The median worker in the Bay City, MI metro area earned $41,940 a year in 2024, about $20.17 an hour. That ranks #331 of the 391 metro areas published here, 15.3% below the national median.
Bay City pays 13.2% less than Michigan as a whole. Metros usually run ahead of their states because they concentrate higher-paying industries, and the gap is a rough measure of how much of a state's economy sits in its cities.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 state estimates. Wage and salary workers only, excluding the self-employed.
The median across all occupations is $41,940, or $20.17 an hour, covering 33,370 wage and salary workers. The mean is $53,170, higher because a small number of very large salaries pull an average upward.
Does Bay City pay more than the rest of Michigan?
No. The metro median of $41,940 is 13.2% below the Michigan median of $48,300. Metropolitan areas usually pay more than their states because they concentrate higher-paying industries, and usually cost more to live in for the same reason.
Which jobs pay best in Bay City?
Registered Nurses ($87,670), General and Operations Managers ($78,690), Accountants and Auditors ($68,060). Medical specialities top nearly every metro list, which reflects how the occupations are classified more than local conditions.
What is Bay City unusually full of?
Fast Food and Counter Workers, at 1.78× the national concentration. Location quotient is a better description of a local economy than its biggest employers, which are retail and food service almost everywhere.