Flint, MI vs Traverse City, MI: cost of living compared
Price levels from BEA (2024); rent and home values from Zillow (September 2026).
The short answer
- Overall, living costs in Traverse City, MI and Flint, MI are within 1% of each other (BEA, 2024).
- To keep the same standard of living, $75,000 in Flint works out to about $75,300 in Traverse City, before taxes.
- Housing is 5.5% higher in Traverse City, goods 0.0% higher and other services 0.0% higher, which roughly cancel out.
- Typical asking rent is $1,853 a month in Traverse City and $1,041 in Flint, $9,744 a year more in Traverse City (Zillow, September 2026).
- A typical home is valued at about $419,000 in Traverse City and $196,000 in Flint.
- The gap is about where it was in 2019 (1.6%).
derived Calculated from BEA Regional Price Parities (2024) and Zillow data. Based on an average household's spending; taxes not included. How we calculate.
Category by category
Both cities against the US average (100). The gap in each row is what matters for a move.
Overall prices are about the same in Flint and Traverse City
Price level by category, 2024. US average = 100.
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| All items | 93.0 | 93.4 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 93.7 |
| Housing (rents) | 74.0 | 78.1 |
| Utilities | 97.1 | 92.4 |
| Other services | 99.6 | 99.6 |
| Category | Flint | Traverse City | Traverse City vs Flint |
|---|---|---|---|
| All items | 93.0 | 93.4 | +0.4% |
| Goods | 93.7 | 93.7 | 0.0% |
| Housing (rents) | 74.0 | 78.1 | +5.5% |
| Utilities | 97.1 | 92.4 | −4.9% |
| Other services | 99.6 | 99.6 | 0.0% |
| Typical asking rent | $1,041 | $1,853 | +78.0% |
| Typical home value | $196,000 | $419,000 | +114.3% |
| Salary to match $75,000 in Flint | $75,000 | $75,300 | +0.4% |
Index values: BEA, 2024, US = 100. Rent and home values: Data Provided by Zillow Group, September 2026.
How the gap has changed since 2008
The price gap between Flint and Traverse City has narrowed since 2008: 10.7 points then, 0.3 now
Overall price level each year, 2008–2024. US average = 100.
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 96.0 | 85.3 |
| 2009 | 95.0 | 89.4 |
| 2010 | 94.7 | 94.2 |
| 2011 | 93.2 | 88.2 |
| 2012 | 93.0 | 91.7 |
| 2013 | 93.4 | 90.0 |
| 2014 | 93.2 | 90.1 |
| 2015 | 91.7 | 91.2 |
| 2016 | 90.8 | 89.7 |
| 2017 | 89.6 | 88.9 |
| 2018 | 91.8 | 92.7 |
| 2019 | 92.1 | 93.6 |
| 2020 | 89.8 | 90.4 |
| 2021 | 89.0 | 93.4 |
| 2022 | 90.9 | 93.3 |
| 2023 | 89.9 | 90.6 |
| 2024 | 93.0 | 93.4 |
Goods
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 99.9 | 76.8 |
| 2009 | 102.1 | 84.7 |
| 2010 | 100.4 | 93.4 |
| 2011 | 101.0 | 94.1 |
| 2012 | 99.5 | 95.3 |
| 2013 | 100.0 | 94.7 |
| 2014 | 99.5 | 95.6 |
| 2015 | 98.2 | 96.0 |
| 2016 | 99.1 | 94.4 |
| 2017 | 99.5 | 93.7 |
| 2018 | 97.1 | 97.1 |
| 2019 | 95.9 | 95.9 |
| 2020 | 93.7 | 93.7 |
| 2021 | 94.4 | 94.4 |
| 2022 | 92.1 | 92.1 |
| 2023 | 94.1 | 94.1 |
| 2024 | 93.7 | 93.7 |
Housing (rents)
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 79.4 | 80.8 |
| 2009 | 71.7 | 84.6 |
| 2010 | 76.4 | 93.4 |
| 2011 | 67.6 | 71.3 |
| 2012 | 72.0 | 79.8 |
| 2013 | 69.4 | 75.0 |
| 2014 | 67.2 | 74.2 |
| 2015 | 67.7 | 84.8 |
| 2016 | 65.2 | 80.5 |
| 2017 | 63.0 | 80.5 |
| 2018 | 69.4 | 78.0 |
| 2019 | 70.3 | 79.5 |
| 2020 | 64.8 | 70.8 |
| 2021 | 57.9 | 81.4 |
| 2022 | 68.6 | 83.8 |
| 2023 | 65.0 | 69.5 |
| 2024 | 74.0 | 78.1 |
Utilities
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 100.3 | 86.4 |
| 2009 | 107.5 | 92.4 |
| 2010 | 107.5 | 100.6 |
| 2011 | 109.3 | 95.0 |
| 2012 | 111.2 | 98.0 |
| 2013 | 112.7 | 97.3 |
| 2014 | 105.5 | 92.8 |
| 2015 | 106.7 | 93.4 |
| 2016 | 107.3 | 96.6 |
| 2017 | 108.7 | 93.4 |
| 2018 | 103.9 | 97.2 |
| 2019 | 98.6 | 95.7 |
| 2020 | 103.3 | 97.9 |
| 2021 | 104.7 | 98.7 |
| 2022 | 96.6 | 92.4 |
| 2023 | 96.4 | 92.0 |
| 2024 | 97.1 | 92.4 |
Other services
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 100.2 | 94.5 |
| 2009 | 99.2 | 95.0 |
| 2010 | 98.0 | 94.8 |
| 2011 | 97.4 | 92.5 |
| 2012 | 96.6 | 94.7 |
| 2013 | 97.5 | 93.5 |
| 2014 | 98.8 | 94.1 |
| 2015 | 96.6 | 91.1 |
| 2016 | 94.9 | 90.4 |
| 2017 | 93.4 | 89.7 |
| 2018 | 96.5 | 96.5 |
| 2019 | 98.6 | 98.6 |
| 2020 | 97.8 | 97.8 |
| 2021 | 97.9 | 97.9 |
| 2022 | 98.2 | 98.2 |
| 2023 | 97.7 | 97.7 |
| 2024 | 99.6 | 99.6 |
Rent and home values
Typical asking rent: $1,853 in Traverse City vs $1,041 in Flint
Typical asking rent for a new lease, dollars per month. Quarterly.
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
- United States
Source: Zillow Observed Rent Index (typical asking rent, all homes, smoothed), through September 2026. Data Provided by Zillow Group.
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2015 | $562 | – | $1,145 |
| Jun 2015 | $567 | – | $1,170 |
| Sep 2015 | $586 | – | $1,181 |
| Dec 2015 | $570 | – | $1,182 |
| Mar 2016 | $581 | – | $1,195 |
| Jun 2016 | $603 | – | $1,219 |
| Sep 2016 | $599 | – | $1,225 |
| Dec 2016 | $606 | – | $1,222 |
| Mar 2017 | $608 | – | $1,245 |
| Jun 2017 | $616 | – | $1,270 |
| Sep 2017 | $618 | – | $1,276 |
| Dec 2017 | $624 | – | $1,275 |
| Mar 2018 | $634 | – | $1,296 |
| Jun 2018 | $646 | – | $1,320 |
| Sep 2018 | $651 | – | $1,327 |
| Dec 2018 | $645 | – | $1,329 |
| Mar 2019 | $656 | – | $1,349 |
| Jun 2019 | $682 | – | $1,376 |
| Sep 2019 | $687 | – | $1,383 |
| Dec 2019 | $673 | – | $1,381 |
| Mar 2020 | $679 | – | $1,402 |
| Jun 2020 | $713 | – | $1,406 |
| Sep 2020 | $716 | – | $1,410 |
| Dec 2020 | $734 | – | $1,407 |
| Mar 2021 | $751 | – | $1,443 |
| Jun 2021 | $782 | – | $1,512 |
| Sep 2021 | $818 | – | $1,590 |
| Dec 2021 | $824 | – | $1,622 |
| Mar 2022 | $844 | – | $1,661 |
| Jun 2022 | $881 | $1,454 | $1,721 |
| Sep 2022 | $879 | $1,435 | $1,748 |
| Dec 2022 | $875 | $1,430 | $1,735 |
| Mar 2023 | $857 | $1,473 | $1,757 |
| Jun 2023 | $870 | $1,638 | $1,785 |
| Sep 2023 | $894 | $1,591 | $1,797 |
| Dec 2023 | $903 | $1,528 | $1,786 |
| Mar 2024 | $922 | $1,666 | $1,807 |
| Jun 2024 | $934 | $1,681 | $1,837 |
| Sep 2024 | $969 | $1,661 | $1,845 |
| Dec 2024 | $971 | $1,609 | $1,836 |
| Mar 2025 | $964 | $1,677 | $1,860 |
| Jun 2025 | $988 | $1,756 | $1,880 |
| Sep 2025 | $989 | $1,774 | $1,881 |
| Dec 2025 | $1,002 | $1,695 | $1,873 |
| Mar 2026 | $1,006 | $1,785 | $1,894 |
| Jun 2026 | $1,034 | $1,852 | $1,921 |
| Sep 2026 | $1,041 | $1,853 | $1,932 |
Typical home value: $419,000 in Traverse City vs $196,000 in Flint
Typical home value, dollars. Quarterly.
- Flint, MI
- Traverse City, MI
- United States
Source: Zillow Home Value Index (typical home value, middle tier, smoothed, seasonally adjusted), through September 2026. Data Provided by Zillow Group.
Show the numbers
| Flint, MI | Traverse City, MI | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2015 | $75K | $196K | $189K |
| Jun 2015 | $77K | $197K | $192K |
| Sep 2015 | $79K | $199K | $195K |
| Dec 2015 | $81K | $203K | $199K |
| Mar 2016 | $83K | $207K | $202K |
| Jun 2016 | $86K | $208K | $204K |
| Sep 2016 | $88K | $208K | $206K |
| Dec 2016 | $91K | $211K | $209K |
| Mar 2017 | $93K | $216K | $213K |
| Jun 2017 | $96K | $220K | $216K |
| Sep 2017 | $98K | $223K | $219K |
| Dec 2017 | $101K | $226K | $223K |
| Mar 2018 | $104K | $231K | $227K |
| Jun 2018 | $108K | $234K | $230K |
| Sep 2018 | $110K | $238K | $234K |
| Dec 2018 | $111K | $240K | $236K |
| Mar 2019 | $115K | $243K | $239K |
| Jun 2019 | $119K | $244K | $242K |
| Sep 2019 | $119K | $246K | $244K |
| Dec 2019 | $121K | $250K | $247K |
| Mar 2020 | $124K | $257K | $252K |
| Jun 2020 | $126K | $256K | $255K |
| Sep 2020 | $129K | $261K | $260K |
| Dec 2020 | $137K | $276K | $271K |
| Mar 2021 | $145K | $294K | $282K |
| Jun 2021 | $153K | $315K | $296K |
| Sep 2021 | $155K | $327K | $306K |
| Dec 2021 | $155K | $332K | $314K |
| Mar 2022 | $162K | $347K | $330K |
| Jun 2022 | $168K | $366K | $346K |
| Sep 2022 | $167K | $367K | $348K |
| Dec 2022 | $164K | $366K | $345K |
| Mar 2023 | $163K | $367K | $343K |
| Jun 2023 | $166K | $380K | $347K |
| Sep 2023 | $171K | $388K | $352K |
| Dec 2023 | $173K | $388K | $354K |
| Mar 2024 | $176K | $392K | $357K |
| Jun 2024 | $180K | $398K | $361K |
| Sep 2024 | $180K | $402K | $361K |
| Dec 2024 | $181K | $407K | $363K |
| Mar 2025 | $182K | $407K | $364K |
| Jun 2025 | $184K | $408K | $362K |
| Sep 2025 | $188K | $407K | $362K |
| Dec 2025 | $191K | $410K | $364K |
| Mar 2026 | $194K | $415K | $366K |
| Jun 2026 | $195K | $417K | $365K |
| Sep 2026 | $196K | $419K | $366K |
More about each city
What this comparison leaves out
- Taxes. State and local income, sales and property taxes can change the result a lot, especially between states.
- Neighborhoods. These are metro-wide averages; a city center and its outer suburbs can differ by more than two metros do.
- Your own spending mix. The default uses an average household. Use the housing slider above if rent is a bigger share of your budget.
- Timing. BEA price levels are for 2024; Zillow figures are monthly and newer.