The local economy of Michigan and its counties, metro areas and cities, from official US government data, plus daily local gas prices for the state, its counties and metro areas.
Unemployment rate
5.0%
+0.1 ptsvs a year ago
Counties: lowest Grand Traverse County 3.5%, highest Oscoda County 8.6%.
August 2026, seasonally adjusted, preliminary
Average weekly pay
$1,445
+3.9%vs a year ago
4,357,481 jobs at 312,614 business locations.
Q1 2026, all jobs
New homes permitted
22,528
-7.0%this year vs last year
Most in Wayne County 2,999, Kent County 2,400.
Homes in the last 12 months, to August 2026
People moving in
-9,417
-1.2 per 1,000residents
121,795 moved in and 131,212 moved out. Most newcomers came from Florida.
Net people, 2022 to 2023, the newest year published
Michigan gas price
$4.62
+$1.64vs a year ago
Counties: lowest Dickinson County $4.19, highest Luce County $4.83. Counties and metro areas
Regular, per gallon, Michigan, October 9, 2026
Newest data: -. Not seasonally adjusted: compare with the same month a year earlier. Click a row for the history of that area.
The state, its counties and metro areas, updated daily. A separate series from the weekly survey prices above.
Business locations, employees and payroll by industry, 2023. Click an industry for its US report.
Business locations
230K
+0.7%vs 2022
2023, places with paid employees
Employees
4.04M
+2.6%vs 2022
Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance (16.0%).
2023, mid-March
Annual payroll
$247.3B
Wages and salaries paid during the year.
2023, all industries
Average pay
$61,194
Highest sector: Utilities $132,275.
Per employee per year
Share of Michigan's employees, 2023
| Industry | Employees | Average pay |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 310,151 | $21,521 |
| Employment Services | 219,395 | $40,881 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 193,015 | $69,405 |
| Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturing | 124,432 | $64,653 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 122,995 | $111,157 |
| General Merchandise Stores, including Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters | 94,127 | $28,513 |
| Offices of Physicians | 92,800 | $90,786 |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services | 91,672 | $106,003 |
| Grocery Stores | 60,920 | $27,784 |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 60,646 | $79,586 |
| Services to Buildings and Dwellings | 55,823 | $43,347 |
| Depository Credit Intermediation | 52,959 | $81,386 |
Most values are changed slightly to protect the privacy of single businesses; a few are withheld and shown as a range. Counties and metro areas have the same numbers in the area card above (Industries).
Cost, students and graduate earnings of the colleges in the state, from official public data.
The newest unemployment rate, pay, new home permits, moves and gas price for Michigan, updated as new official numbers come out.
Unemployment for Michigan is seasonally adjusted; for its counties, metro areas and cities it is not, so compare a month with the same month a year earlier. Pay covers all jobs that pay into unemployment insurance. Building permits count homes approved to be built, not homes sold. Moves count households by where they filed their tax returns in two years in a row. Daily gas prices are average pump prices for Michigan, its counties and metro areas on the day shown. The weekly gas prices in the explorer come from a separate weekly survey that publishes a price for only some states, so a state without one shows the price of its region there; the two series are never combined.
The unemployment rate in Michigan was 5.0% in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), compared with 4.9% a year earlier. 4,612,004 people were employed out of a labor force of 4,852,504. Among its counties, Grand Traverse County had the lowest rate (3.5%) and Oscoda County the highest (8.6%, not seasonally adjusted).
Average weekly pay in Michigan was $1,445 in Q1 2026, up 3.9% from a year earlier, across 4,357,481 jobs at 312,614 business locations.
Building permits were issued for 1,836 new homes in Michigan in August 2026 (1,429 single-family and 331 in buildings with 5 or more units). From January to August the total was 14,427, down 7.0% from the same months last year, and 22,528 in the last 12 months. The most homes were permitted in Wayne County (2,999), Kent County (2,400), Oakland County (2,193) over the last 12 months.
No, more people moved out than in. From 2022 to 2023, 121,795 people moved to Michigan and 131,212 moved away, a net loss of 9,417 (-1.2 per 1,000 residents). Most newcomers came from Florida, Ohio, Illinois, and most people who left went to Florida, Texas, Ohio.
Regular gasoline in Michigan averaged $4.62 per gallon on October 9, 2026, up $1.64 from a year earlier. Diesel averaged $6.51. Among its counties, Dickinson County had the lowest regular price ($4.19) and Luce County the highest ($4.83).
Health Care and Social Assistance (645,129 employees), Manufacturing (604,978 employees), Retail Trade (464,027 employees) were the largest sectors in Michigan in 2023. In all, 229,564 business locations employed 4,041,074 people at an average pay of $61,194 a year.