The Michigan Cities with the Best and Worst Work-Life Balance Revealed in New Study
Photo by Vitaly Gariev
Article courtesy of OfficeRnD and commentary by Ivan Guberkov, Chief Executive Officer at OfficeRnD
- Ann Arbor has the best work-life balance in Michigan, scoring 69.2 out of 100 across six factors related to work-life balance, including average weekly hours worked and commute times.
- Lincoln Park has the worst work-life balance in Michigan, scoring 29.9 out of 100.
- Nationally, Michigan ranks sixteenth of the 50 states for work-life balance, with the eighth-shortest average working week out of all states.
New research has revealed the Michigan cities with the best and worst work-life balance, as well as how Michigan compares to each state.
The study, conducted by workplace experts OfficeRnD, assessed 1,460 cities in the US with a population of 20,000 or more on six measures of working life.
Each place was given an overall score out of 100 based on its average across average weekly hours, full-time earnings adjusted for local living costs, the share of people working from home, the average commute, the share of commuters leaving for work in the evening or overnight, and paid leave laws within the state.
The Michigan cities with the best work-life balance
| Rank | City | Work-life balance score (out of 100) | Average weekly hours | Median full-time earnings, adjusted for local prices | Workers who mainly work from home | Average one-way commute (minutes) | Commuters leaving for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m. |
| 1 | Ann Arbor | 69.2 | 34.0 | $80,311 | 28.7% | 20.0 | 7.0% |
| 2 | Bloomfield Township | 66.7 | 38.6 | $121,411 | 27.4% | 24.1 | 5.6% |
| 3 | East Lansing | 62.7 | 28.4 | $64,812 | 21.0% | 16.2 | 12.1% |
| 4 | Rochester Hills | 58.2 | 38.2 | $95,334 | 23.6% | 24.3 | 7.6% |
| 5 | Troy | 57.9 | 38.1 | $91,917 | 22.5% | 23.7 | 7.2% |
| 6 | Novi | 57.5 | 38.9 | $95,340 | 22.8% | 26.2 | 5.0% |
| 7 | Meridian Township | 56.9 | 37.6 | $83,923 | 23.3% | 20.7 | 10.2% |
| 8 | Royal Oak | 55.2 | 40.5 | $87,844 | 27.4% | 23.8 | 6.9% |
| 9 | West Bloomfield Township | 53.7 | 39.0 | $92,634 | 22.5% | 27.8 | 6.8% |
| 10 | Farmington Hills | 53.1 | 38.4 | $83,536 | 22.8% | 24.7 | 9.1% |
Ann Arbor ranks number one in Michigan, with a score of 69.2 out of 100, which also places it 34th of all US cities in the study. In Ann Arbor, 28.7% of workers mainly work from home, the highest share of any city in Michigan and 15.2 points above the state figure of 13.5%. Here, the average working week is 34.0 hours, compared to 38.1 across Michigan, and full-time pay comes to $80,311 at national average prices, compared to $63,139 statewide.
Bloomfield Township places second, with a score of 66.7 out of 100 and ranking 49th nationally, with the highest full-time pay in the state, at $121,411 at national average prices. In Bloomfield Township, 5.6% of commuters leave for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m., the second-smallest share of the 50 cities, and 27.4% of workers mainly work from home, compared to 13.5% across Michigan.
East Lansing comes third, with a score of 62.7, which puts it in 88th place nationally, with an average commute of 16.2 minutes each way, the shortest in the state. Its average working week is 28.4 hours, the shortest in Michigan, and 21.0% of its workers mainly work from home, 7.5 points above the state figure of 13.5%.
Rochester Hills ranks fourth in Michigan and 169th nationally, with a score of 58.2 out of 100. Here, full-time workers earn a median of $95,334 a year at national average prices, the third-highest pay of any city in Michigan and $32,195 above the state figure of $63,139.
Troy completes the top five, with a score of 57.9 and a national rank of 176th. Full-time workers here earn a median of $91,917 a year at national average prices, $28,778 above the state figure of $63,139 for the same period. Three of the top five sit in Oakland County, and seven of the 10 highest-ranked cities are in Oakland County.
