City · Ottawa County, Michigan

Zeeland, Michigan

Zeeland is a city in Ottawa County, Michigan, part of the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI metro area. It has 5,665 residents. Zeeland, Michigan has a quality-of-life score of 60 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,272 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Michigan it ranks #122 of 444 cities and towns. It ranks best on average commute time (low), reading scores (high) and drug overdose deaths (low). It ranks worst on broadband subscriptions (low), high ozone days (high) and pharmacies (low).

60Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,272 of 15,651 cities and towns
Michigan: #122 of 444 in MI
Population: 5,665 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 1,893.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 2689260

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.

Safety75#3,951/15,637
Economy41#9,249/15,631
Housing11#13,335/14,977
Health72#4,445/15,609
Healthcare80#3,197/15,650
Environment49#7,914/15,453
Education79#3,216/15,649
Infrastructure44#8,713/15,650
Community81#2,979/15,651
Leisure & amenities18#12,902/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Average commute time · low13.7 min
97/100Michigan 24.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Reading scores · high3.46
97/100Michigan 2.99United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOttawa County value
Drug overdose deaths · low4.9 /100k
96/100Michigan 16.2 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOttawa County value
Voter turnout · high79.9%
95/100Michigan 74.6%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionOttawa County value
Hospital quality rating · high4.5
94/100Michigan 3.1United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesOttawa County value
Child care cost burden · low20.7%
93/100Michigan 25.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOttawa County value

Weaknesses

Broadband subscriptions · low78.8%
3/100Michigan 90.5%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
High ozone days · high12 days
5/100Michigan 3 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyOttawa County value
Pharmacies · low0.7 /10k
6/100Michigan 1.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsOttawa County value
Depression · high29.2%
8/100Michigan 26.5%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Grocery stores · low0.9 /10k
10/100Michigan 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsOttawa County value
Rent as share of income · high37.8%
11/100Michigan 30.2%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071

Trends

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

Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.9× (2015-2019) → 5.7× (2020-2024)
+96%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
New homes permittedWorsening
1.1 /1k (2021) → 0.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−83%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
54.9% (2015-2019) → 67.1% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
31.4% (2015-2019) → 37.8% (2020-2024)
+6.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Average commute timeImproving
17.5 min (2015-2019) → 13.7 min (2020-2024)
−21%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Poverty rateWorsening
7.9% (2015-2019) → 10.4% (2020-2024)
+2.5 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, Zeeland, Michigan improved on 0 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 9 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.

Declined2

Price / income+2.8×2.9× → 5.7×
Rent / income+6.4 points31.4% → 37.8%

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Zeeland, Michigan between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.5 min2015-2019	13.7 min2020-2024	−3.8 min	Within the margin of error	84%
Bachelor's degree or higher	28.2%2015-2019	29.6%2020-2024	+1.4 points	Within the margin of error	38%
Broadband subscriptions	78.2%2015-2019	78.8%2020-2024	+0.6 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Effective property tax rate	1.28%2015-2019	1.11%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	52%
High school diploma or higher	92.5%2015-2019	94.2%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Home price to income ratio	2.9×2015-2019	5.7×2020-2024	+2.8×	Declined	1%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4752015-2019	0.4332020-2024	−0.042	Within the margin of error	81%
Median household income	$51,5492015-2019	$52,6282020-2024	+2.1%	Within the margin of error	9%
Poverty rate	7.9%2015-2019	10.4%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Rent as share of income	31.4%2015-2019	37.8%2020-2024	+6.4 points	Declined	17%
Rent-burdened households	54.9%2015-2019	67.1%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	19%

“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 Zeeland, Michigan five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Zeeland, 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, Zeeland, Michigan itself moved −9.5 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

5,665 residents (±39)

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

2,396 households (±179)

Zeeland, Michigan
Michigan share

Under $25k15%†356
$25k–50k33%†801
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,396 households (±179)

Zeeland, Michigan
Michigan share

Own64%1,543
Rent36%853

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

2,725 workers (±255)

Zeeland, Michigan
Michigan share

Drive alone83%2,251
Carpool7.7%†209
Public transit0.0%†

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 Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, 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 Ottawa County, the county holding most of Zeeland's residents.

Ottawa County has 6,865 employer establishments, 226 for every 10,000 residents (0.91× the US rate of 248; 0.99× Michigan's), with 117,661 paid employees at an average annual pay of $54,248. The Census Bureau also counts 23,394 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 6,865; 23,394 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 226; US 248 · Michigan 228
Paid employees: 117,661
Average annual pay: $54,248; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	665	21.9	1.42×More than typical	4,606	$69,405	1,509
Ambulatory health care services	410	13.5	0.65×Fewer than typical	4,562	$63,587	978
Restaurants and other eating places	374	12.3	0.67×Fewer than typical	8,256	$21,629	66
Construction of buildings	338	11.1	1.47×More than typical	1,714	$67,899	839
Lessors of real estate	294	9.7	0.79×Fewer than typical	995	$56,831	2,831
Religious organizations	267	8.8	1.59×More than typical	2,345	$29,075	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	198	6.5	1.30×More than typical	1,419	$53,245	237
Building equipment contractors	194	6.4	1.06×About typical	1,828	$62,960	212
Services to buildings and dwellings	194	6.4	0.95×About typical	2,787	$38,303	1,445
Limited-service restaurants	185	6.1	0.76×Fewer than typical	3,872	$18,920	17
Building finishing contractors	177	5.8	1.53×More than typical	842	$59,973	654
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	176	5.8	1.84×More than typical	1,214	$79,951	235

Rank places for an industry Open Ottawa County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 303,565 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 $360.4K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Zeeland, Michigan: $63.61 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $360.4K; −37% vs FY2025
Per resident: $63.61; US $1,994
Sole-source: 43%; US 30%
Single offer: 4.3%; 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$196.2K54%
Department of the Air Force$135.7K38%
Department of the Army$10.7K3.0%
Federal Aviation Administration$6,3121.8%
National Aeronautics and Space Administration$5,0271.4%
Department of the Navy$3,3370.9%
U.S. Customs and Border Protection$2,8980.8%
Department of Veterans Affairs$1,2620.4%

Top recipients

WOODWARD FST, INC$221.4K61%
PLASCORE INC$66.9K19%
WESTERN MICHIGAN FLEET PARTS INC$22.7K6.3%
MILLERKNOLL INC$19.2K5.3%
FBC ENTERPRISES LLC$14K3.9%

Spending by fiscal year

1.2MFY2017
1.2MFY2018
2MFY2019
994.6KFY2020
767.6KFY2021
1MFY2022
583.1KFY2023
1.1M

Top industries (NAICS)

Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$232K64%
Fishing · 1141$58.2K16%
Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration equipment manufacturing · 3334$20.4K5.6%
Office furniture (including fixtures) manufacturing · 3372$12.9K3.6%
Other fabricated metal product manufacturing · 3329$11K3.0%
Facilities support services · 5612$6,312

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 Zeeland, Michigan, so they do not add up across cities.

Zeeland, Michigan's figures are part of those of Ottawa County, MI ($38.7M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.9% of that total.

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

See federal money in Ottawa 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.

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

House

Senate

Elissa Slotkin

County

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

Ottawa County87100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI80

Other cities and towns in Ottawa 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/2689260

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends