You don’t have to throw a dart at the Michigan mitten to find the best place for your family to live: HomeSnacks has created a list of the most family friendly places in the Great Lakes State for 2026.
But, before we let you in on Michigan’s top ten best places for families, we should tell you a little bit about how we determined the state’s most family friendly places.
First, we consulted the US Census on places in The Wolverine State with more than 10,000 residents. We looked at several factors including crime, education, family friendly activities, and the percent of households that currently have children. We then entered it into our snackability formula and ended up with 84 family friendly Michigan places.
Matter of fact, if you ask any Michigander, they will tell you that Michigan is the best and that their spot on the mitten is above the rest. They will also tell you that the state is great for families because Michigan has one of the highest median household incomes, so they have plenty of extra money to spend on the things that matter. Like, making their neighborhoods safe, their schools competitive, and their families happy, healthy, and entertained.
Speaking of family entertainment, when Michigan families are ready for some fun in the sun, there is plenty of family friendly fun to be had. We think the best family weekend in Michigan would go something like this: first, a trip to the freshest pasty (pronounced pah-sty) shop in Midland; then, a quick road trip to the center of the mitten to watch a football game at the University of Michigan in East Lansing; followed up by a lazy Sunday at Grand Haven Beach.
To learn more about our methodology and to see why Michigan’s top ten best places to raise a family are truly the best of the best, read on.
$153,510 median income · 28.4% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Birmingham is a city on the north side of Metro Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,103.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$111,750 median income · 27.0% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Rochester is a city on the north side of the Detroit Metropolitan Area, in Oakland County, in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 12,711 at the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$177,412 median income · 37.3% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Beverly Hills is a village in Southfield Township, Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a suburb of Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,267 making it by far the most populous village in the state.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$116,239 median income · 24.9% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Berkley is a suburb of Detroit located along the Woodward Corridor in southeastern Oakland County, Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the total population was 14,970.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$92,467 median income · 24.7% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
South Lyon is a city in Southwestern Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan, in Metro Detroit. The population was 11,327 at the 2010 census. The city is part of the South Lyon-Howell-Brighton Urban Area, which had a population of 106,139 according to the 2000 census. South Lyon is located in Oakland County’s Lyon Township, near the Livingston County and Washtenaw County lines. The city is 19 miles north of Ann Arbor, 45 miles west of Detroit and 58 miles east of Lansing.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$120,045 median income · 31.5% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Troy is a city located in Metropolitan Detroit’s northern suburbs in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 80,980 at the 2010 census, making it the 11th-largest city in Michigan by population, and the largest city in Oakland County. Troy has become a business and shopping destination in the Metro Detroit area, with numerous office centers and the upscale Somerset Collection mall.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$88,636 median income · 18.8% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Clawson is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the Detroit metropolitan area. At the 2010 census, its population was 11,825.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$110,723 median income · 34.9% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Novi is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 55,224, an increase over the 2000 census count of 47,386. The city is located approximately 25 miles northwest of the center of Detroit, and about 8 miles west of the western border of Detroit. It is about 25 miles northeast of the center of Ann Arbor. The city is located within the boundaries of the survey township of Novi Township. The remaining unincorporated township is only a tiny fraction surrounded by the city.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$106,033 median income · 26.3% households with kids
Located in
Macomb County, Michigan
New Baltimore is a city and a historic, coastal resort community in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 12,084 at the 2010 census. New Baltimore is in Metropolitan Detroit.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$120,694 median income · 30.8% households with kids
Located in
Oakland County, Michigan
Rochester Hills is a city in northeast Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan, in the northern outskirts of Metropolitan Detroit area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 70,995.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Michigan’s statewide median.
Michigan statewide median: $72,875
Michigan statewide median: $259,857
On the map
Where Michigan’s most family-friendly cities are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How do you determine which place is best for families in Michigan anyways?
To give you the places in Michigan that are best for families, we must look at a handful of metrics. We want to measure the criteria people want in a family-friendly city utilizing Saturday Night Science.
After researching U.S. Census data produced for the state of Michigan, we looked at the data for every single city in the state. We paid particular attention to:
- Crime (Both violent and property)
- Quality of local schools
- Distance to a major city without necessarily being in it
- % of households with children
- Family-friendly amenities nearby (museums, libraries, and colleges)
We then gave each city a “Family Score.”
The higher the score, the better the city is for families. We also limited our results to cities with over 10,000 people. For Michigan, that meant a total of 84 cities.
We updated this article for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the best cities for families in Michigan.
The full plate
Best Places For Families In Michigan
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price | % Households w/ Kids |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Birmingham | 21,763 | $153,510 | $733,351 | 28.4% |
| 2 | Rochester | 12,934 | $111,750 | $486,537 | 27.0% |
| 3 | Beverly Hills | 10,524 | $177,412 | $587,951 | 37.3% |
| 4 | Berkley | 15,149 | $116,239 | $314,815 | 24.9% |
| 5 | South Lyon | 11,950 | $92,467 | $467,292 | 24.7% |
| 6 | Troy | 87,898 | $120,045 | $457,480 | 31.5% |
| 7 | Clawson | 11,374 | $88,636 | $286,026 | 18.8% |
| 8 | Novi | 66,717 | $110,723 | $467,223 | 34.9% |
| 9 | New Baltimore | 12,072 | $106,033 | $354,733 | 26.3% |
| 10 | Rochester Hills | 77,089 | $120,694 | $465,253 | 30.8% |
| 11 | Howell | 10,021 | $60,449 | $377,375 | 20.2% |
| 12 | Holland | 34,423 | $75,865 | $364,546 | 31.7% |
| 13 | Farmington Hills | 83,515 | $104,836 | $387,308 | 25.2% |
| 14 | Livonia | 93,851 | $98,460 | $309,576 | 24.1% |
| 15 | Grosse Pointe Park | 11,319 | $124,111 | $502,195 | 29.3% |
| 16 | Midland | 42,724 | $73,325 | $247,417 | 26.8% |
| 17 | Flat Rock | 10,340 | $81,585 | $257,473 | 31.0% |
| 18 | Trenton | 18,125 | $82,212 | $239,684 | 23.5% |
| 19 | Grosse Pointe Woods | 16,094 | $126,395 | $349,101 | 28.1% |
| 20 | Royal Oak | 57,950 | $101,109 | $331,359 | 17.3% |
| 21 | Ann Arbor | 122,036 | $82,212 | $523,391 | 17.1% |
| 22 | Dearborn | 107,423 | $65,324 | $245,068 | 35.2% |
| 23 | East Grand Rapids | 11,445 | $166,610 | $664,184 | 50.3% |
| 24 | Marquette | 21,325 | $55,613 | $323,189 | 15.1% |
| 25 | Farmington | 11,504 | $97,750 | $327,491 | 24.6% |
| 26 | Ionia | 12,753 | $63,978 | $222,836 | 26.6% |
| 27 | Ferndale | 19,190 | $94,640 | $250,328 | 12.6% |
| 28 | Wyandotte | 24,489 | $71,987 | $186,227 | 24.2% |
| 29 | Riverview | 12,186 | $73,468 | $242,241 | 28.0% |
| 30 | Allen Park | 27,925 | $81,655 | $206,256 | 27.2% |
| 31 | Sterling Heights | 133,573 | $79,909 | $306,785 | 27.1% |
| 32 | Wixom | 17,295 | $65,485 | $384,492 | 16.6% |
| 33 | Ypsilanti | 19,857 | $46,588 | $282,887 | 18.3% |
| 34 | Grand Haven | 10,996 | $60,669 | $391,797 | 18.2% |
| 35 | Adrian | 20,395 | $50,209 | $185,079 | 26.9% |
| 36 | East Lansing | 45,758 | $45,687 | $311,383 | 15.0% |
| 37 | Owosso | 14,632 | $54,229 | $183,751 | 27.6% |
| 38 | Port Huron | 28,620 | $50,366 | $170,018 | 26.6% |
| 39 | Fraser | 14,583 | $64,354 | $234,792 | 25.7% |
| 40 | Dearborn Heights | 61,771 | $60,391 | $212,389 | 31.9% |
| 41 | Warren | 137,928 | $64,016 | $196,785 | 28.5% |
| 42 | Coldwater | 13,671 | $50,781 | $210,965 | 31.3% |
