Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Birch Run Township grades B− overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns, and ranks 358th of 697 in Michigan. Schools are its strong suit: its public schools beat three quarters of Michigan towns on state tests and graduation. Where it falls short is walkability (C−). Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 75% of U.S. towns. Homes run about $236K for a typical one, 3.9 times the Saginaw metro’s $61K median household income. Birch Run Township Park, at 51 acres with 2.2 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. The town’s age of the median resident is 46.6 years, above both Michigan’s towns (42.5 years) and U.S. towns (40.5 years). Its other grades sit near the middle: B− for health and B for incomes.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES · OpenStreetMap.
Where Birch Run Township beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Birch Run Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 844 in 1960, 1,525 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 2005 and 4 maps from 1967 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Birch Run Township, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Birch Run Township.
Birch Run Township trades workers with Frankenmuth and other neighbors, has home values climbing faster than Michigan’s and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of Michigan.
Count the trails in 1 park or preserve and they come to 14 miles. The density of trails for Birch Run Township comes to 0.4 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Birch Run Township Park | 2.2 mi | 51 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Below: Two of its 4 schools, each with why it was picked. The largest public high school is Birch Run High School, with 538 students. The public schools here belong to the Birch Run Area Schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 682 | B− |
| Birch Run High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 538 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
The Saginaw #3 weather station, 14 miles away, records that 41 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 77% of Michigan places with climate records.
July afternoons reach 83° and January nights drop to 16°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 67% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Birch Run Township has about as many jobs (2,340) as working residents, but only 173 people both live and work here.
Since 2011, Birch Run Township has lost 247 jobs, to 2,340 in 2021. Commuting out is the norm here: 9% of working residents work locally. The top destinations are Frankenmuth (15%), Saginaw (9%) and Flint Township (4%). Half the trips to work are shorter than 17 miles.
| Birch Run Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 10% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 8.6% | 5.9% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Home values rose 46% in five years, to about $236K, against 24% across Michigan.
Zillow values the typical Birch Run Township home at about $236,000, up 3.1% in a year, 11% below the Michigan typical home. In Birch Run Township, the midpoint rent is $999 a month. The share of households in Birch Run Township who own their home: 83%.
| Birch Run Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 83% | 84% | 73% |
| Median rent | $999 a month | $1,047 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
By age, Birch Run Township looks like Michigan: each broad group is within 4 points. Birch Run Township: 18% of residents are under 18. 26% of adults 25 and older hold at least a bachelor’s degree, against 32% across Michigan.
| Birch Run Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 46.6 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 18% | 21% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 19% | 18% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.7 points. Across Michigan, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Birch Run Township | MI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.6% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.8% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.1% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.1% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 8.8% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.3% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 18.2% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.9% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.2% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.2% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29% | 28% | 26% |
| Some college | 28.9% | 21.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.2% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.5% | 19.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 9.1% | 12.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
34% of adults have obesity in Birch Run Township. The town does better than the Michigan average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and worse on 1.
| Birch Run Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 27% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 37% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 34% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 81% | 80% | 79% |
| What stands out | Birch Run Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.5% | 11.9% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 7% | 8.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.4% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Birch Run Township. Close and well known come first.
25 mi MuseumUSS Edson
17 mi MuseumSloan Museum13 mi MuseumCrossroads Village (Michigan)
35 mi GardenDow Gardens
17 mi MuseumFlint Institute of Arts
25 mi MuseumSaginaw Valley Naval Ship MuseumUSS Edson: U.S. Navy, Public domain · Sloan Museum: Amancour, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dow Gardens: Chris.Schiemann, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Flint Institute of Arts: Blueskiesfalling at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Saginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum: John McCullough, CC BY-SA 2.5
None within 15 miles of Birch Run Township; the nearest are
About 7 of every 100 Birch Run Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Michigan.
Village in Michigan, United States
Birch Run is a village in Saginaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, Birch Run had a population of 1,525. The village is located within Birch Run Township.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Birch Run Township.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Taymouth Township (C+) comes closest.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birch Run Township | #358 | B− | B− | — | A− | B− |
| Frankenmuth Township | — | — | C− | — | A | B+ |
| Taymouth Township | #446 | C+ | B+ | — | B− | C+ |
| Arbela Township | #575 | C− | B | — | B | C− |
| Vienna Township | #597 | C− | B− | — | C+ | C |
Frankenmuth Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Birch Run Township, Frankenmuth Township, Taymouth Township, Arbela Township and Vienna Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Birch Run Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Birch Run Township grades B− overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #358 of 697 in Michigan. It grades B− for health and A− for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
_underway_off_Long_Beach,_California_(USA),_circa_in_the_mid-1960s.jpg){kind=link}
