A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Bethany Township$1,050/mo

Typical home $172K (Census) · tax rate 1.04% · or rent about $875/mo · Housing →

Ellington Township$1,080/mo

Typical home $173K (Census) · tax rate 1.22% · or rent about $867/mo · Housing →

Within $50 a month of each other.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Michigan ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Health

C−Bethany TownshipHealthier than 20% of U.S. towns C−Ellington TownshipHealthier than 21% of U.S. towns

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

Bethany TownshipEllington Township

Snow a year39″42″

January low15°F 15°F

July high82°F 82°F

Growing season (days)164d 154d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)49th 77th

Outdoors & history

Bethany TownshipEllington Township

Trails2 mi 3 mi

Conserved land0.5%24.3%

Settled1858 —

Community

Bethany TownshipEllington Township

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

64 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

Bethany TownshipGratiot County Ellington TownshipTuscola County

Bethany Township ↔ Ellington Township64 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Michigan average

Bethany TownshipEllington Township

People

Population 1,162Highest 1,146Lowest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +26%Highest MI: +2% -0.5%Lowest MI: +2%

Median age 49.6±6.9Lowest 23% above MI 51.1±11.2Highest 27% above MI

Ellington Township and Bethany Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 19.8%±4.3Highest MI: 21.2% 19.5%±5.6Lowest MI: 21.2%

Bethany Township and Ellington Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 23.8%±4Lowest MI: 18.6% 27.1%±7.5Highest MI: 18.6%

Ellington Township and Bethany Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 17.4%Lowest MI: 32.4% 20.7%Highest MI: 32.4%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3%±1.8Lowest MI: 6.1% 3.1%±2.3Highest MI: 6.1%

Ellington Township and Bethany Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $80,461±$16kLowest 10% above MI $82,250±$13kHighest 13% above MI

Ellington Township and Bethany Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $172,400±$25kLowest 26% below MI $172,900±$17kHighest 25% below MI

Ellington Township and Bethany Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Rentmedian gross, monthly $875±$111Highest 22% below MI $867±$69Lowest 23% below MI

Bethany Township and Ellington Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $1,800Lowest 38% below MI $2,117Highest 27% below MI

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 34.4%±52.5Highest MI: 50.4% 0%±73.3Lowest MI: 50.4%

Bethany Township and Ellington Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 3.8%Lowest MI: 13.2% 6.6%Highest MI: 13.2%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 92.3%Highest MI: 73.2% 89.8%Lowest MI: 73.2%

Typical home builtmedian year 1966Lowest 6 yrs older than MI 1977Highest 5 yrs newer than MI

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 23 minLowest 3% below MI 26 minHighest 6% above MI

Work from home 4.7%±2.1Lowest MI: 13.5% 7.8%±4.2Highest MI: 13.5%

Ellington Township and Bethany Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 3.1% 3.1%

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 15.3 miLowest 21.3 miHighest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.77Lowest 0.93Highest

Top workplaceoutside town Alma (18%)Caro (17%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Ellington TownshipFew work in Bethany Township

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0.5%Lowest 24.3%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 1.5 miLowest 3.1 miHighest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.1 miHighest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1 1

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 2.1Highest 1.5Lowest

Michigan average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Bethany Township neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Bethany Township’s Town Square.

Ellington Township neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Ellington Township’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Bethany Township and Ellington Township

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Bordering Bethany Township

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St. Louis7,367 people · $119K homes

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Emerson Township751 people · $184K homes

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Jasper Township927 people · $162K homes

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Wheeler Township2,591 people · $115K homes

Towns like Bethany Township

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Wheatland Township1,334 people · $183K homes

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Watertown Township1,163 people · $175K homes

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Elbridge Township981 people · $208K homes

+ Compare

Ogemaw Township1,126 people · $207K homes

Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks Michigan towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Bethany Township vs Ellington Township

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs about the same each month

Grades and rankings, side by side

What daily life feels like in each

64 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Bethany Township and Ellington Township

Bordering Bethany Township

Towns like Bethany Township

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