Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 42/100
D−
Median home value$173,600
Detroit $249,700
Median rent$1,120/mo
Detroit $1,207/mo
Cost-burdened households29%
Detroit 29%
Southgate
Wayne County29,366 residentsSouthgate Community School District
57
C−
Suburbgrade score
28th of 54 Detroit suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by schools.
57
Detroit median 58
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Southgate yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 57 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Southgate is like to live in, by category
Bars show Southgate against Detroit. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 36/100
F
Within-state proficiency28th pct
Detroit median 46th pct
Student–teacher ratio17.1
Detroit median 16.8
Graduation rate73%
Detroit median 87%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 72/100
B−
Housing cost index88
Detroit 100
Eff. tax rate1.68%
Detroit 1.27%
Local sales tax6.00%
Detroit median 6.00%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 68/100
B−
Mean commute23.5 min
Detroit 26.0 min
Under 30 minutes69%
Detroit 61%
Transit stops / sq mi12
Detroit median 7.8 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 90/100
A
Restaurants & cafés139
Detroit median 59 · within 2 miles
Groceries11
Detroit median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks78
Detroit median 61 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 49/100
D+
Median household income$66,118
Detroit $76,664
Unemployment4.2%
Detroit 6.4%
Professional occupations35%
Detroit 43%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Southgate yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Southgate on schools
Southgate's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbSchoolsOverall
Beverly Hills22 mi from SouthgateA 80 B+ Birmingham24 mi from SouthgateA 77 B Grosse Pointe Woods23 mi from SouthgateA− 71 B− Novi24 mi from SouthgateA− 71 B− Royal Oak21 mi from SouthgateA− 76 B Berkley20 mi from SouthgateB+ 78 B+ Within-state proficiency: EDFacts SY2021–22 · Graduation rate: EDFacts ACGR SY2018–19
Common questions about living in Southgate
Is Southgate, MI a good place to live?
Southgate scores 57 out of 100, 28th of 54 Detroit suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on schools. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Southgate expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $173,600, 30% below the Detroit median, and the effective property tax rate is 1.68%. $1,120/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Southgate?
Schools grade F. The districts serving Southgate sit at the 28th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 73% graduation rate and a 17.1 student–teacher ratio. Southgate is served by Southgate Community School District. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Southgate?
The mean commute is 23.5 min, with 69% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 12% working from home. Transit density is 12 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Southgate?
Within two miles there are 11 groceries, 139 restaurants and cafés and 78 parks, which grades A on amenities.
Are the homes in Southgate old or new?
The median home in Southgate was built in 1963 — older than the Detroit median of 1968. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 72% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.