The Michigan cities with the worst work-life balance
| Rank | City | Work-life balance score (out of 100) | Average weekly hours | Median full-time earnings, adjusted for local prices | Workers who mainly work from home | Average one-way commute (minutes) | Commuters leaving for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m. |
| 1 | Lincoln Park | 29.9 | 38.9 | $47,415 | 7.7% | 24.4 | 16.8% |
| 2 | Detroit | 33.5 | 37.6 | $45,015 | 12.0% | 24.8 | 17.1% |
| 3 | Roseville | 34.0 | 39.1 | $49,460 | 10.4% | 25.7 | 13.0% |
| 4 | Westland | 34.1 | 38.5 | $53,921 | 11.3% | 25.4 | 15.8% |
| 5 | Taylor | 34.4 | 38.7 | $53,253 | 10.0% | 21.5 | 17.3% |
| 6 | Flint | 34.5 | 36.6 | $45,578 | 8.5% | 22.7 | 17.9% |
| 7 | Muskegon | 34.6 | 36.2 | $48,949 | 5.7% | 20.6 | 19.4% |
| 8 | Pontiac | 34.8 | 38.0 | $42,227 | 4.8% | 21.2 | 13.3% |
| 9 | Warren | 35.9 | 38.6 | $53,631 | 12.8% | 24.9 | 14.8% |
| 9 | Redford Township | 35.9 | 37.4 | $53,965 | 11.8% | 24.9 | 16.7% |
Lincoln Park has the lowest work-life balance score of the 50 cities in the study, at 29.9 out of 100. Full-time workers here earn a median of $47,415 a year at national average prices, $15,724 below the state figure of $63,139 for the same period. In Lincoln Park, 16.8% of commuters leave for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m., against 12.4% across Michigan.
Detroit is second from the bottom, with a score of 33.5 out of 100, and full-time pay of $45,015 at national average prices, the second-lowest of the 50 cities, against $63,139 across Michigan. Its share of commuters starting work in the evening or overnight comes to 17.1%, against 12.4% statewide.
Roseville ranks third from the bottom, with a score of 34.0, with the longest commute of the 10 lowest-ranked cities, at 25.7 minutes each way, against 24.2 minutes across Michigan. Its average working week comes to 39.1 hours, against 38.1 hours statewide.
Westland comes fourth from the bottom, with a score of 34.1 out of 100. Here, 15.8% of commuters leave for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m., against 12.4% across Michigan, and full-time pay comes to $53,921 at national average prices, against $63,139 statewide.
Taylor completes the bottom five, with a score of 34.4 and 17.3% of its commuters leaving for work in the evening or overnight. That is 4.9 points above the state figure of 12.4%.
How Michigan compares with the rest of the US
| Rank | State | Work-life balance score (out of 100) | Average weekly hours | Median full-time earnings, adjusted for local prices | Workers who mainly work from home | Average one-way commute (minutes) | Commuters leaving for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m. | Paid leave laws |
| 1 | Colorado | 76.9 | 38.6 | $69,577 | 19.9% | 25.7 | 9.6% | Yes |
| 2 | Massachusetts | 74.7 | 37.7 | $74,521 | 14.8% | 30.6 | 8.6% | Yes |
| 3 | Minnesota | 74.6 | 37.8 | $67,760 | 14.7% | 22.7 | 10.1% | Yes |
| 4 | Connecticut | 72.5 | 37.8 | $69,940 | 13.4% | 27.0 | 8.8% | Yes |
| 5 | Oregon | 71.9 | 37.6 | $63,127 | 17.1% | 23.2 | 11.2% | Yes |
| 6 | Vermont | 71.3 | 37.4 | $66,051 | 16.0% | 23.9 | 7.8% | Sick leave only |
| 7 | Washington | 69.7 | 38.0 | $70,748 | 16.4% | 27.2 | 11.9% | Yes |
| 8 | Rhode Island | 69.1 | 37.3 | $65,568 | 11.6% | 26.3 | 9.1% | Yes |
| 9 | Maine | 66.9 | 37.9 | $62,743 | 14.7% | 25.6 | 10.3% | Yes |
| 10 | New Jersey | 63.8 | 38.0 | $67,649 | 13.5% | 31.9 | 9.4% | Yes |
| 16 | Michigan | 52.8 | 37.8 | $62,913 | 11.2% | 24.3 | 11.9% | Sick leave only |
Across the 50 states, Michigan ranks 16th for work-life balance, with a score of 52.8 out of 100. Its cities range from Ann Arbor, which ranks 34th of all 1,460 US cities and towns with populations over 20,000, to Lincoln Park, which ranks 1,183rd. The state sits behind Nebraska, which scores 55.5, and ahead of Illinois, which scores 52.6.
Michigan has the 23rd-highest pay at local prices in the country, with full-time workers earning a median of $62,913 at national average prices. It has the eighth-shortest average working week, at 37.8 hours, and the 20th-shortest commute, at 24.3 minutes each way.
In Michigan, 11.9% of commuters leave for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m., the 17th-largest share of any state, and 11.2% of its workers mainly work from home, the 18th-lowest share. Michigan is one of nine states with a statewide paid sick leave law but no paid family and medical leave program paying benefits on October 1, 2026.
Michigan finishes well ahead of its neighbors, with Ohio 30th, Wisconsin 31st and Indiana 42nd.
Ivan Guberkov, Chief Executive Officer at OfficeRnD, has commented:
“Michigan ranks 16th of the 50 states for work-life balance, and the average commute alone runs from 16.2 minutes each way in East Lansing to 28.8 minutes in Independence Township, so where you live in the state shapes your working week.
“If you’re weighing up a new job, look past the salary on the offer letter. Work out what it buys where you live and how many hours a week the job really takes once the commute is counted, then compare offers on that basis.
“Hybrid working tends to give people more say over their week, and in Michigan, 12.7% of people at work split their hours between home and work in 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“For employers, plan office days around the work that needs people in the same room, and judge your team on what they deliver, not the hours they’re seen at a desk. Give hybrid staff the same access to training and promotion as the people who are in every day.
“If your team works evenings or nights, publish schedules well in advance and protect the days off. People can plan their lives around a hard shift pattern far more easily than around one that changes every week.”
Sources:
US Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B23020, mean usual hours worked for workers 16 to 64
US Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B20018, median earnings for full-time, year-round workers
US Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B08301, means of transportation to work
US Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, tables B08013 and B08303, travel time to work
US Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year, table B08302, time of departure to go to work
Methodology:
The study ranked 1,460 cities and towns with 20,000 or more residents within their own state, and all 50 US states, on six measures of work-life balance, using the most recent official data available. This release covers the 50 Michigan cities in the study, listed from the best work-life balance to the worst.
Cities and towns are ranked on the US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) 2020 to 2024 five-year estimates. States are ranked on the 2024 one-year estimates, and every comparison between a city and Michigan in this release uses the state’s 2020 to 2024 figure, so both cover the same period.
Cities and towns are the municipalities with 20,000 or more residents in the Census Bureau’s Vintage 2025 population estimates, up to the 50 largest in each state.
The six measures are average weekly hours for workers aged 16 to 64 (table B23020); the median earnings of full-time, year-round workers (table B20018), adjusted with the 2024 Regional Price Parity from the Bureau of Economic Analysis for the place’s metro area, or the state’s nonmetropolitan price parity outside a metro area; the share of workers who worked from home (table B08301); the average one-way commute (tables B08013 and B08303); the share of commuters leaving for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m. (table B08302); and a paid leave score from zero to two for state paid family and medical leave and state or local paid sick leave laws in force.
All 50 Michigan cities included in the study, ranked from the best work-life balance to the worst
| Rank | City | Work-life balance score (out of 100) | Average weekly hours | Median full-time earnings, adjusted for local prices | Workers who mainly work from home | Average one-way commute (minutes) | Commuters leaving for work between 4 p.m. and 5 a.m. |
| 1 | Ann Arbor | 69.2 | 34.0 | $80,311 | 28.7% | 20.0 | 7.0% |
| 2 | Bloomfield Township | 66.7 | 38.6 | $121,411 | 27.4% | 24.1 | 5.6% |
| 3 | East Lansing | 62.7 | 28.4 | $64,812 | 21.0% | 16.2 | 12.1% |
| 4 | Rochester Hills | 58.2 | 38.2 | $95,334 | 23.6% | 24.3 | 7.6% |
| 5 | Troy | 57.9 | 38.1 | $91,917 | 22.5% | 23.7 | 7.2% |
| 6 | Novi | 57.5 | 38.9 | $95,340 | 22.8% | 26.2 | 5.0% |
| 7 | Meridian Township | 56.9 | 37.6 | $83,923 | 23.3% | 20.7 | 10.2% |
| 8 | Royal Oak | 55.2 | 40.5 | $87,844 | 27.4% | 23.8 | 6.9% |
| 9 | West Bloomfield Township | 53.7 | 39.0 | $92,634 | 22.5% | 27.8 | 6.8% |
| 10 | Farmington Hills | 53.1 | 38.4 | $83,536 | 22.8% | 24.7 | 9.1% |
| 11 | Orion Township | 53.0 | 39.0 | $83,796 | 20.5% | 25.7 | 6.2% |
| 12 | Pittsfield Township | 52.9 | 38.0 | $78,276 | 22.6% | 22.3 | 10.8% |
| 13 | Midland | 52.5 | 37.4 | $73,608 | 12.6% | 20.0 | 7.9% |
| 14 | Canton Township | 51.7 | 38.7 | $88,628 | 23.8% | 26.9 | 10.0% |
| 15 | Georgetown Township | 50.9 | 36.8 | $74,446 | 11.9% | 21.5 | 9.4% |
| 16 | Kalamazoo | 50.2 | 34.2 | $54,025 | 9.8% | 18.5 | 11.9% |
| 17 | Livonia | 48.8 | 38.8 | $74,804 | 18.4% | 24.3 | 9.0% |
| 18 | Portage | 48.3 | 38.9 | $69,986 | 13.7% | 19.7 | 9.3% |
| 19 | Independence Township | 48.1 | 38.9 | $81,634 | 18.2% | 28.8 | 7.5% |
| 20 | Dearborn | 47.8 | 36.8 | $60,733 | 13.2% | 21.7 | 10.1% |
| 21 | Commerce Township | 47.5 | 39.1 | $80,926 | 17.4% | 28.1 | 7.7% |
| 22 | Shelby Township | 45.9 | 38.5 | $70,916 | 15.7% | 25.1 | 9.7% |
| 23 | Macomb Township | 45.8 | 38.3 | $80,761 | 14.7% | 28.6 | 9.1% |
| 24 | Grand Rapids | 45.7 | 37.5 | $59,281 | 13.9% | 19.0 | 13.0% |
| 25 | Southfield | 44.2 | 38.6 | $63,234 | 17.0% | 23.7 | 11.4% |
| 26 | Lansing | 44.1 | 37.6 | $50,900 | 14.8% | 18.9 | 13.3% |
| 27 | Dearborn Heights | 43.4 | 36.2 | $54,357 | 12.4% | 23.9 | 12.4% |
| 28 | Grand Blanc Township | 43.0 | 39.2 | $69,379 | 13.8% | 25.7 | 9.5% |
| 29 | Sterling Heights | 42.5 | 38.1 | $62,363 | 15.7% | 24.7 | 12.4% |
| 30 | Ypsilanti Township | 42.3 | 38.0 | $55,700 | 13.9% | 24.9 | 10.4% |
| 31 | Saginaw Township | 41.7 | 39.1 | $67,522 | 9.4% | 21.6 | 11.6% |
| 32 | Saginaw | 40.8 | 35.7 | $46,710 | 7.7% | 19.2 | 15.6% |
| 33 | Chesterfield Township | 40.0 | 38.4 | $65,682 | 14.4% | 27.1 | 12.7% |
| 34 | St. Clair Shores | 39.9 | 38.9 | $62,322 | 13.8% | 26.7 | 11.1% |
| 34 | Waterford Township | 39.9 | 38.7 | $62,035 | 13.2% | 27.1 | 10.8% |
| 35 | Holland Township | 39.7 | 38.0 | $58,770 | 7.1% | 17.8 | 15.6% |
| 36 | Wyoming | 37.8 | 37.8 | $53,982 | 10.4% | 21.9 | 15.5% |
| 37 | Kentwood | 37.7 | 38.5 | $54,571 | 12.0% | 19.7 | 16.9% |
| 38 | Clinton Township | 37.1 | 38.5 | $57,372 | 11.7% | 25.4 | 13.6% |
| 39 | Battle Creek | 36.5 | 37.7 | $55,932 | 8.5% | 18.6 | 19.0% |
| 40 | Redford Township | 35.9 | 37.4 | $53,965 | 11.8% | 24.9 | 16.7% |
| 40 | Warren | 35.9 | 38.6 | $53,631 | 12.8% | 24.9 | 14.8% |
| 41 | Pontiac | 34.8 | 38.0 | $42,227 | 4.8% | 21.2 | 13.3% |
| 42 | Muskegon | 34.6 | 36.2 | $48,949 | 5.7% | 20.6 | 19.4% |
| 43 | Flint | 34.5 | 36.6 | $45,578 | 8.5% | 22.7 | 17.9% |
| 44 | Taylor | 34.4 | 38.7 | $53,253 | 10.0% | 21.5 | 17.3% |
| 45 | Westland | 34.1 | 38.5 | $53,921 | 11.3% | 25.4 | 15.8% |
| 46 | Roseville | 34.0 | 39.1 | $49,460 | 10.4% | 25.7 | 13.0% |
| 47 | Detroit | 33.5 | 37.6 | $45,015 | 12.0% | 24.8 | 17.1% |
| 48 | Lincoln Park | 29.9 | 38.9 | $47,415 | 7.7% | 24.4 | 16.8% |
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