county

Benzie County, MI

Demographic and economic profile of Benzie County, MI, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Benzie County is a small, rural Michigan county of 18,177 residents with a median age of 50.8 and a labor force participation rate of 54.8%, reflecting a largely older, retirement-influenced population. The workforce of roughly 10,000 active participants earns median wages of $34,788, sitting below the median household income of $74,834, which suggests a notable reliance on investment or transfer income; 34.3% hold a bachelor's degree or higher against a 93.9% high school attainment rate. Population grew 3.6% over five years, homeownership stands at 87.8% with a median home value of $254,400, and the 4.1% unemployment rate pairs with a GDP per capita of $30,632, pointing to a low-output, lower-cost residential economy.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

18,177

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$74,834

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

50.8 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+3.6% since 2018

Benzie County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone16,806 (91.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races404 (2.2%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race398 (2.2%)
  • Some Other Race Alone229 (1.3%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone167 (0.9%)
  • Asian Alone161 (0.9%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish160
  2. 2.Other Indo-European75
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic60
  4. 4.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic11
  5. 5.Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)7

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

17.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

55.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

27.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.4%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,469

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$30,632

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$40,984

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

4.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

10.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,900
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)1,035
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services961
  4. 4.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services807
  5. 5.Construction (Group)714

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations3,229
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations1,705
  3. 3.Service Occupations1,520
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations912
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations780

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.56×)289
  2. 2.Other Services (LQ 1.33×)503
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.32×)929
  4. 4.Retail Trade (LQ 1.21×)1,058
  5. 5.Construction (LQ 1.08×)600

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$254,400

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$974/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

87.8%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $300,000 to $399,9991,313 (19.4%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999897 (13.3%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999775 (11.5%)
  • $400,000 to $499,999745 (11.0%)
  • $500,000 to $749,999559 (8.3%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999413 (6.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

34.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

93.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

54.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$34,788

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

24.6 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

2.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone6,151 (76.6%)
  • Worked At Home891 (11.1%)
  • Carpooled726 (9.0%)
  • Walked94 (1.2%)
  • Other82 (1.0%)
  • Public Transit67 (0.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.