City profile · Michigan · Census ACS 2023

Pearl Beach, MI

Pearl Beach's Census ACS profile: residents, income, housing, and the joined public-record layers available for this place.

4,846
Residents
$84,079
Median income
$303,000
Median home
$1,113
Median rent (state)
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Side-by-side metrics and state or size-class ranks use the same Census and FBI fields shown on this profile. Results stay in the URL so you can bookmark or share them.

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Starting with Pearl Beach, MI - add up to three more cities on the compare page.

See how it ranks

State rank, size-class rank, and four peer cities for Pearl Beach.

Place dossier plate

Sheet MI-PEARL-BEACH-MI · Pearl Beach, MI 4,846 pop · income 66th pct

POP-VILLAGE · INC-HIGH · COL-PAR · SAFE-UNK · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · HOME-MID · BOOK-UNK

  • POP-VILLAGE 4,846
  • INC-HIGH $84,079
  • COL-PAR 96.2
  • SAFE-UNK Safety pending
  • RANK-UPPER 66th
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Delhi
  • HOME-MID $303,000
  • BOOK-UNK Tracts pending

Nearest income peer: Delhi, IA (+ $0 income $)

Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.

Income neighbourhood around Pearl Beach

Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Pearl Beach on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.

median HH income

What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-08

Compare beyond this state

Nationwide peers by population, income

Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Pearl Beach on ACS population and median household income . Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.

Similar population

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 4,846.

4 peers

Similar household income

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS median household income. This city: $84,079. Population peers are excluded.

4 peers

Pearl Beach - the verdict

Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Pearl Beach places in the 66th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.

66th
percentile, household income
66th
percentile, home value
32nd
percentile, median rent
📝 How we sourced this

Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.

Data Snapshot: Pearl Beach, MI

Michigan's Pearl Beach is a small town, with 4,846 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. The typical household in Pearl Beach brings in $84,079 a year, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 5.2%. Home values in Pearl Beach run a median of $303,000, and the median resident age is 52.3 years. About 20.4% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 55.2% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

Living costs in Michigan run below the national norm: the state registers 96.2 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Below Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,113 per month statewide. Monthly utility costs average around $238 across Michigan, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 49.6 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Low).

A decision-led reading path

Useful questions to ask of Pearl Beach's data

How this reading path is ordered

This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from work and mobility to housing and income to comparison shortlist; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.

For Pearl Beach, city-specific coverage includes commute-mode shares. No matched row is reported here for local building permits, FBI reported-crime rates, annual population history, within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.

Question 1

What does the journey to work look like in Pearl Beach?

Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 85.5%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.

Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. The profile is strongly car-oriented, so a relocation comparison should put trip distance, vehicle access, and household fuel costs ahead of a citywide commute average. The same-state peer links offer a more relevant benchmark than a national label.

Compare commute patterns →

2. Housing and income

How far does income reach against housing in Pearl Beach?

This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.

The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.6 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 5.2%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.

Compare the housing trade-off →

3. Comparison shortlist

Which cities make useful reference points for Pearl Beach?

Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching.

Within Michigan, the closest population matches are Coopersville (4,841 residents, $62,575 income); Wolf Lake (4,802 residents, $49,005 income); Cheboygan (4,801 residents, $41,338 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Wellsville, NY (4,846 residents); Carolina Shores, NC (4,843 residents); North Alamo, TX (4,843 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.

Open a side-by-side comparison →

Population

4,846 residents

Micro place (under 10k)

Median Household Income

$84,079 /yr

Above median income · poverty 5.2% (Below-median poverty)

Cost of Living Index (state)

96.2 (US=100)

Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, Michigan average

City profile score · Pearl Beach, MI

56/100

4 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023

Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians (income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.

Poverty rate C+
5.2%

Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.

Household income C+
$84,079

Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.

Cost of living C
96.2 index

BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.

Bachelor's+ share F
20.4%

Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.

Violent crime N/A
N/A

No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).

Pearl Beach profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions) 4-axis radar comparing 1 series across Poverty rate, Household income, Cost of living, Bachelor's+ share. Poverty rateHousehold incomeCost of livingBachelor's+ share 56 C
Pearl Beach profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)
Read the chart values
  • Poverty rate: 64/100 (C+) · 5.2%
  • Household income: 63/100 (C+) · $84,079
  • Cost of living: 57/100 (C) · 96.2 index
  • Bachelor's+ share: 35/100 (F) · 20.4%

How does Pearl Beach compare to other US cities?

Where Pearl Beach sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.

Household income 66% higher than other cities
Home value 66% pricier than other cities
Median rent 32% pricier than other cities

"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.

How we calculate these percentiles & ranks

Each percentile compares Pearl Beach against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Michigan only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.

Michigan-relative analysis

Median Gross Rent places Pearl Beach near the bottom of Michigan's cities

Among the 727 Michigan cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Pearl Beach ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Pearl Beach only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.

