Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Troy grades A overall, 98th of 697 graded towns in Michigan. Its schools rank ahead of 97% of Michigan towns. It is healthier than 96% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $120K. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $454K for a typical one and 5.9 times the Detroit metro’s $77K median household income. 65% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Troy, above both the Michigan town median (26%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%). Troy is home to Chamberlain University-Michigan.
Where Troy beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Elementary School | K–5 | 460 |
| Bemis Elementary School | K–5 | 441 |
| Schroeder Elementary School | K–5 | 423 |
| Widest gap | Troy | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 4.6% | 8.7% |
Where Troy’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 Troy is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 19,402 in 1960, 87,294 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1877 and 7 maps from 1908 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Troy. Close and well known come first.
Big draw38 mi Stadium & arenaMichigan Stadium
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaFord Field
18 mi Stadium & arenaComerica Park
20 mi MuseumThe Henry Ford1.8M visitors a year
18 mi TheatreFox Theatre
26 mi LakeLake Saint ClairMichigan Stadium: Lectrician2, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ford Field: Unknown, CC BY 2.5 · Comerica Park: City of Detroit, Public domain · The Henry Ford: Alvintrusty, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fox Theatre: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lake Saint Clair: Copernicus Sentinel-2, ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 igo
Who provides power, water and the rest in Troy, 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 Troy.
Troy has schools in the top 5% of Michigan, draws workers from Detroit and beyond and has less utility shut-off threats than most of Michigan.
The median property tax bill is $5,267, against $2,904 across Michigan, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Values rose 1.9% in the 12 months to September 2026. Troy’s typical rent comes in at $1,602 a month. Among renter households locally, 34% spend 30% or more of their income on rent.
| Troy | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,602 a month | $1,045 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 34% | 45% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 84% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
That grade ranks #8 of the 699 Michigan towns we grade for schools. It comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $454K.
Three of the 28 schools are below, and why each made the list. The public schools here belong to the Troy School District. Also worth knowing: 6 public schools serve Troy, with 2,554 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larson Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 865 | A+ |
| Troy High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,032 | A+ |
| Boulan Park Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 839 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MI on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Michigan is utility shut-off threats: 4.6% of its 68,020 adults were threatened with a utility shut-off, against 8.7% statewide.
For adults in Troy, the share who have high blood pressure is 32%. Only 3 of the 701 Michigan towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Troy.
| Troy | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 18% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 27% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 9.9% | 14% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 37% | 35% |
| What stands out | Troy | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 4.6% | 8.7% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5.5% | 10.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
107,521 jobs are based in Troy, 3 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. 22.5% of workers work from home, against 13.5% across Michigan.
In Troy, 23% of workers do their job from home. Roughly one working resident in five has a job in Troy itself. Since 2011, Troy has added 15,335 jobs, to 107,521 in 2021. For half of commuters, work is under 8 miles away.
| Troy | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 23% | 10% | 11% |
| Median household income | $120,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 20% | 5.9% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.4% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
In Troy, the concentration of trails is 0.6 miles per square mile. 21 miles of trail wind through 29 parks and preserves. Firefighters Park, at 93 acres with 1.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Troy | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.8% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Firefighters Park | 1.9 mi | 93 |
| 2. Lloyd A. Stage Nature Center & Troy Farm | 1.7 mi | 67 |
| 3. Troy Farm | 1.3 mi | 26 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected damage from storms and floods is lower here than in 81% of U.S. communities. Of the losses FEMA expects in Troy, 50% come from inland flooding and 26% from tornadoes. Flood insurance has paid out on 28 claims locally since 1981.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 18° and about 36 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Reported crimes fell from 1,307 to 909 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 85 reported in 2025, 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
Troy’s level of violent crime stands at 0.9 per 1,000 residents. Its level of property crime comes in at 9.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Troy | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 9.2 per 1,000 residents | 7.8 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
13 within 15 miles of the center of Troy
About 8 of every 100 Troy residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Michigan.
2 colleges in town.
2 places in Troy on the National Register of Historic Places.
13 notable people were born in Troy.
City in Michigan, United States
Troy is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, United States. A northern suburb of Detroit, Troy is located about 15 miles (24 km) north of downtown Detroit. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 87,294; this makes Troy the largest community in Oakland County and 13th-most populous municipality in the state. Troy was organized as a township in 1827. Sections of the township were later incorporated into the cities of Birmingham, Clawson, and Royal Oak. The remainder of the township was incorporated as the city of Troy in 1955.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Troy.
Clawson next door grades lower for schools (B+ to Troy’s A+) and higher for cost of living (C+ to D).
| Town | MI rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Troy | #98 | A | D | B | A+ | A+ |
| Birmingham | #32 | A+ | D | A− | A+ | A+ |
| Royal Oak | #74 | A | C− | B | A− | A+ |
| Madison Heights | #303 | B | B− | C | B− | B+ |
| Sterling Heights | #447 | C+ | C− | B− | A− | B− |
| Clawson | #69 | A | C+ | B+ | B+ | A |
| Rochester Hills | #29 | A+ | C− | A− | A+ | A+ |
| Bloomfield Township | #42 | A | D | A− | A+ | A+ |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Troy grades A overall, better than 87% of U.S. towns and #98 of 697 in Michigan. It grades A+ for health, B for safety and A+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
13 notable people were born here, including Martin Klebba and Greg Collins.
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
