County · Michigan

Clare County, Michigan

Clare County, Michigan. Clare County had 31,543 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, up 2.2% since 2020, faster than Michigan (+0.5%). It holds 19 places (3 cities, villages and boroughs and 16 towns and townships) and 12 census tracts. GEOID 26035.

Residents, July 2025 estimate

31,543

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 30,856 · ACS 2020-2024: 31,218

Median household income

$49,384

±$2,661 (90% margin)
Michigan: $72,875

Median home value

$133,800

±$9,531 (90% margin)
Michigan: $231,600

Median gross rent

$765

±$87 (90% margin)
Michigan: $1,129

How many people live in Clare County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 30,856 residents in Clare County. The Census Bureau estimates 31,543 for July 1, 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, faster than Michigan (+0.5%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 31,218 over 564 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 +304 (31,141)
2021→2022 +166 (31,307)
2022→2023 +73 (31,380)
2023→2024 +28 (31,408)
2024→2025 +135 (31,543)

Clare County in Michigan. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Clare County	Michigan	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	31,218	10,077,761	+567
Households	12,521±408	4,076,369	no clear change
Average household size	2.46±0.08	2.42	no clear change
Housing units	22,008±43	4,622,236	−1,379

Clare County's population since 2000

From 31,252 in 2000 to 31,543 in 2025: up 0.9%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 31,252
2005 (estimate) 31,701
2010 Census 30,926
2015 (estimate) 30,611
2020 Census 30,856
2025 (estimate) 31,543

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Clare County?

Clare County holds 19 places: 3 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 16 towns and townships (county subdivisions with their own government). The largest is Hayes Township, Clare County with 4,722 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Clare County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Hayes Township, Clare County	township	4,642	4,692±31	$40,250	$93,700	25.4%	100%
Surrey Township	township	3,635	3,683±37	$50,764	$121,300	23.7%	100%
Grant Township, Clare County	township	3,360	3,416±24	$61,010	$155,700	23.9%	100%
Clare	city	3,254	3,324±113	$41,226	$134,600	18.9%	98%
Harrison	city	2,150	2,110±313	$39,430	$135,100	25.5%	100%
Garfield Township, Clare County	township	1,807	1,907±299	$68,556	$171,500	16.8%	100%
Lincoln Township, Clare County	township	1,805	1,410±263	$48,953	$143,600	14.8%	100%
Hamilton Township, Clare County	township	1,785	1,799±285	$45,096	$110,500	32.0%	100%
Sheridan Township, Clare County	township	1,548	1,970±445	$64,135	$202,100	20.7%	100%
Freeman Township	township	1,125	1,431±231	$54,063	$150,600	9.9%	100%
Greenwood Township, Clare County	township	1,108	1,218±302	$54,583	$181,700	20.7%	100%
Frost Township	township	1,038	950±213	$46,667	$148,100	18.6%	100%
Hatton Township	township	893	841±215	$64,286	$147,800	13.4%	100%
Farwell	village	880	974±213	$42,188	$98,700	25.9%	100%
Franklin Township, Clare County	township	730	791±149	$52,778	$157,200	20.0%	100%
Arthur Township	township	676	566±137	$78,636	$234,600	15.7%	100%
Winterfield Township	township	460	439±75	$57,813	$123,800	13.7%	100%
Redding Township	township	459	409±100	$37,500	$85,000	27.4%	100%
Summerfield Township, Clare County	township	459	382±98	$37,321	$82,500	32.4%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Clare County?

The median resident of Clare County is 49.0 years old; 19.3% are under 18 and 25.6% are 65 or older. The largest group is non-Hispanic white residents at 92.8%, then non-Hispanic residents of two or more races at 3.0%. 0.9% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Clare County	Michigan	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	49.0±0.3	40.2	+1.8
Under 18 years	19.3%±0.1 pts	21.2%	–
65 years and over	25.6%±0.2 pts	18.6%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	2.3%	5.9%	+0.3 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	92.8%±0.6 pts	72.4%	−2.0 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	0.9%±0.2 pts	13.1%	+0.3 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	0.3%±0.1 pts	3.4%	–
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.4%±0.2 pts	0.3%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.0%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.0%±0.6 pts	4.5%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.2 pts	0.5%	–
Born outside the United States	0.9%±0.3 pts	7.2%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	5.5%±1.6 pts	10.4%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	9.5%±0.9 pts	5.8%	–
With a disability	24.3%±1.7 pts	14.3%	–
No health insurance coverage	10.2%±2.0 pts	4.9%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	88.7%±1.3 pts	92.1%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	12.9%±1.2 pts	32.4%	no clear change
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	5.3%±0.9 pts	12.7%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.7%±0.6 pts	1.4%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Clare County earn?

