Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Midland is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades A overall, 65th among Michigan's 697 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its public schools beat 90% of Michigan towns on state tests and graduation. It also does better than most on health: residents are healthier than 79% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. A typical home there costs about $252K, 3.2 years of the Midland metro’s $78K median household income. 43% of working residents work locally in Midland, above both Michigan’s towns (5.9%) and U.S. towns (8%). Its National Register listings include Herbert H. Dow House and Alden B. Dow House and Studio. Midland's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Where Midland beats most towns.
Herbert H. Dow House
Herbert H. Dow House is one of 2 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier. Its 25 National Register listings are more than in 97% of Michigan towns with a listing.
Census counts: 1,160 in 1870, 42,547 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1874 and a map from 1973 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Midland is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Midland. Close and well known come first.
18 mi MuseumUSS Edson
in town GardenDow Gardens
3 mi GardenChippewa Nature Center
18 mi MuseumSaginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum
in town GardenChippewassee Park
20 mi TheatreTemple TheatreUSS Edson: U.S. Navy, Public domain · Dow Gardens: Chris.Schiemann, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chippewa Nature Center: Christian Collins, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Saginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum: John McCullough, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Chippewassee Park: Christian Collins, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Temple Theatre: Ian Poellet, CC BY-SA 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Midland, 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 Midland.
Midland draws workers from Saginaw Township and beyond and sees little violent crime, but it has a long record of flood insurance claims.
75 miles of trail in 81 parks and preserves. Midland’s trail density is 2.1 miles per square mile. Sygo Nature Preserve, at 572 acres with 2.5 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Midland | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 2.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 8.2% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Midland City Forest | 23.2 mi | 529 |
| 2. Stratford Woods Park | 3.1 mi | 93 |
| 3. Chippewa Nature Center | 2.7 mi | 490 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Midland Public Schools. Three of its 21 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 919 | A |
| HH Dow High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,272 | A+ |
| Adams Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 479 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
27,176 jobs are based in Midland, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
The average trip to work in Midland is 20 minutes. Since 2011, Midland has lost 3,376 jobs, to 27,176 in 2021. The top destinations are Saginaw Township (4%), Saginaw (4%) and Mount Pleasant (3%).
| Midland | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 13% | 10% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 10% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $73,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
30% of Midland adults sleep under 7 hours. Midland beats the Michigan average on 13 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 29% of Midland adults feel lonely.
| Midland | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 34% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 33% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 37% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 25% | 25% |
| What stands out | Midland | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 11.2% | 15.4% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 8.8% | 11.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Violent crime is rare: 49 reported in 2025, 1.1 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Midland has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 16° and about 49 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
409 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 107 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 55% of U.S. communities. Since 1986, 409 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Midland.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Typical home values rose 9.3% in the year to September 2026. 67% of households own their home in Midland.
| Midland | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 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
2 within 15 miles of the center of Midland
About 6 of every 100 Midland residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Michigan.
8.2% of the town is conserved land, across 81 parks and preserves.
25 places in Midland on the National Register of Historic Places.
40 notable people were born in Midland.
City in Michigan, United States
Midland is a city in the state of Michigan and is the county seat of Midland County. The population was 42,547 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Midland metropolitan statistical area, part of the larger Saginaw-Midland-Bay City combined statistical area. The city is bordered by Midland Township, though the two are administered separately. Midland is located at the confluence of Chippewa and Tittabawassee rivers in Central Michigan. The city is home to the headquarters of Dow Chemical Company, one of the largest chemical producers in the world, which was founded by Herbert Henry Dow in the city in 1897. The city is also home to Midland Center for the Arts and Northwood Univ…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Midland.
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midland | #65 | A | B− | B+ | A | A− |
| Homer Township | #101 | A | A | — | A | B+ |
| Midland Township | — | — | A | — | A | B+ |
| Larkin Township | #40 | A | B− | — | A | A− |
| Lincoln Township | #3 | A+ | A | — | A | B+ |
| Williams Township | #329 | B | C+ | — | B− | B+ |
| Ingersoll Township | #19 | A+ | A | — | A | B+ |
Midland Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Homer Township, Midland Township, Larkin Township, Lincoln Township, Williams Township and Ingersoll Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Midland with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Midland grades A overall, better than 90% of U.S. towns and #65 of 697 in Michigan. It grades A− for health, B+ for safety and A for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
40 notable people were born here, including Robert Jarvik and James Aloysius Hickey.
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