Bay ShoreMI
A town of 697, settled in 1892.
Is Bay Shore a good place to live?
9.9% of residents are under 18 in Bay Shore, below both the Michigan town median (21%) and the median of U.S. towns (22%). Only 8 of the 702 Michigan towns we compare have a lower July high than Bay Shore. Bay Shore has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
697 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Bay Shore: who provides what
Bay Shore is unincorporated, so Charlevoix County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Bay Shore.
Bay Shore stands out in Michigan and nationally, with the FEMA risk score lower than most
Bay Shore’s FEMA risk score is 1 of 100, against 25 of 100 in Michigan’s towns and 44 of 100 across U.S. towns.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
More middle-aged adults than Michigan overall
Adults 35 to 64 are 52% of residents (38% statewide); children under 18 are 10% of residents (21% statewide). Bay Shore’s median age is 51 years. 32% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across Michigan.
| Bay Shore | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 51 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 32% | 26% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.1 points. Across Michigan, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Bay Shore | MI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 3.6% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.3% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.9% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 15.1% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.8% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 20.1% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 18.5% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 16.8% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 3% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 14.1% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 15.5% | 28% | 26% |
| Some college | 25.8% | 21.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.7% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20.9% | 19.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11% | 12.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 700, single groups can be off by several points
Most of Bay Shore’s workers commute out: the town has 0.2 jobs for each of them
Most working residents leave Bay Shore for work: only 0% work in town. The average trip to work in Bay Shore is 17 minutes. Since 2011, Bay Shore has added 37 jobs, to 47 in 2021.
| Bay Shore | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7.7% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Snowy winters and pleasant summers in Bay Shore
Bay Shore has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 76°, January nights drop to 16° and about 124 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
How healthy Bay Shore is
Bay Shore beats the Michigan average on 12 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 29% of adults feel lonely in Bay Shore.
| Bay Shore | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 25% | 25% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 82% | 80% | 79% |
| What stands out | Bay Shore | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5.4% | 10.2% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.9% | 15.4% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.3% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Everything we know about Bay Shore
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Bay Shore
About 3 of every 100 Bay Shore residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
100% of working residents leave Bay Shore for work
Where Bay Shore’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
About Bay Shore
Census-designated place & unincorporated community in Michigan, United States
Bay Shore is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located on the boundary between Charlevoix County and Emmet County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population of the CDP was 657 at the 2020 census. Bay Shore is located along Little Traverse Bay on Lake Michigan just west of the city of Petoskey. It is mostly within Hayes Township in Charlevoix County with a small portion extending east into Resort Township in Emmet County.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.6 sq mi
- Elevation
- 679 ft
- ZIP code
- 49711
- Area code
- 231
Questions about Bay Shore
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Bay Shore, MI a good place to live?
Bay Shore has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.