The 10 Most Boring Places In Michigan For 2023


The most boring places in Michigan are Norton Shores and Beverly Hills for 2023 based on Saturday Night Science.

There’s no denying it: there are plenty of places in Michigan that are downright beautiful and full of excitement.

Unfortunately, not all towns and cities in Wolverine State are so lucky.

Just like in all U.S. States, there are definitely some boring places within Michigan’s’ borders. You know the places where everyone has an AARP card and the most exciting thing they do all day is post a picture of their grandchild on Facebook.

Like Norton Shores, for instance. In our latest analysis, we found that this city was the most boring city in all of Oklahoma according to Saturday Night Science. But don’t feel bad if you’re a resident of Norton Shores. There are plenty of other boring, lackluster places in Michigan as well.

Here they are. Try not to jump out of your seat with excitement.

Don’t freak out, in fact, believe it not, a boring city is actually one a lot of people would like to call home.

Before you get all upset if your city’s name is on the list, rest assured that we didn’t use personal opinion when it comes to what classifies a city or town as “boring” or “exciting”. We crunched actual numbers to figure out which towns are statistically more boring.

Showing this data to you is the kind of thing that a real estate agent knows, but would never share.

For more Michigan reading, check out:


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Most Boring Places In Michigan For 2023

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10
Population: 24,984
Average Age: 40.2
% Married: 47.0%
More on Norton Shores: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Beverly Hills, MI

Source: Flickr User Ken Lund | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10
Population: 10,550
Average Age: 47.1
% Married: 40.0%
More on Beverly Hills: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Marysville, MI

Source: Wikipedia User Mac1island | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 9,973
Average Age: 44.3
% Married: 44.0%
More on Marysville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Tecumseh, MI

Source: Wikipedia User Barbara Eckstein | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10
Population: 8,678
Average Age: 40.6
% Married: 38.0%
More on Tecumseh: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Chelsea, MI

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10
Population: 5,440
Average Age: 50.1
% Married: 38.0%
More on Chelsea: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Marshall, MI

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 6,806
Average Age: 45.4
% Married: 37.0%
More on Marshall: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Grosse Pointe Farms, MI

Source: Wikipedia User Appraiser | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

10
/10
Population: 10,018
Average Age: 51.4
% Married: 45.0%
More on Grosse Pointe Farms: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Frankenmuth, MI

Source: Wikipedia User AndrewHorne | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10
Population: 5,064
Average Age: 49.4
% Married: 45.0%
More on Frankenmuth: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Woodhaven, MI

Source: Wikipedia User Dethistoricaler at English Wikipedia | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10
Population: 12,867
Average Age: 45.8
% Married: 41.0%
More on Woodhaven: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Swartz Creek, MI

Source: Wikipedia User donzigw | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 5,865
Average Age: 43.2
% Married: 36.0%
More on Swartz Creek: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How we determined the boring cities in the Wolverine State

You would present the following case to your friends if you were argueing with them at a bar about the most boring place to live in Michigan. And that’s why we call it Saturday Night Science.

Because our data speaks more truth than feelings.

To figure out how boring a place is, we factored in things we generally think make people exciting, and then we figure out which cities have the least number of those exciting people.

We used the U.S. American Community Census data to gather the information presented here. HSome of the things people tend to think of as making a city’s population boring include:

  • % of Population Over 25 (higher is more boring)
  • % of Married Household (higher is more boring)
  • Average Age (higher is more boring)
  • % of Households With Kids (higher is more boring)
  • Population density (lower is more boring)

Then, our algorithm generates a ranking for each place in these categories. After crunching the numbers, all of the cities ranked from most boring to most exciting.

For this ranking, we used every Michigan city with at least 5,000 residents. This keeps us from prejudicing our rankings by including very small pockets of retired people.

Grab your rocker and hold on.

We updated this article for 2023, and it’s our tenth time ranking the most boring cities in Michigan.

There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep

On a ranking like this, there are usually no winners, but since Michigan isn’t necessarily the most boring state in the United States, the cities on this ranking can at least take solace that there are, in fact, more boring cities in the country.