| 43 | Melvindale | 12,554 | $42,185 | $139,402 | 35.1% |
| 44 | Harper Woods | 15,116 | $65,022 | $153,570 | 31.2% |
| 45 | Alpena | 10,154 | $47,545 | $187,287 | 18.8% |
| 46 | St. Clair Shores | 58,140 | $73,500 | $227,950 | 20.6% |
| 47 | Oak Park | 29,318 | $71,510 | $232,982 | 23.0% |
| 48 | Auburn Hills | 25,105 | $84,375 | $277,483 | 19.8% |
| 49 | Grand Rapids | 198,535 | $69,108 | $303,298 | 26.5% |
| 50 | Mount Pleasant | 21,236 | $44,706 | $220,400 | 16.1% |
| 51 | Westland | 83,633 | $62,076 | $211,889 | 24.3% |
| 52 | Portage | 49,259 | $83,212 | $292,450 | 27.7% |
| 53 | Hazel Park | 14,963 | $67,073 | $155,502 | 20.5% |
| 54 | Madison Heights | 28,419 | $69,503 | $219,511 | 17.2% |
| 55 | Southfield | 76,236 | $68,166 | $250,952 | 21.4% |
| 56 | Romulus | 24,831 | $69,151 | $203,010 | 33.7% |
| 57 | Eastpointe | 33,982 | $62,325 | $150,775 | 32.6% |
| 58 | Escanaba | 12,354 | $45,369 | $175,184 | 20.7% |
| 59 | Lansing | 113,023 | $54,382 | $163,359 | 22.8% |
| 60 | Norton Shores | 25,041 | $76,579 | $287,720 | 31.2% |
| 61 | Hamtramck | 27,743 | $39,293 | $164,411 | 48.7% |
| 62 | Niles | 11,803 | $51,376 | $204,971 | 25.0% |
| 63 | Southgate | 29,366 | $66,118 | $192,161 | 26.3% |
| 64 | Kalamazoo | 73,076 | $52,272 | $236,274 | 22.9% |
| 65 | Woodhaven | 12,690 | $78,648 | $266,356 | 22.1% |
| 66 | Fenton | 11,906 | $80,000 | $355,969 | 26.5% |
| 67 | Wayne | 17,310 | $59,038 | $172,173 | 25.3% |
| 68 | Battle Creek | 52,374 | $55,693 | $176,635 | 28.4% |
| 69 | Flint | 80,175 | $37,646 | $65,072 | 27.4% |
| 70 | Wyoming | 77,353 | $73,677 | $286,890 | 34.4% |
| 71 | Cadillac | 10,445 | $51,773 | $228,847 | 24.5% |
| 72 | Jackson | 31,058 | $44,558 | $187,175 | 24.3% |
| 73 | Grandville | 16,356 | $78,442 | $353,731 | 30.4% |
| 74 | Kentwood | 54,296 | $74,373 | $331,531 | 29.5% |
| 75 | Inkster | 25,428 | $39,252 | $108,131 | 32.7% |
| 76 | Detroit | 638,530 | $39,938 | $75,358 | 27.8% |
| 77 | Lincoln Park | 39,257 | $58,616 | $150,869 | 29.6% |
| 78 | Walker | 25,386 | $76,360 | $352,818 | 25.0% |
| 79 | Pontiac | 62,104 | $44,329 | $137,921 | 27.6% |
| 80 | Taylor | 62,081 | $61,081 | $175,806 | 28.1% |
| 81 | Saginaw | 43,536 | $38,579 | $128,098 | 29.4% |
| 82 | Roseville | 47,123 | $62,182 | $168,929 | 24.6% |
| 83 | Sault Ste. Marie | 13,335 | $55,328 | $156,408 | 24.0% |
| 84 | Burton | 29,500 | $60,052 | $152,877 | 25.3% |
Source: U.S. Census data via Saturday Night Science. 84 Michigan cities with more than 10,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: The Best Places To Raise A Family In Michigan
If you’re looking for a breakdown of cities in Michigan ranked by criteria that most agree make a place a great spot for families, this is an accurate list.
The best places for families in Michigan are Birmingham, Rochester, Beverly Hills, Berkley, South Lyon, Troy, Clawson, Novi, New Baltimore, and Rochester Hills.
