Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,243, settled in 1878.
East Jordan’s best subject grades are an A+ for cost of living and civic life and an A for the outdoors; its weakest is a C for walkability. On hazard risk, just 4 of Michigan’s 1,279 towns do better. East Jordan’s trail density is 2.0 miles per square mile, against 0.3 in Michigan’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. On civic life, just 31 of Michigan’s 1,265 towns do better. The biggest park or preserve is Rogers Family Homestead Nature Preserve, at 59 acres. East Jordan has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where East Jordan beats most towns.
Where East Jordan’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far East Jordan is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2005.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in East Jordan, 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 East Jordan.
About one in 4 of East Jordan’s working residents works in town. At $60,000, East Jordan’s median household income is where Michigan’s towns sit at $77,000 and U.S. towns at $80,000. Since 2011, East Jordan has added 115 jobs, to 1,436 in 2021.
| East Jordan | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 24% | 5.9% | 8% |
| Median household income | $60,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the East Jordan Public Schools. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is East Jordan MiddleHigh School, with 322 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Jordan Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 393 | B |
| East Jordan MiddleHigh SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 322 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
The FEMA risk score in East Jordan is 0 of 100. Since 2018, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in East Jordan.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical East Jordan home is worth about $329,000, up 2.4% in a year, 25% above the Michigan typical home. East Jordan’s median rent is $812 a month.
| East Jordan | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $812 a month | $1,046 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 80% | 84% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
East Jordan beats the Michigan average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of adults report frequent mental distress in East Jordan.
| East Jordan | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 15% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | East Jordan | MI |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.7% | 10.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
East Jordan has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 80°, January nights drop to 14° and about 122 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Rogers Family Homestead Nature Preserve | 0.3 mi | 59 |
| 2. Community Park | 0.2 mi | 36 |
| 3. East Jordan Tourist Park | — | 14 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of East Jordan; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 East Jordan residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
2 places in East Jordan on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in Michigan, United States
East Jordan is a city in Charlevoix County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,239 at the 2020 census. The city is at the end of the south arm of Lake Charlevoix at the mouth of the Jordan River. The corporate headquarters of EJ, an international company formerly known as East Jordan Iron Works, is located in East Jordan. EJ was founded in East Jordan in 1883.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A+.
