Village · Ontonagon County, Michigan

Ontonagon, Michigan

Ontonagon is a village in Ontonagon County, Michigan. It has 1,355 residents. Ontonagon, Michigan has a quality-of-life score of 58 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,503 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Michigan it ranks #129 of 444 cities and towns. It ranks best on preventable hospital stays (low), public libraries (high) and grocery stores (high). It ranks worst on average weekly wage (low), distance to an emergency room (high) and distance to an airport (high).

58Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,503 of 15,651 cities and towns
Michigan: #129 of 444 in MI
Population: 1,355 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 368.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 2660860

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 71 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.

Safety65#5,419/15,637
Economy24#11,887/15,631
Housing93#1,026/14,977
Health21#12,349/15,609
Healthcare13#13,590/15,650
Environment100#53/15,453
Education47#8,220/15,649
Infrastructure59#6,453/15,650
Community42#9,042/15,651
Leisure & amenities96#668/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Preventable hospital stays · low676 /100k
100/100Michigan 3,367 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOntonagon County value
Public libraries · high6.8 /10k
100/100Michigan 0.7 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesOntonagon County value
Grocery stores · high5.2 /10k
99/100Michigan 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsOntonagon County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low4.0 µg/m³
99/100Michigan 8.6 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyOntonagon County value
Restaurants and bars · high22.3 /10k
99/100Michigan 9.1 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsOntonagon County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Michigan 16.2 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOntonagon County value

Weaknesses

Average weekly wage · low$725
0/100Michigan $1,362United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsOntonagon County value
Distance to an emergency room · high36.0 mi
0/100Michigan 5.8 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesOntonagon County value
Distance to an airport · high174 mi
1/100Michigan 44 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauOntonagon County value
New business applications · low6.9 /1k
2/100Michigan 15.0 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauOntonagon County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high198 mi
3/100Michigan 25 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauOntonagon County value
Comfortable days · low21.9%
3/100Michigan 23.1%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationOntonagon County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
1,450 (2015-2019) → 1,355 (2020-2024)
−6.6%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateImproving
29.1% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−29 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
66.7% (2015-2019) → 92.6% (2020-2024)
+26 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
23.6% (2015-2019) → 36.1% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$36,311 (2015-2019) → $50,164 (2020-2024)
+38%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateImproving
15.1% (2015-2019) → 10.4% (2020-2024)
−4.8 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, Ontonagon, Michigan improved on 4 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 8 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.

Improved4

Property tax−0.7 points1.68% → 1.00%
Broadband+26 points66.7% → 92.6%
Rent / income−4.5 points26.2% → 21.7%
Household income+38%$36,311 → $50,164

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Ontonagon, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.1 min2015-2019	16.7 min2020-2024	−4.4 min	Within the margin of error	87%
Bachelor's degree or higher	17.5%2015-2019	18.7%2020-2024	+1.2 points	Within the margin of error	36%
Broadband subscriptions	66.7%2015-2019	92.6%2020-2024	+26 points	Improved	96%
Effective property tax rate	1.68%2015-2019	1.00%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Improved	96%
High school diploma or higher	91.5%2015-2019	94.0%2020-2024	+2.4 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Home price to income ratio	1.8×2015-2019	2.1×2020-2024	+0.3×	Within the margin of error	58%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4162015-2019	0.3852020-2024	−0.031	Within the margin of error	74%
Median household income	$36,3112015-2019	$50,1642020-2024	+38%	Improved	71%
Poverty rate	15.1%2015-2019	10.4%2020-2024	−4.8 points	Within the margin of error	79%
Rent as share of income	26.2%2015-2019	21.7%2020-2024	−4.5 points	Improved	81%
Rent-burdened households	23.6%2015-2019	36.1%2020-2024	+13 points	Within the margin of error	18%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.1%2015-2019	13.8%2020-2024	+3.6 points	Within the margin of error	16%

“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 Ontonagon, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Ontonagon, 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, Ontonagon, Michigan itself moved +12 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

1,355 residents (±145)

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

757 households (±81)

Ontonagon, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k23%173
$25k–50k27%203
$50k–75k20%†149

Homes

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

Owners and renters

757 households (±81)

Ontonagon, Michigan
Michigan share

Own67%506
Rent33%251

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−7.7 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

516 workers (±83)

Ontonagon, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone71%368
Carpool2.5%†13
Public transit0.4%†2

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 Ontonagon County, the county holding most of Ontonagon's residents.

Ontonagon County has 165 employer establishments, 281 for every 10,000 residents (1.13× the US rate of 248; 1.23× Michigan's), with 902 paid employees at an average annual pay of $33,547. The Census Bureau also counts 386 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 165; 386 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 281; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 902
Average annual pay: $33,547; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	12	20.4	1.11×About typical	107	$15,738	4
Specialty trade contractors	10	17	1.10×About typical	20	$57,750	29
Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)	9	15.3	12.6×Too few to compare	23	$10,000	—
Full-service restaurants	9	15.3	1.99×Too few to compare	83	$16,325	3
Construction of buildings	8	13.6	1.80×Too few to compare	28	$45,500	16
Traveler accommodation	7	11.9	6.60×Too few to compare	54	$18,037	15
Ambulatory health care services	6	10.2	0.49×Too few to compare	44	$34,318	8
Banks and credit unions	6	10.2	3.16×Too few to compare	38	$35,711	—
Gasoline stations	5	8.5	2.62×Too few to compare	38	$22,158	—
Religious organizations	5	8.5	1.53×Too few to compare	17	$8,882	—
Truck transportation	5	8.5	1.68×Too few to compare	4	$52,250	13
Automotive repair and maintenance	4	6.8	1.35×Too few to compare	12	$26,333	—

Rank places for an industry Open Ontonagon County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 5,880 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Ontonagon 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.

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

House

Jack BergmanR-MI-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 2.4%

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.

Ontonagon County61100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Ontonagon 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
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/2660860

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends