Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US metro and micro areas.

Safety23#715/924
Economy18#759/925
Housing40#551/925
Health36#594/925
Healthcare89#105/923
Environment31#632/917
Education54#429/925
Infrastructure39#563/925
Community45#512/925
Leisure & amenities35#597/925

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Saginaw, MI metro area ranks highest and lowest among US metro and micro areas (score = percentile, 100 = best).

Strengths

Cost of buying a home today · low23.2%
94/100Michigan 28.4%United States 34.1%Aug 2026Zillow Research
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low5.5%
90/100Michigan 6.2%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Suicide rate · low12.8 /100k
88/100Michigan 14.5 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
Dentists · high83 /100k
86/100Michigan 82 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
Drought exposure · low7%
86/100Michigan 13%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAAggregated from counties
Home price to income ratio · low2.5×
85/100Michigan 3.2×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077

Weaknesses

Violent crime rate · high784 /100k
2/100Michigan 416 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationAggregated from counties
Unemployment rate · high6.5%
3/100Michigan 5.2%United States 4.3%2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPartial year
Child poverty rate · high27.2%
10/100Michigan 17.7%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Rent as share of income · high32.7%
11/100Michigan 30.2%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Comfortable days · low23.3%
12/100Michigan 23.1%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationAggregated from counties
Rent-burdened households · high55.0%
12/100Michigan 50.4%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070

Trends

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

Child care cost burdenImproving
46.8% (2020 & 2021) → 29.3% (2023 & 2024)
−17 pts3 yearsUS 24.5% → 27.9%
Access to exercise opportunitiesImproving
55.4% (2010 & 2021) → 68.3% (2022 & 2024)
+13 pts3 yearsUS 79.8% → 84.5%
Drought exposureImproving
20% (2021) → 7% (Oct 2025–Sep 2026)
−13 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
Drug overdose deathsImproving
36.9 /100k (2021) → 13.8 /100k (Mar 2025–Feb 2026)
−63%5 yearsUS 30.8 /100k → 18.4 /100k
Homicide rateImproving
16.9 /100k (2021) → 6.9 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−59%5 yearsUS 7.8 /100k → 4.8 /100k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
78.7% (2015-2019) → 89.0% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%

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, Saginaw, MI metro area improved on 13 of 32 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 9 moved within the margin of error and 7 barely changed.

Earlier period
Latest period
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among metro and micro areas: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts. Periods differ by measure (most compare 2015-2019 with 2020-2024); each row names its own in its tooltip and in the table.

Improved13

Firearm deaths−38%20.5 /100k → 12.8 /100k
Overdose deaths−58%32.7 /100k → 13.8 /100k
Homicides−50%13.7 /100k → 6.9 /100k
Restaurants+7.6%8.3 /10k → 9.0 /10k
Unemployment−3.8 points10.3% → 6.5%

Declined3

Pharmacies−22%2.1 /10k → 1.6 /10k
Grocery stores−6.3%1.4 /10k → 1.3 /10k
Price / income+0.4×2.1× → 2.5×

All 32 measures

Change of every measure of Saginaw, MI metro area between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Arts, entertainment and recreation	2.9 /10k2020	3.1 /10k2025	+8.5%	Improved	49%
Average commute time	22.2 min2015-2019	22.4 min2020-2024	+0.2 min	Within the margin of error	57%
Average weekly wage	$9692020	$1,1732025	+21%	Improved	30%
Bachelor's degree or higher	20.8%2015-2019	24.4%2020-2024	+3.5 points	Improved	68%
Broadband subscriptions	78.7%2015-2019	89.0%2020-2024	+10 points	Improved	65%
Child poverty rate	25.8%2015-2019	27.2%2020-2024	+1.4 points	Within the margin of error	12%
Distance to an airport	83 mi2020	83 mi2025	0 mi	Little change	50%
Drug overdose deaths	32.7 /100k2020	13.8 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026	−58%	Improved	89%
Effective property tax rate	1.47%2015-2019	1.34%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Little change	52%
Firearm deaths	20.5 /100k2020	12.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−38%	Improved	96%
Grocery stores	1.4 /10k2020	1.3 /10k2025	−6.3%	Declined	31%
Gyms and fitness centers	0.5 /10k2020	0.6 /10k2025	+11%	Improved	60%
High school diploma or higher	89.4%2015-2019	91.6%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	65%
Home price to income ratio	2.1×2015-2019	2.5×2020-2024	+0.4×	Declined	54%
Homicide rate	13.7 /100k2020	6.9 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−50%	Improved	77%
Income adjusted for local prices	$45,3072019	$57,9812024	+28%	Improved	22%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4772015-2019	0.4682020-2024	−0.009	Within the margin of error	76%
Median household income	$48,0002015-2019	$60,6222020-2024	+26%	Improved	47%
New business applications	10.0 /1k2020	11.2 /1k2025	+12%	Improved	10%
Pharmacies	2.1 /10k2020	1.6 /10k2025	−22%	Declined	15%
Poverty rate	18.0%2015-2019	18.2%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Property crime rate	1,317 /100k2020	1,365 /100k2025	+3.6%	Little change	5%
Public libraries	0.7 /10k2019	0.7 /10k2024	+1.4%	Little change	74%
Public transit commuters	0.5%2015-2019	0.3%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Rent as share of income	31.8%2015-2019	32.7%2020-2024	+0.9 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Rent-burdened households	53.5%2015-2019	55.0%2020-2024	+1.5 points	Within the margin of error	45%
Restaurants and bars	8.3 /10k2020	9.0 /10k2025	+7.6%	Improved	73%
Suicide rate	13.2 /100k2020	12.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−3%	Little change	67%
Traffic deaths	10.7 /100k2015-2019	10.7 /100k2020-2024	−0.3%	Little change	63%
Unemployment rate	10.3%2020	6.5%2025	−3.8 points	Improved	75%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	5.5%2015-2019	5.5%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	44%
Violent crime rate	802 /100k2020	784 /100k2025	−2.2%	Little change	29%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 708 metro and micro areas that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: Regional Economic Accounts; Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; Mapping Injury, Overdose, and Violence; American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates; Business Formation Statistics; Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master files; Public Libraries Survey; Fatality Analysis Reporting System; Distance to airports and intercity rail. 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 925 metro and micro areas 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.

Metro and micro areas like Saginaw, MI metro area five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Saginaw, MI metro area 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, Saginaw, MI metro area itself moved +0.8 points in standing on average over the same 30 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

188,665 residents

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

77,958 households (±704)

Saginaw, MI metro area
United States share

Under $25k20%15,452
$25k–50k22%16,823
$50k–75k19%14,522

Homes

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

Owners and renters

77,958 households (±704)

Saginaw, MI metro area
United States share

Own74%57,770
Rent26%20,188

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+2.8 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

80,478 workers (±1,272)

Saginaw, MI metro area
United States share

Drive alone78%62,514
Carpool8.7%6,995
Public transit0.3%†250

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The 10 largest occupations in Saginaw, MI employ 20,320 people. 10 pay a median below the US median.

Above the US median
Below the US median

The largest occupations in Saginaw, MI by employment, with median annual pay and how it compares with the United States
Occupation	Jobs	Median pay	vs USCompared with the US	Concentration
Retail Salespersons3,410 jobs	3,410	$31,210US $35,410	−12%	1.7×
Registered Nurses2,570 jobs	2,570	$95,160US $97,550	−2%	1.48×
Customer Service Representatives2,320 jobs	2,320	$36,150US $44,770	−19%	1.73×
Cashiers2,000 jobs	2,000	$29,300US $32,880	−11%	1.26×
Fast Food and Counter Workers1,940 jobs	1,940	$28,280US $31,200	−9%	0.98×
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators1,910 jobs	1,910	$42,610US $44,650	−5%	2.65×
Office Clerks, General1,600 jobs	1,600	$43,610US $45,010	−3%	1.27×
Home Health and Personal Care Aides1,570 jobs	1,570	$34,060US $35,800	−5%	0.71×
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners1,520 jobs	1,520	$34,720US $36,840	−6%	1.34×
General and Operations Managers1,480 jobs	1,480	$81,950US $105,770	−23%	0.82×

Look up any occupation

Search more than 800 occupations and see what they pay in Saginaw, MI.

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025-05 (all industries and ownerships) bls.gov/oes

Reference period: 2025-05. BLS publishes metro areas, states and the nation (not counties or cities), so a county or city page shows its metro area.
Pay is not adjusted for the cost of living, so a higher median does not mean more purchasing power.
BLS caps the highest wages it publishes: where a figure is shown as “or more”, the real value is at least that much.
Some occupations (teachers, performers) are published by the hour or school year and shown here as an annual figure.

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.

Saginaw, MI has 4,092 employer establishments, 218 for every 10,000 residents (0.88× the US rate of 248), with 77,361 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,420. The Census Bureau also counts 12,027 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,092; 12,027 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 218; US 248
Paid employees: 77,361
Average annual pay: $53,420; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	410	21.8	1.05×About typical	5,868	$62,732	633
Restaurants and other eating places	314	16.7	0.91×About typical	7,268	$19,368	57
Specialty trade contractors	228	12.1	0.78×Fewer than typical	1,987	$78,836	750
Limited-service restaurants	161	8.6	1.07×About typical	3,510	$16,199	25
Offices of physicians	144	7.7	1.18×About typical	1,695	$81,047	117
Religious organizations	137	7.3	1.32×More than typical	1,038	$24,472	—
Full-service restaurants	123	6.6	0.85×About typical	3,389	$22,873	20
Clothing and accessories stores	121	6.4	1.78×More than typical	1,543	$21,120	115
Automotive repair and maintenance	117	6.2	1.24×About typical	697	$40,725	125
Construction of buildings	103	5.5	0.73×Fewer than typical	750	$78,175	325
Lessors of real estate	100	5.3	0.43×Fewer than typical	362	$46,155	1,091
Building equipment contractors	99	5.3	0.88×About typical	1,062	$80,777	153

Rank places for an industry

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 187,758 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.
A metro area's figures are the exact sums of its counties.
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 contract spending

In FY2026, federal agencies obligated $12.5M on contracts performed in Saginaw, MI metro area: $66.66 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $12.5M; −53% vs FY2025
Per resident: $66.66; US $1,994
Sole-source: 37%; US 30%
Single offer: 16%; 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

Department of Veterans Affairs$7.6M61%
Department of the Army$2.3M18%
Forest Service$778.5K6.2%
Department of the Navy$764.2K6.1%
Department of the Air Force$308.8K2.5%
Defense Logistics Agency$301.3K2.4%
Defense Commissary Agency$197.7K1.6%
Agricultural Research Service$168.8K1.3%

Top recipients

SIEMENS INDUSTRY INC$3.1M25%
DEAN MARINE AND EXCAVATING, INC.$1.8M14%
NORRIS CONTRACTING INC$778.5K6.2%
FORCECO LLC$738.4K5.9%
HOLT TRANSPORT SERVICES LLC$712.7K5.7%

Spending by fiscal year

36MFY2017
30.4MFY2018
36.9MFY2019
20.3MFY2020
139MFY2021
21.4MFY2022
26.6MFY2023
25.2M

Top industries (NAICS)

Investigation and security services · 5616$2.9M23%
Other heavy and civil engineering construction · 2379$1.8M15%
Machine shops and screw, nut, and bolt manufacturing · 3327$829.6K6.6%
Highway, street, and bridge construction · 2373$778.5K6.2%
Other transit and ground passenger transportation · 4859$712.7K5.7%
Medical and diagnostic laboratories · 6215

Largest awards

EHRM TO 39 WAVE F DEPLOYMENT$129.7M
ORACLE HEALTH GOVERNMENT SERVICES, INC.· Saginaw County, MI· IT & telecom· Dec 16, 2020 – Mar 10, 2026· 36C10B21N0039EHRM
THE CONTRACTOR SHALL FURNISH ALL LABOR, MATERIALS, TOOLS, EQUIPMENT, AND SUPERVISION NECESSARY TO PERFORM AND COMPLETE THE WORK ASSOCIATED WITH PROJECT #655-401, "EXPAND MEDICAL CENTER - SAGINAW SITE", IN SUPPORT OF THE SAGINAW VA MEDICAL CENTER$10.7M
COASTAL CONSTRUCTION GROUP, LLC· Saginaw County, MI· Construction & real property· Jun 2, 2025 – Aug 31, 2026· 36C77625C0036
PROOF GUN STAND SYSTEM AND SPARES.$5.6M
MERRILL TECHNOLOGIES GROUP, LLC· Saginaw County, MI· Weapons, aircraft, ships & vehicles· Sep 30, 2024 – Jun 1, 2026· W15QKN24F0535

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.

Federal grants & assistance

Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.

In FY2026, federal agencies obligated $1.3B in grants, loans, direct payments and insurance for Saginaw, MI metro area: $7,045 per resident (US $12,955).

Assistance · FY2026: $1.3B; −6.2% vs FY2025
Per resident: $7,045; US $12,955
Loan face value: $40M; lent or guaranteed
To individuals: 0.5%; counted, never named

Top programs

96.002 · Social Security Retirement Insurance$829.4M63%
96.001 · Social Security Disability Insurance$139.8M11%
64.109 · Veterans Compensation for Service-Connected Disability$96M7.3%
96.004 · Social Security Survivors Insurance$93.9M7.1%
96.006 · Supplemental Security Income$68M5.1%
14.871 · Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers$9.8M0.7%
93.224 · Health Center Program$7.2M0.5%
93.600 · Head Start$6.9M0.5%

Top recipients (organizations)

TRANSPORTATION, MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF$13.7M1.0%
LANSING, MI
SAGINAW HOUSING COMMISSION$13.4M1.0%
SAGINAW, MI
GREAT LAKES BAY HEALTH CENTERS$7M0.5%
SAGINAW, MI
SAGINAW INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL DISTRICT$7M0.5%
SAGINAW, MI
CITY OF VASSAR$6M

Organizations only: awards to individuals and county aggregate records count in the totals but are never listed. Grants to state governments recorded at the agency's own address are counted statewide, not in the capital's county.

Top agencies

Social Security Administration$1.1B86%
Under Secretary for Benefits/Veterans Benefits Administration$108.6M8.2%
Department of Veterans Affairs
Federal Highway Administration$13.7M1.0%
Department of Transportation
Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing$13.4M1.0%
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Assistance by fiscal year

1.3BFY2021
1.2BFY2022
1.3BFY2023
1.3BFY2024
1.4BFY2025
1.3BFY2026

County aggregates

95%

Share of obligations reported only as county totals of many small awards (for example Social Security or Medicare payments), with no recipient named.

Source: Federal financial assistance transactions (Financial Assistance Broker Submission) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · FY2021–FY2026.

Counties in Saginaw, MI

Whole counties, as the U.S. Office of Management and Budget delineates the area. Federal spending below is the exact sum of these counties.

Saginaw CountyCentral county33187,688

Principal cities

The cities the area is named for.

SaginawPrincipal city43,536

Largest cities and towns

By population, for places with most of their residents in the area.

Other metro and micro areas in Michigan

Areas based in Michigan, best score first.

Neighboring metro and micro areas

Places that share a border, best score first.

Similar metro and micro areas

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.

Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-09-29
Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
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
Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08

JSON · /api/v1/places/M40980

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Improved13

Declined3

Metro and micro areas like Saginaw, MI metro area five years ago that improved

Who lives here

Age and sex

Income

Household income

Homes

Owners and renters

Getting to work

How people get to work

Jobs and pay

Look up any occupation

Local businesses

Federal contract spending

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards

Federal grants & assistance

Top programs

Top recipients (organizations)

Top agencies

Assistance by fiscal year

County aggregates

Counties in Saginaw, MI

Principal cities

Largest cities and towns

Other metro and micro areas in Michigan

Neighboring metro and micro areas

Similar metro and micro areas

Data and sources

Improved13

Declined3

Age and sex

Household income

Owners and renters

How people get to work

Race and Hispanic origin

Education

Rent paid

Home values

Age of homes

Size of homes

Time to get to work

Look up any occupation

Top programs

Top recipients (organizations)

Top agencies

Assistance by fiscal year

County aggregates

By type

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards

What was bought