Best PlacesZeeland, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Zeeland, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Zeeland ranks 694th of 2,098 U.S. cities on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and internet speeds rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Zeeland
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Zeeland's strengths and weaknesses
Where Zeeland ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 98% of cities
- Voter turnoutBetter than 97% of cities
- Short commute16.8 minutes each way, better than 97% of cities
- Low vacancyBetter than 92% of cities
- Heat safetyBetter than 92% of cities
Where Zeeland ranks low
- Internet speedBetter than only 5% of cities
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 12% of cities
- Local economyBetter than only 13% of cities
- TransitBetter than only 13% of cities
- WalkabilityBetter than only 25% of cities
What it costs to buy a home in Zeeland
A household needs to earn about $92,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Zeeland home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $94,639, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Zeeland's effective rate of 1.05%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Zeeland
Zeeland's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Zeeland.
Who works in Zeeland, and how
Work in Zeeland centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Zeeland
Zeeland has more parkland per resident than 80% of cities. That concentrates in some parts of Zeeland and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Zeeland, month by month
Zeeland sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 28° | 21° |
| April | 59° | 47° | 37° |
| July | 84° | 73° | 61° |
| October | 64° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of Zeeland
The nearest airport, Gerald R Ford International, is about 25 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Mitchell International, about 96 miles away.
The best schools in and around Zeeland
Schools across Zeeland average a B−, better than 49% of cities.
Top elementary schools
- New Groningen SchoolA · 64% proficient
- Adams Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Park Elemementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Baldwin Street Middle SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Riley Street Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- Cityside Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- Jenison High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Hudsonville High SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Allendale High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Zeeland school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Zeeland measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Zeeland against the other 2,097 cities.
Who Zeeland suits
Families
Schools land around the 49th percentile and crime safety beats 98%.
Common questions about living in Zeeland
Is Zeeland a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Zeeland ranks 694th of 2,098 cities. It scores highest on low crime, civic engagement, and short commutes, and lowest on internet speeds and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Zeeland expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $339,953. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $94,639 median income, cost of living beats 61% of cities.
Is Zeeland safe?
Yes, Zeeland is safer than 98% of cities. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $176 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Zeeland?
July highs average about 84 degrees, and January highs near 35 with lows near 21. That works out to about 72 pleasant days a year, more than 30% of cities.
Is Zeeland good for families?
Schools beat 49% of cities, crime safety beats 98%, and childcare runs $741 a month.
Compare Zeeland with other cities
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Zeeland. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Zeeland represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Zeeland detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Zeeland: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Zeeland: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Zeeland: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Zeeland: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Zeeland detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.