,835	$114,869	65
Construction of buildings	81	5.1	0.67×Fewer than typical	299	$58,950	466

Rank places for an industry Open Jackson County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 159,607 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 $10.9K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Grass Lake, Michigan: $9.18 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $10.9K; +596% vs FY2025
Per resident: $9.18; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.5%; US 30%
Single offer: 3.3%; 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$10.5K97%
Food and Drug Administration$3703.4%

Top recipients

P & C INDUSTRIAL SUPPLIES, INCORPORATED$10.5K97%
COY LABORATORY PRODUCTS INC$3623.3%

Spending by fiscal year

4.8KFY2017
8.5KFY2018
8.2KFY2019
4.5KFY2020
3.6KFY2021
7.6KFY2022
10.1KFY2023
22.6KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$5,36149%
Audio and video equipment manufacturing · 3343$4,38740%
Navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments manufacturing · 3345$6125.6%
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$2762.5%
Other fabricated metal product manufacturing · 3329$1431.3%
Machine shops and screw, nut, and bolt manufacturing · 3327$58.68

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 Grass Lake, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Grass Lake, Michigan's figures are part of those of Jackson County, MI ($17.4M 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: Grass Lake is mostly in Jackson County.

See federal money in Jackson 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.

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

House

Tim WalbergR-MI-5 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 0.9%

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.

Jackson County48100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Jackson, MI46

Other cities and towns in Jackson 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/2634480

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends