Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 20,319, settled in 1835.
Highland Township grades A overall, 113th among Michigan's 697 graded towns, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Crime is low: it reports less per resident than 87% of U.S. towns and its schools rank ahead of 79% of Michigan towns. It also does better than most on health: it is healthier than 78% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $383K for a typical one and 5 times the Detroit metro’s $77K median household income. Highland Township’s trail density is 2.1 miles per square mile, where Michigan’s towns sit at 0.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Highland State Recreation Area, at 4,175 acres with 61.6 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 75% of U.S. towns.
Where Highland Township beats most towns.
19.2% of the town is conserved land, across 7 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Highland Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 1855 and 4 maps from 1909 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Highland 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 Highland Township.
Highland Township sees little violent crime, but it has commutes longer than most of Michigan.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Highland State Recreation Area | 61.6 mi | 4,175 |
| 2. Highland Oaks County Park | 2.7 mi | 295 |
| 3. Duck Lake Pines Park | 1.7 mi | 41 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Huron Valley Schools. Two of its 6 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Milford High School, with 1,193 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heritage Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 448 | A− |
| Milford High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 1,193 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
Violent crime is rare: 18 reported in 2025, 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
At 1.7 per 1,000 residents, Highland Township’s property crime rate is below both Michigan’s towns (8) and U.S. towns (9.9). Highland Township’s violent crime rate is 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Highland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.7 per 1,000 residents | 8 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
90% of Highland Township households own their home. The typical Highland Township home is worth about $383,000, up 3.3% in a year, 45% above the Michigan typical home.
| Highland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 90% | 84% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,048 a month | $1,045 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
31% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Highland Township. Highland Township beats the Michigan average on 14 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of adults get no exercise outside work in Highland Township.
| Highland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 34% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 25% | 25% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 37% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Highland Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 10.1% | 15.4% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 5.9% | 8.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.8% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 81% of U.S. communities. Since 2011, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Highland Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 8,746 working residents takes 34.5 minutes, against 24.2 across Michigan. Jobs based here grew from 3,162 in 2011 to 4,491.
Most working residents leave Highland Township for work: only 9% work in town. The average trip to work in Highland Township is 35 minutes. Jobs based in Highland Township grew to 4,491 in 2021, 1,329 more than in 2011.
| Highland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 35 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 16% | 10% | 11% |
| Median household income | $97,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 8.9% | 5.9% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Highland Township has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 15° and about 62 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Adults 18 to 34 are 18% of residents (22% statewide). Highland Township has grown 6% since 2020, to 20,319 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 33% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across Michigan.
| Highland Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 33% | 26% | 29% |
| Median age | 43.6 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 19% | 18% |
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.8 points. Across Michigan, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Highland Township | MI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.9% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.9% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.7% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.4% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.5% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14.9% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.2% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.5% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.3% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.7% | 28% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.3% | 21.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.3% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 22.7% | 19.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 10.7% | 12.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
1 within 15 miles of the center of Highland Township
About 4 of every 100 Highland Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
Where Highland Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
2 places in Highland Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Highland Township.
Charter township in Michigan, United States
Highland Township, officially the Charter Township of Highland, is a charter township of west Oakland County, Michigan. The population was 19,172 at the time of the 2020 census. Highland Township is a western suburb of Metro Detroit and is located about 18 miles (29.0 km) west of the city of Pontiac and about 45 miles (72.4 km) northwest of the city of Detroit. Highland Township was founded by pioneer families in 1835. A major factor in the development of Highland was the railroad, which allowed lumber to be transported cheaply, and allowed products from the township's early factories to be exported easily. In 2003, in an effort to retain its rural character, as well as preserve its extensi…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Highland Township.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highland Township | #113 | A | C | A | A− | A− |
| Hartland Township | #28 | A+ | C | — | A | A− |
| Milford Township | #211 | B+ | D | — | A− | A |
| Rose Township | #254 | B+ | B− | — | B+ | B+ |
| White Lake Township | #189 | A− | C− | A | A− | B+ |
Hartland Township, Milford Township and Rose Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Highland Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Highland Township grades A overall, better than 86% of U.S. towns and #113 of 697 in Michigan. It grades A− for health, A for safety 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 C.
3 notable people were born here, including Danny Davis and Stoney Burke.
