Ann Arbor Tops The List For Young Professionals In 2025

When you think of Ann Arbor, a college town might come to mind. However, for out-of-state Gen Z young professionals, this Michigan city represents an affordable and highly livable place to call home.

To be fair, the college scene is a plus for these up-and-comers.

A new study shows that Gen Z professionals are leaning toward smaller, affordable cities with solid economies and a strong university presence.

What Michigan city are Gen Z professionals moving to?

If it wasn’t obvious already, Ann Arbor came out on top in this Rent Cafe study. For all of you Michigan State University fans, Lansing came in at number 20 on the list.

To determine where Gen Z professionals are moving to in 2025, Rent Cafe looked at the following criteria,

• Number of Gen Z adults
• Count of Gen Z adults with advanced education
• Liveability
• Income
• Job market
• Shift in unemployment rate

I am no scientist, so I will leave the technical stuff to the experts. But I can tell you this, Ann Arbor's arts scene is awesome, the food scene is diverse and delicious, and the parks and trails are perfect for getting outside and enjoying nature.

According to Rent Cafe, Ann Arbor's tech and startup scene is on the rise.

The benefits of living in Ann Arbor just keep piling up. What do you think? Are you a young professional currently living in Ann Arbor?

If so, besides what’s already mentioned, what else attracted you to this Michigan city?

If your answer is Zingerman’s Deli, I completely understand.