Median Household Income
#109 of 718
85th percentile in Michigan
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 727
0th percentile in Michigan
Median Home Value
#73 of 721
90th percentile in Michigan
Poverty Rate
#465 of 727
35th percentile in Michigan
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#343 of 727
53rd percentile in Michigan
How in-state ranks are ordered

Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Michigan only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.

66thIncome percentile
Gauge source note

66th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.

How Pearl Beach's home value compares nationally

Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)

$303,000 34th percentile more affordable than 34% of 15,600 US cities

Show national distribution $0–$25,000: 5 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $25,000–$50,000: 54 US cities (0%). Below this entry. $50,000–$75,000: 352 US cities (2%). Below this entry. $75,000–$100,000: 1,086 US cities (7%). Below this entry. $100,000–$125,000: 1,516 US cities (10%). Below this entry. $125,000–$150,000: 1,170 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $150,000–$175,000: 1,278 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $175,000–$200,000: 1,229 US cities (8%). Below this entry. $200,000–$225,000: 1,035 US cities (7%). Below this entry. $225,000–$250,000: 976 US cities (6%). Below this entry. $250,000–$275,000: 754 US cities (5%). Below this entry. $275,000–$300,000: 712 US cities (5%). Below this entry. $300,000–$325,000: 521 US cities (3%). This entry sits in this band. $325,000–$350,000: 526 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $350,000–$375,000: 465 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $375,000–$400,000: 393 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $400,000–$425,000: 317 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $425,000–$450,000: 300 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $450,000–$475,000: 307 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $475,000–$500,000: 250 US cities (2%). Above this entry. $500,000–$525,000: 160 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $525,000–$550,000: 156 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $550,000–$575,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $575,000–$600,000: 172 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $600,000–$625,000: 163 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $625,000–$650,000: 167 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $650,000–$675,000: 135 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $675,000–$700,000: 101 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $700,000–$725,000: 95 US cities (1%). Above this entry. $725,000–$750,000: 71 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $750,000–$775,000: 65 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $775,000–$800,000: 70 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $800,000–$825,000: 57 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $825,000–$850,000: 67 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $850,000–$875,000: 60 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $875,000–$900,000: 58 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $900,000–$925,000: 47 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $925,000–$950,000: 37 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $950,000–$975,000: 31 US cities (0%). Above this entry. $975,000–$1,000,000: 470 US cities (3%). Above this entry. $1,000,000–$1,025,000: 0 US cities (0%). Above this entry. Pearl Beach $0 $1,025,000 every US city, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023

Pearl Beach's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.6×

ACS median home value divided by median household income.

Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#9,376 of 15,516
More affordable than 40% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#7,517 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)

At 3.6×, Pearl Beach sits in the moderate band: national rank #9,376 of 15,516 and #7,517 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000). Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.

How this ratio is calculated

Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000. Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0). This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.

Income distribution context

$84,079 Pearl Beach, MI median household income (Census ACS)

Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Household income distribution - Pearl Beach, MI Pearl Beach, MI's median household income ($84,079) against the U.S. national quintile-share pattern. The Lorenz curve and quintile bars are national context, not Pearl Beach, MI-specific shares. $ Household Income Distribution Pearl Beach, MI median $84,079/yr, vs. U.S. national quintile pattern QUINTILE SHARE OF AGGREGATE INCOME Lowest 20% 3.4% Second 20% 9.2% Middle 20% 15.1% Fourth 20% 23.2% Top 20% 49.1% LORENZ CURVE cumulative income vs. population 100% 0% 100% pop. 0%
Pearl Beach, MI median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Pearl Beach, MI.

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 20.4%

Census ACS S1501, educational attainment

Poverty rate (households below FPL) 5.2%

Census ACS S1701, poverty status

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 55.2%

Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
4,846
Median Income
$84,079
Median Home Value
$303,000
Median Age
52.3
Poverty Rate
5.2%
Labor force participation
55.2%
Bachelor's Degree+
20.4%

Commute Patterns

Commute source

How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023

Drive Alone
85.5%
Carpool
4.7%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
7.5%
Other
2.3%

Based on 2,191 workers 16 and over.

Monthly Utility Costs

Michigan statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $238

EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Michigan at $238 (electricity about $105 , water and sewer about $48 ).

These are Michigan statewide averages, not a meter reading for Pearl Beach. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.

Living Costs & Risk

Michigan's BEA cost-of-living index is 96.2 (Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Pearl Beach is $1,113/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Michigan statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.6 / 100 (Low).

Cost/risk geography note

Cost of living is a Michigan statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Pearl Beach sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.

How Pearl Beach compares to similar-size Michigan cities

Same-state peer method

Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.

City Population Median Household Income
Pearl Beach (this city) 4,846 $84,079
Coopersville 4,841 $62,575
Wolf Lake 4,802 $49,005
Cheboygan 4,801 $41,338
Primary sources on this page

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Citation & verification links Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities

Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES. Joins use OMB Bulletin 23-01 / FIPS keys.

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Estimate caveats

ACS and UCR figures are citywide estimates with vintage lags; they do not replace a local visit, school visit, or insurance quote.

Editorial standards, provenance, and how to cite this page

Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

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