If you’re also curious enough, here are the most exciting places in Michigan, according to science:

  1. East Lansing
  2. Ypsilanti
  3. Ann Arbor

For more Michigan reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Most Boring Cities In Michigan For 2023

Rank City Population Average Age % Married % Kids
1 Norton Shores, MI 24,984 40.2 47.0% 32.7%
2 Beverly Hills, MI 10,550 47.1 40.0% 35.1%
3 Marysville, MI 9,973 44.3 44.0% 28.7%
4 Tecumseh, MI 8,678 40.6 38.0% 32.5%
5 Chelsea, MI 5,440 50.1 38.0% 21.9%
6 Marshall, MI 6,806 45.4 37.0% 22.2%
7 Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 10,018 51.4 45.0% 28.2%
8 Frankenmuth, MI 5,064 49.4 45.0% 21.5%
9 Woodhaven, MI 12,867 45.8 41.0% 24.1%
10 Swartz Creek, MI 5,865 43.2 36.0% 27.2%
11 Iron Mountain, MI 7,522 42.7 35.0% 24.0%
12 Alpena, MI 10,200 44.7 33.0% 22.0%
13 Grand Haven, MI 10,961 43.7 40.0% 22.9%
14 Ironwood, MI 5,088 51.1 28.0% 17.4%
15 Trenton, MI 18,420 49.1 40.0% 23.7%
16 Grand Ledge, MI 7,795 41.9 43.0% 28.2%
17 Petoskey, MI 5,859 41.0 36.0% 26.6%
18 Northville, MI 6,088 47.7 34.0% 26.3%
19 Rockford, MI 6,144 40.3 39.0% 31.2%
20 St. Johns, MI 7,711 41.3 39.0% 30.1%
21 Davison, MI 5,114 42.3 36.0% 28.8%
22 Belding, MI 5,942 36.8 34.0% 39.0%
23 New Baltimore, MI 12,104 41.9 46.0% 29.4%
24 Brighton, MI 7,486 45.8 37.0% 19.4%
25 Huntington Woods, MI 6,365 43.5 45.0% 37.5%
26 Livonia, MI 94,928 45.2 39.0% 24.3%
27 Holly, MI 5,997 44.2 41.0% 21.6%
28 Gladstone, MI 5,231 40.5 36.0% 29.6%
29 Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 16,338 44.5 43.0% 28.6%
30 Burton, MI 29,568 42.8 33.0% 25.5%
31 St. Clair, MI 5,496 41.9 39.0% 30.6%
32 Milford, MI 6,483 41.5 39.0% 30.4%
33 Escanaba, MI 12,403 42.9 31.0% 22.3%
34 Zeeland, MI 5,701 42.6 36.0% 28.4%
35 Midland, MI 42,404 38.8 35.0% 28.3%
36 Grosse Pointe Park, MI 11,513 42.6 43.0% 30.5%
37 Walker, MI 25,175 38.0 38.0% 25.3%
38 Mason, MI 8,284 41.4 33.0% 25.4%
39 Allen Park, MI 28,395 43.5 40.0% 27.0%
40 Flushing, MI 8,349 39.4 41.0% 29.8%
41 Saline, MI 8,973 44.6 29.0% 25.4%
42 South Lyon, MI 11,788 46.7 41.0% 23.4%
43 Eaton Rapids, MI 5,201 38.8 35.0% 33.4%
44 Novi, MI 65,870 40.0 25.0% 35.5%
45 Grandville, MI 16,017 35.0 46.0% 30.2%
46 Manistee, MI 6,248 46.9 34.0% 19.5%
47 Hudsonville, MI 7,633 32.1 49.0% 45.6%
48 Rochester Hills, MI 76,041 40.9 30.0% 32.1%
49 Kingsford, MI 5,127 40.6 32.0% 26.8%
50 Ludington, MI 7,691 42.3 36.0% 23.6%
51 Troy, MI 87,170 42.1 26.0% 32.6%
52 Milan, MI 6,153 39.1 33.0% 30.0%
53 Fenton, MI 11,967 38.1 36.0% 26.1%
54 Greenville, MI 8,866 37.3 32.0% 29.7%
55 Cadillac, MI 10,400 39.9 35.0% 23.3%
56 Lapeer, MI 9,034 40.3 27.0% 24.6%
