Brooklyn Michigan downtown area, 2010
Brooklyn’s story
194 years in pictures
Census counts: 334 in 1860, 1,313 in 2020. The archive holds 24 old photos and papers going back to 1925 and 3 maps from 1958 on.
- 1832Brooklyn is settled
BrooklynMI
Photo: Dwight Burdette · CC BY 3.0
Population
1,450
2025 Census estimate · +5.6% since 2020
Typical home
$299K
+2.4% in a year
Household income
$56K
median
Median age
48.7
years
Jobs based here
640
Balanced
Is Brooklyn a good place to live?
The best of Brooklyn’s subject grades are an A− for walkability and an A for history; the weakest is a C for incomes. 27% of residents are 65 or older in Brooklyn, where Michigan’s towns sit at 19% and U.S. towns at 18%. Brooklyn's public schools beat 68% of Michigan towns on state tests and graduation. Only 98 of Michigan’s 1,279 towns score higher on history. Brooklyn has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Brooklyn stand out
Where Brooklyn beats most towns.
Small town
1,450 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
How Brooklyn grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Brooklyn is from typical.
Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 21% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listA−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 7.5 of 20; 16.5% of households have no carA−Open →Jobs & income$56K median household incomeCOpen →SchoolsB+Open →Cost of livingCOpen →HealthHenry Ford Allegiance Health 12.5 miles awayC+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors4% conserved landC+Open →HistoryAOpen →Civic life2.9 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsB+Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 48.7; 22% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Brooklyn: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Brooklyn, and how to reach them.
PowerConsumers Energy20.7¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterBrooklyn water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Brooklyn’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Michigan you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereColumbia Township ClerkColumbia Township; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Nov 2025
ZIP code4923049230 100%Census 2020
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 Brooklyn.
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A−
Brooklyn faces a low natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 79% of U.S. communities.
21risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingTornadoesCold waves
3
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
Brooklyn has four seasons and pleasant summers
Brooklyn has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 16° and about 33 inches of snow falls in a winter.
33″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter19–34°
Spring36–58°
Summer58–80°
Fall40–61°
Oct 14
typical first frost
Apr 30
typical last frost
+1.5°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C
With 1.3 jobs for every working resident, Brooklyn draws in 608 commuters
Most working residents leave Brooklyn for work: only 7% work in town. At 30 minutes, Brooklyn’s average trip to work is against 25 minutes in Michigan’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. Jobs based in Brooklyn fell to 640 in 2021, 192 fewer than in 2011.
7%work in town
| Brooklyn | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $56,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Brooklyn7%
Jackson15%
Columbia Township11%
Blackman Township9%
Summit Township5%
15 mi
median commute distance
640
jobs based in Brooklyn
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
A−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
HealthC+
Brooklyn is less healthy than 62% of U.S. towns
Brooklyn beats the Michigan average on 5 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 40% of Brooklyn adults have high blood pressure.
38%healthier than U.S. townsC+Health Grade
| Brooklyn | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 36% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 36% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 17% | 16% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Michigan
5 better24 too close to call3 worse
| What stands out | Brooklyn | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 7% | 8.7% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.6% | 11.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.3% | 8.9% |
Henry Ford Allegiance Health
12.5 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
HousingCost of living grade C
A typical Brooklyn home is worth about $299K
The typical Brooklyn home is worth about $299,000, up 2.4% in a year, 13% above the Michigan typical home. 69% of households own their home in Brooklyn.
$299KZillow home value
| Brooklyn | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 69% | 84% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,021 a month | $1,046 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Brooklyn$299K
Michigan$264K
+2.4%
value change, 1 year
1
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
4.2%conserved
4.2%
conserved · 27 of 656 acres
0.0 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Swain Memorial Park | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Brooklyn
18pages on Brooklyn
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Brooklyn
About 1 of every 100 Brooklyn residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
About Brooklyn
Village in Michigan, United States
Brooklyn is a village in Jackson County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,313 at the 2020 census. It is located in the Irish Hills region of southern Michigan, just north of U.S. Route 12 along M-50. The village is located within Columbia Township. Michigan International Speedway is just to its south in Cambridge Township.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1832
- Area
- 1.0 sq mi
- Elevation
- 994 ft
- ZIP code
- 49230
Questions about Brooklyn
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Brooklyn, MI expensive?
That is 4.5 years of the area's median household income ($66,073 across the Jackson, MI metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.