AreaProfile

Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI

Metro Area Profile

4,376,828 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI metropolitan area.

62
Area Score
Bottom 34% of 99 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity89th of 99 published metros40
Growth94th of 99 published metros20
Housing affordabilityTop 20% of 99 published metros95
Climate86th of 99 published metros61
Physical resilienceTop 10% of 99 published metros86
Access78th of 99 published metros82
Economic stability66th of 99 published metros62
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable published metro profiles: unemployment is 6.0% and the Opportunity signal places Detroit-Warren-Dearborn in the bottom 10%.

Natural-hazard exposure is lower than in most comparable published metro profiles, placing Detroit-Warren-Dearborn in the top 10% for physical resilience.

Its Area Score of 62 places Detroit-Warren-Dearborn in the top 66% of published metro profiles.

At a glance

Population
4,376,828
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$76,664
Top 23% nationally
Density
1,124/sq mi
3892.4 sq mi of land
Median age
40.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
Nearest major airport
DTW
36 mi · Detroit Metro Wayne County
Median home value
$249,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 6.0% is lower than 5% of the 99 measured US metros.

Employment fell 0.8% over the past year, to 2,053,380 employed residents.

35% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 80% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$554$76,664Top 23%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$233$43,384Top 17%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate13.6%Top 50%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute28.0 minTop 17%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher34.8%Top 20%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment2,053,380Top 14%July 2026
Employment change (3 years)-3.0%Bottom 5%July 2026
Employment change (year over year)-0.8%Top 50%July 2026
Labor force2,183,394Top 14%July 2026
Labor force participation62.5%Top 33%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$69,210Top 31%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$52,080Top 27%2025 OEWS
Metro employment1,904,530Top 14%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)0.4%Top 31%July 2026
Unemployment rate6.0%Top 5%July 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/072022/042023/012023/102024/072025/042026/022026/077.22.4
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 6.0% in July 2026.
Largest occupations — Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators55,100$49,240
Retail Salespersons48,610$35,130
Home Health and Personal Care Aides46,480$35,120
Registered Nurses44,310$97,280
Fast Food and Counter Workers42,430$29,590
Cashiers37,910$30,090

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,207 takes 19% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 3.3 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
18.9%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.3×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,207
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$249,700
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income3.26Top 49%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate71.2%Top 41%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4511,926,157Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$7$1,207Top 22%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$1,124$249,700Top 36%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income18.9%Top 41%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate8.2%Bottom 26%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
20/ 100
Ranks 94 of 99 published city profiles
Permitting is increasing, measured from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 4,400,578 in 2024.

At 1.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
8,283
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.9
Bottom 12% nationally
Year over year
−6%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
36.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
202020212022202320244401k4359k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 82°F and January a low of 17°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 29.2 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station PONTIAC OAKLAND CO INTL AP, 11.7 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND3.7"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation29.2"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low17°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high82°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing49°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

86 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are tornado, strong wind and ice storm.

TornadoModerate
Strong windModerate
Ice stormModerate

Low or minimal exposure: cold wave, inland flooding, heat wave, winter weather, lightning, earthquake, hail, landslide, hurricane, wildfire, coastal flooding.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 36 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Detroit Metro Wayne CountyDTW36 mi12,003 ft
Capital Region IntlLAN70 mi8,506 ft
Mbs IntlMBS71 mi8,002 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
62
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.

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