Bay City, Michigan

Population

Down 2.3% since 2020.

31,868

people, the 34th-largest of Michigan's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Michigan's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

78.9%

of 11,890 jobs located in Bay City are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2021. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Unemployment, 2026

The low came in June: 7.7%.

7.7%

in August 2026, the latest month released. A year earlier it was 8.2%.

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, monthly, through August 2026. Not seasonally adjusted, so compare with the same month a year earlier. Sources: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics

Rent

Median rent is up 50% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$766

a month. Michigan's median is $1,129.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $818 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Bay County.

• $788 Tract 2866
• $1,606 Tract 2813

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

$922–$1,384

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $766 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2021 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 0 homes permitted, 2022–2025
• 96% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.2–0.7% to the 16,078 homes here.

40–119

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2021 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 58% less than Michigan's.

$97,600

median home value in Bay City.

• $97,600 Bay City
• $231,600 Michigan
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year