Village · Van Buren County, Michigan

Paw Paw, Michigan

Paw Paw is a village in Van Buren County, Michigan. It has 3,289 residents. Paw Paw, Michigan has a quality-of-life score of 35 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,115 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Michigan it ranks #274 of 444 cities and towns. It ranks best on hospital quality rating (high), job growth (high) and public transit commuters (high). It ranks worst on high ozone days (high), depression (high) and median household income (low).

35Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,115 of 15,651 cities and towns
Michigan: #274 of 444 in MI
Population: 3,289 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 1,234.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 2662980

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety33#10,489/15,637
Economy16#13,070/15,631
Housing72#4,138/14,977
Health25#11,734/15,609
Healthcare33#10,446/15,650
Environment34#10,153/15,453
Education30#10,889/15,649
Infrastructure61#6,114/15,650
Community63#5,760/15,651
Leisure & amenities54#7,232/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Hospital quality rating · high5.0
98/100Michigan 3.1United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesVan Buren County value
Job growth · high3.5%
95/100Michigan 0.3%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataVan Buren County value
Public transit commuters · high4.6%
92/100Michigan 0.9%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301High uncertainty
Child care cost burden · low22.1%
88/100Michigan 25.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVan Buren County value
Drought exposure · low4%
88/100Michigan 13%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAVan Buren County value
New homes permitted · high9.1 /1k
87/100Michigan 2.2 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data

Weaknesses

High ozone days · high11 days
5/100Michigan 3 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyVan Buren County value
Depression · high30.0%
6/100Michigan 26.5%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Median household income · low$41,587
7/100Michigan $72,336United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Effective property tax rate · high1.75%
13/100Michigan 1.19%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Frequent mental distress · high20.8%
13/100Michigan 20.0%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Child poverty rate · high31.0%
14/100Michigan 17.7%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001

Trends

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

Child poverty rateWorsening
14.8% (2015-2019) → 31.0% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
41.0% (2015-2019) → 28.2% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.2× (2015-2019) → 3.6× (2020-2024)
+61%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
79.1% (2015-2019) → 88.8% (2020-2024)
+9.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
14.1% (2015-2019) → 21.9% (2020-2024)
+7.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
87.4% (2015-2019) → 95.1% (2020-2024)
+7.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

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, Paw Paw, Michigan improved on 1 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 11 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.

Improved1

Bachelor's++7.1 points8.3% → 15.4%

Declined1

Price / income+1.3×2.2× → 3.6×

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Paw Paw, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.1 min2015-2019	18.0 min2020-2024	−2.1 min	Within the margin of error	72%
Bachelor's degree or higher	8.3%2015-2019	15.4%2020-2024	+7.1 points	Improved	80%
Broadband subscriptions	79.1%2015-2019	88.8%2020-2024	+9.7 points	Within the margin of error	58%
Child poverty rate	14.8%2015-2019	31.0%2020-2024	+16 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Effective property tax rate	1.66%2015-2019	1.75%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	7%
High school diploma or higher	87.4%2015-2019	95.1%2020-2024	+7.7 points	Within the margin of error	91%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	3.6×2020-2024	+1.3×	Declined	12%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4572015-2019	0.4902020-2024	+0.032	Within the margin of error	25%
Median household income	$43,2262015-2019	$41,5872020-2024	−3.8%	Within the margin of error	5%
Poverty rate	14.1%2015-2019	21.9%2020-2024	+7.8 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Rent as share of income	28.5%2015-2019	25.4%2020-2024	−3.1 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Rent-burdened households	41.0%2015-2019	28.2%2020-2024	−13 points	Within the margin of error	87%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.0%2015-2019	6.4%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	54%

“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 Paw Paw, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Paw Paw, 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, Paw Paw, Michigan itself moved +2.4 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

3,289 residents (±35)

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

1,505 households (±157)

Paw Paw, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k31%†462
$25k–50k28%†416
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,505 households (±157)

Paw Paw, Michigan
Michigan share

Own49%734
Rent51%771

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

1,295 workers (±264)

Paw Paw, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone72%936
Carpool5.7%†74
Public transit4.6%†60

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 Van Buren County, the county holding most of Paw Paw's residents.

Van Buren County has 1,327 employer establishments, 175 for every 10,000 residents (0.70× the US rate of 248; 0.77× Michigan's), with 17,635 paid employees at an average annual pay of $55,017. The Census Bureau also counts 5,363 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,327; 5,363 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 175; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 17,635
Average annual pay: $55,017; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	125	16.5	0.90×About typical	1,898	$21,076	18
Specialty trade contractors	78	10.3	0.66×Fewer than typical	404	$66,681	551
Construction of buildings	60	7.9	1.05×About typical	156	$48,404	363
Full-service restaurants	60	7.9	1.03×About typical	919	$24,951	8
Limited-service restaurants	56	7.4	0.92×About typical	896	$17,385	5
Ambulatory health care services	55	7.2	0.35×Fewer than typical	522	$46,931	190
Religious organizations	53	7	1.26×More than typical	295	$21,420	—
Lessors of real estate	44	5.8	0.47×Fewer than typical	128	$34,063	476
Gasoline stations	41	5.4	1.67×More than typical	271	$25,657	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	37	4.9	0.72×Fewer than typical	165	$44,806	524
Automotive repair and maintenance	32	4.2	0.84×About typical	101	$44,574	70
Building equipment contractors	26	3.4	0.57×Fewer than typical	124	$59,484	89

Rank places for an industry Open Van Buren County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 75,909 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 $2,407 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Paw Paw, Michigan: $0.73 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $2,407; +1,000% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.73; US $1,995
Sole-source: 21%; 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

Rural Housing Service$1,89179%
U.S. Secret Service$51621%

Top recipients

KIMBALL INTERNATIONAL INC$1,89179%
CHARLES FELCYN F$51621%

Spending by fiscal year

172.8FY2017
804.4FY2018
183.3FY2019
194.4FY2021
200.3FY2022
206.3FY2023
83.3KFY2024
218.8FY2025

Top industries (NAICS)

Office furniture (including fixtures) manufacturing · 3372$1,89179%
Lessors of real estate · 5311$51621%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 Paw Paw, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Paw Paw, Michigan's figures are part of those of Van Buren County, MI ($28.5M 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: Paw Paw is mostly in Van Buren County.

See federal money in Van Buren 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.

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

House

Bill HuizengaR-MI-4 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 2.1%

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.

Van Buren County47100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Van Buren 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/2662980

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends