What is the median rent in Big Rapids, MI?

Name: Median rent in Big Rapids, MI, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Big Rapids, MI is $929 (±$68) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 1,729 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Big Rapids, the median gross rent went from $670 in 2015–2019 to $929 in 2020–2024 (+38.7%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $929 (±$68)
Rented homes: 1,729 (±210)
$2,000 or more: 7.1%
Since 2015–2019: +38.7%

How much rent costs in Big Rapids

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Big Rapids	Mecosta County	Michigan	United States
Less than $500	14.7% (±5.1 points)	11.4%	8.3%	6.3%
$500 to $999	44.2% (±8.6 points)	46.3%	30.1%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	28.1% (±7.8 points)	29.6%	38.4%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	5.8% (±3.8 points)	6.8%	15.1%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	7.1% (±4.7 points)	4.9%	5.0%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	0.0% (±1.7 points)	0.5%	1.4%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	0.0% (±1.7 points)	0.6%	1.7%	6.8%

The most common range is $500 to $999, paid by 44.2% of renting households.

7.1% of rented homes in Big Rapids cost $2,000 or more a month.

Big Rapids against Mecosta County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Big Rapids	Mecosta County	Michigan	United States
Median gross rent	$929 (±$68)	$934 (±$42)	$1,129 (±$4)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	1,729 (±210)	3,438 (±327)	1,032,697 (±7,764)	42,849,984

In Big Rapids, median gross rent is not measurably different from Mecosta County ($934).

It is also lower than in Michigan ($1,129).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

In Mecosta County, Big Rapids ranks 6 of 17 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 706 of 1,305.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Big Rapids has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$670 (±$100)	$929 (±$68)	+38.7%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	63.3% (±4.0 points)	58.5% (±5.5 points)	−4.8 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	8.7% (±4.8 points)	10.6% (±6.3 points)	+1.9 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Big Rapids

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Big Rapids
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Big Rapids	—	$929 (±$68)	—
Big Rapids Charter Township	1.7 mi	$1,140 (±$112)	Higher
Green Charter Township	5.1 mi	$1,053 (±$400)	Not measurably different
Colfax Township (Mecosta County)	5.4 mi	$1,347 (±$72)	Higher
Mecosta Township	6.8 mi	$852 (±$52)	Not measurably different
Grant Township (Mecosta County)	7.2 mi	$917 (±$249)	Not measurably different
Norwich Township (Newaygo County)	7.7 mi	$2,083 (±$1,409)	Not measurably different
Stanwood	8.4 mi	$1,063 (±$124)	Not measurably different
Austin Township (Mecosta County)	8.8 mi	$854 (±$10)	Lower

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Austin Township (Mecosta County), MI ($854).

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Big Rapids Charter Township, MI ($1,140), Colfax Township (Mecosta County), MI ($1,347).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Mecosta County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
1	Colfax Township (Mecosta County)	$1,347 (±$72)
2	Big Rapids Charter Township	$1,140 (±$112)
3	Green Charter Township	$1,053 (±$400)
4	Hinton Township	$1,029 (±$154)
5	Deerfield Township (Mecosta County)	$1,021 (±$140)
6	Big Rapids	$929 (±$68)
7	Morton Township	$921 (±$167)
8	Grant Township (Mecosta County)	$917 (±$249)
9	Fork Township	$900 (±$62)
10	Sheridan Township (Mecosta County)	$888 (±$114)
11	Austin Township (Mecosta County)	$854 (±$10)
12	Mecosta Township	$852 (±$52)

Showing 12 of 17 places in Mecosta County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Big Rapids

What is the average rent in Big Rapids, MI?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Big Rapids is $929 (±$68) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Big Rapids?

In Big Rapids, the median gross rent went from $670 in 2015–2019 to $929 in 2020–2024 (+38.7%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Big Rapids cost more than $2,000 a month?

7.1% of rented homes in Big Rapids have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 14.7% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Big Rapids higher than in Mecosta County?

In Big Rapids, median gross rent is not measurably different from Mecosta County ($934).

It is also lower than in Michigan ($1,129).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Big Rapids city, Michigan (place:08300, in state:26).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.