Half of Clare County's 12,521 households earn less than $49,384 a year (±$2,661), against $72,875 in Michigan. In 2015-2019 it was $48,692 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 21.6% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Clare County	Michigan	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$49,384±$2,661	$72,875	no clear change
Mean household income	$68,316±$3,448	$98,700	–
Per capita income	$28,794±$1,452	$40,735	no clear change
People below the poverty line	21.6%±2.1 pts	13.2%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	31.0%±5.6 pts	17.6%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	19.0%±1.7 pts	13.5%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	82.3%±2.2 pts	90.5%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Clare County?

Owners occupy 86.9% of Clare County's occupied homes and renters 13.1%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $133,800 by its owner (±$9,531). The median renter pays $765 a month including utilities, and 37.1% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Clare County	Michigan	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$133,800±$9,531	$231,600	+$21,684
Median gross rent	$765±$87	$1,129	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	37.1%±6.5 pts	41.4%	−10.1 pts
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,141±$46	$1,569	–
Owner-occupied homes	86.9%±1.6 pts	73.2%	+4.0 pts
Housing units	22,008±43	4,622,236	−1,379
Homeowner vacancy rate	1.4%±0.8 pts	0.8%	–
Rental vacancy rate	5.8%±5.0 pts	5.1%	–
Single-family detached homes	78.6%±1.6 pts	72.0%	–
Mobile homes	16.2%±1.4 pts	5.0%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.4%±0.2 pts	1.0%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	5.4%±0.8 pts	14.6%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Clare County building?

Builders took permits for 23 new housing units across Clare County in 2025 (23 single-family), 0.7 per 1,000 residents.

2019 59 units
2020 69 units
2021 53 units
2022 58 units
2023 47 units
2024 30 units
2025 23 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Clare County get to work?

71.9% of Clare County's workers drive alone and 10.9% work from home. The average trip to work takes 29.9 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 9.5%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Clare County	Michigan	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	46.2%±1.6 pts	61.3%	–
Unemployment rate	9.5%±1.5 pts	5.7%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	71.9%±3.2 pts	74.3%	–
Carpooled	12.2%±2.0 pts	7.9%	–
Public transportation	0.3%±0.3 pts	0.9%	–
Walked	2.5%±0.9 pts	2.0%	–
Worked from home	10.9%±2.0 pts	13.5%	+4.0 pts
Mean travel time to work	29.9 min±2.6	24.2 min	no clear change

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Clare County's census tracts?

Clare County is divided into 12 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $36,250 (Tract 13.02) to $71,336 (Tract 5).

Census tracts of Clare County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 126035000100	–	1,557	1,557±213	$49,911	$155,100	$850	16.2%
Tract 226035000200	–	1,390	1,410±173	$50,179	$137,800	$1,080	33.6%
Tract 326035000300	–	2,469	2,347±244	$46,205	$133,600	$825	15.6%
Tract 426035000400	Farwell (26%)	3,783	3,697±337	$55,781	$145,700	$754	27.7%
Tract 526035000500	–	1,379	1,490±241	$71,336	$173,500	not published	12.9%
Tract 626035000600	Clare (78%)	3,966	4,238±303	$41,274	$136,300	$835	25.7%
Tract 726035000700	–	3,291	3,290±309	$56,829	$156,400	$1,094	9.4%
Tract 826035000800	Clare (4%)	4,299	4,390±440	$61,000	$197,000	$625	18.6%
Tract 926035000900	–	2,044	2,156±269	$36,337	$95,700	$623	31.3%
Tract 1026035001000	–	2,736	2,767±344	$43,583	$86,900	not published	16.3%
Tract 13.0126035001301	Harrison (69%)	2,918	2,769±356	$39,241	$134,700	$620	27.4%
Tract 13.0226035001302	–	1,024	1,107±272	$36,250	$113,000	not published	32.1%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Clare County compare with Michigan's other counties?

Clare County's rank among Michigan's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	47th of 83
Growth 2020-2025	25th of 83
Residents per square mile	46th of 83
Median household income	83rd of 83
Median home value	78th of 83
Median gross rent	64th of 83
Poverty rate	2nd of 83
Bachelor's degree or higher	82nd of 83
Median age	27th of 83

Every county in Michigan

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Clare County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.