57 Plymouth, MI 9,300 44.3 31.0% 29.5%
58 Ishpeming, MI 6,191 36.4 35.0% 28.8%
59 Menominee, MI 8,429 49.0 20.0% 18.5%
60 Fraser, MI 14,668 41.9 31.0% 28.1%
61 Romulus, MI 25,055 34.1 32.0% 37.5%
62 Farmington Hills, MI 83,562 41.6 28.0% 25.3%
63 St. Louis, MI 6,932 38.4 21.0% 28.7%
64 Coldwater, MI 13,704 40.2 20.0% 30.8%
65 Charlotte, MI 9,273 35.7 31.0% 33.3%
66 St. Clair Shores, MI 58,656 43.9 38.0% 20.4%
67 East Grand Rapids, MI 11,385 37.5 46.0% 50.8%
68 Flat Rock, MI 10,448 35.7 33.0% 38.2%
69 Birmingham, MI 21,738 42.0 32.0% 30.6%
70 Riverview, MI 12,390 41.3 34.0% 25.0%
71 Portage, MI 48,936 36.7 32.0% 29.1%
72 Allegan, MI 5,180 34.1 33.0% 32.9%
73 Southgate, MI 29,948 40.3 34.0% 27.1%
74 Grosse Pointe, MI 5,621 44.1 39.0% 27.2%
75 Ionia, MI 13,081 36.3 22.0% 34.0%
76 Hastings, MI 7,504 38.1 32.0% 24.3%
77 Dundee, MI 5,408 37.0 24.0% 22.5%
78 Utica, MI 5,195 44.6 24.0% 17.4%
79 St. Joseph, MI 7,852 45.1 22.0% 16.2%
80 Sterling Heights, MI 133,744 41.2 27.0% 28.1%
81 Berkley, MI 15,150 37.6 40.0% 23.6%
82 Walled Lake, MI 7,262 42.1 25.0% 22.9%
83 Wixom, MI 17,007 36.3 27.0% 22.5%
84 Battle Creek, MI 52,469 37.0 24.0% 28.7%
85 Grand Blanc, MI 8,034 38.3 32.0% 29.6%
86 New Haven, MI 6,200 31.3 33.0% 49.1%
87 Richmond, MI 5,852 38.7 29.0% 27.0%
88 Rochester, MI 12,978 40.0 33.0% 27.8%
89 Wyandotte, MI 24,857 39.6 34.0% 24.1%
90 Wayne, MI 17,568 41.1 29.0% 25.4%
91 Mount Clemens, MI 15,679 40.2 28.0% 24.5%
92 Monroe, MI 20,400 36.6 29.0% 27.6%
93 Roseville, MI 47,476 40.7 30.0% 25.5%
94 Farmington, MI 11,486 38.4 30.0% 23.3%
95 Southfield, MI 76,107 42.1 22.0% 22.5%
96 Clawson, MI 11,388 41.3 32.0% 16.6%
97 Sturgis, MI 11,050 35.3 23.0% 32.8%
98 Taylor, MI 62,937 37.9 29.0% 28.2%
99 Owosso, MI 14,678 37.2 33.0% 27.4%
100 Warren, MI 138,588 38.5 27.0% 27.7%
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.

3 thoughts on “The 10 Most Boring Places In Michigan For 2023

  1. Wow! What about Marine City or Algonac? This last seemed to be more of a personal list and a way to vent your frustrations for being single. I grew up in Saginaw….Rochester and Troy have things to do compared to Saginaw. I suggest you post your pity party on your own Facebook page next time!

  2. That’s certainly one way to look at data… Accuracy aside, the article is hilarious. I live in RH and do see some of what you mentioned. Though it really depends on what you like. Funny stuff. 🙂

  3. My list:
    1. Meade
    2. Merrill
    3. Reed City
    4. Big Rapids
    5. Trenton
    6. Peck
    7. Manton
    8. Almont
    9. Riley
    10. Forestville

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