Is Dalton Township a good place to live?
Dalton Township is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C+ overall, 476th of 697 graded towns in Michigan, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its schools outperform 65% of the state's. A typical home there costs about $211K, 3.2 years of the Muskegon metro’s $65K median household income. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 91% of U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Lakewood Additions, 311 acres with 1.5 miles of trail. 93% of households own their home in Dalton Township, above both the Michigan town median (84%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%).
What makes Dalton Township stand out
Where Dalton Township beats most towns.
97% of working residents leave Dalton Township for work
Where Dalton Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
How Dalton Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Dalton Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Dalton Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Dalton 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.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Dalton Township.
Dalton Township gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and sends most of its workers to Muskegon and beyond.
Inland flooding leads a very low hazard risk in Dalton Township
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 86% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Dalton Township earns a B+ for schools
Its public schools are run by the Reeths-Puffer Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twin Lake SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 205 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
Dalton Township has set aside 2.6% of its land for conservation
13 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves.
| Dalton Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.6% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Dalton Equestrian Park | 3.4 mi | 296 |
| 2. Lakewood Additions | 1.5 mi | 311 |
| 3. Lakewood Club Park | — | 15 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Most working residents commute out of Dalton Township
Dalton Township has 1,106 jobs for its 4,092 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here grew from 435 in 2011 to 1,106.
Most working residents leave Dalton Township for work: only 3% work in town. Since 2011, Dalton Township has added 671 jobs, to 1,106 in 2021. The top destinations are Muskegon (18%), Whitehall (8%) and Norton Shores (7%).
| Dalton Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.3% | 5.9% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Snowy winters and pleasant summers in Dalton Township
The Muskegon Co Ap weather station, 12 miles away, records that 87 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 96% of U.S. towns.
Dalton Township has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Dalton Township is 82°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
On CDC estimates, Dalton Township is less healthy than 58% of U.S. towns
Dalton Township beats the Michigan average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 42% of adults have obesity in Dalton Township.
| Dalton Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 17% | 16% |
| What stands out | Dalton Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 12.6% | 15.4% |
| Fewer adults without reliable transportation | 7.2% | 8.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Michigan's Adventure and 12 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Dalton Township. Close and well known come first.
38 mi MuseumGerald R. Ford Presidential Museum
8 mi MuseumUSS LST-393
40 mi National forestManistee National Forest8 mi Stadium & arenaMercy Health Arena39 mi TheatreAcrisure AmphitheaterPhoto credits
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum: Staff of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, Public domain · USS LST-393: USN, Public domain · Manistee National Forest: RomanKahler, CC BY-SA 4.0
Everything we know about Dalton Township
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Dalton Township
About 4 of every 100 Dalton Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
About Dalton Township
Township in Michigan, United States
Dalton Township is a civil township of Muskegon County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the township population was 9,427.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 37 sq mi
- Elevation
- 676 ft
Dalton Township’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Dalton Township.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dalton Township | #476 | C+ | B− | — | B+ | C+ |
| Muskegon Township | #638 | D | B | C | C+ | C− |
| Blue Lake Township | — | — | B | — | B+ | C |
| Fruitland Township | #439 | C+ | C− | — | B+ | B− |
| Cedar Creek Township | #617 | C− | B− | — | C | C |
| Twin Lake | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Blue Lake Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Dalton Township, Blue Lake Township, Fruitland Township and Cedar Creek Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Twin Lake isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Dalton Township with a neighbor →
Questions about Dalton Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Dalton Township, MI a good place to live?
Dalton Township grades C+ overall, better than 40% of U.S. towns and #476 of 697 in Michigan. It grades C+ for health and B+ for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Is Dalton Township, MI expensive?
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.