Porter TownshipMI
A town of 1,269, settled in 1869.
Is Porter Township a good place to live?
The best of Porter Township’s subject grades are a B for cost of living and civic life; the weakest is a D− for walkability. On walkability, just 13 of Michigan’s 1,279 towns do worse. Porter Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
1,269 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
How Porter Township grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Michigan), ordered by how far Porter Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Porter Township: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Porter 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 Porter Township.
Porter Township has 0.0 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
At 34 minutes, Porter Township’s average trip to work is above both Michigan’s towns (25 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). The top destinations are Midland (15%), Mount Pleasant (12%) and Union Township (5%). Half commute less than 18 miles.
| Porter Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 34 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7.9% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
Porter Township has four seasons and pleasant summers
Porter Township has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 16° and about 39 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Fewer young adults than Michigan overall
Adults 18 to 34 are 14% of residents (22% statewide); children under 18 are 28% of residents (21% statewide). At 38.9 years, Porter Township’s median age is against 42.5 years in Michigan’s towns and 40.5 years across U.S. towns. 23% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 32% across Michigan.
| Porter Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 28% | 21% | 22% |
| Median age | 38.9 years | 42.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 23% | 26% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 17% | 19% | 18% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
46% women, 54% men
About 116 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3.2 points). Across Michigan, 50.4% of residents are women.
| Porter Township | MI | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 15.7% | 11.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 3.3% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.8% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 16.9% | 12.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.3% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.7% | 11.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.4% | 7.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.3% | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 46.9% | 28% | 26% |
| Some college | 17.9% | 21.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.3% | 9.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 14.6% | 19.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8% | 12.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,300, single groups can be off by several points
The FEMA risk score in Porter Township is higher than in the typical Michigan or U.S. town
Porter Township’s FEMA risk score is 66 of 100.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Porter Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.8% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit | 2.1 mi | 590 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Health in Porter Township trails 52% of U.S. towns
Porter Township beats the Michigan average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 32% of Porter Township adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Porter Township | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 34% | 36% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 27% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Porter Township | MI |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.8% | 8.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
USS Edson and 10 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Porter Township. Close and well known come first.
29 mi MuseumUSS Edson
12 mi GardenDow Gardens
9 mi GardenChippewa Nature Center
29 mi MuseumSaginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum24 mi Zoo & aquariumChildren's Zoo at Celebration Square
25 mi TheatreTemple TheatrePhoto credits
USS 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 · Temple Theatre: Ian Poellet, CC BY-SA 4.0
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Everything we know about Porter Township
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Porter Township
About 3 of every 100 Porter Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
100% of working residents leave Porter Township for work
Where Porter Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
About Porter Township
Civil township in Michigan, United States
Porter Township is a civil township of Midland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,270 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 36 sq mi
- Elevation
- 676 ft
Questions about Porter Township
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Porter 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.