Postal Codes

49686 ZIP Code

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ZIP code 49686 covers Traverse City, Michigan, with a population of about 25,181 and a median household income of $71,198.

Population
25,181532 per square mile
Median age
47.18.4 points above the US average
Median household income
$71,198about the Michigan median
Poverty rate
11.3%1.1 points below the US average
Typical home value
$406,395up 30.1% in five years
Median rent
$1,2091.1× the Michigan median
Degree or higher
45.9%10.9 points above the US average
Homeownership
71.1%6.1 points above the US average
Time zone
Eastern UTC-05:00observes daylight saving time
Businesses
1,164

Where 49686 is

Traverse City, Michigan — the area the Census Bureau draws for this ZIP code. ZIP codes are sets of delivery routes rather than areas, so this is the Census approximation of one, not a Postal Service boundary.

People and households

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Population25,181
Median age47.1
Family households54.3%
Born outside the US1.7%
Speaks a language other than English at home4%
White (non-Hispanic)90.6%
Black (non-Hispanic)0.6%
Asian (non-Hispanic)0.4%
Hispanic or Latino5.1%
Veterans7%
Population by age
MaleFemale0-45-910-1415-1920-2425-3435-4445-5455-6465-7475-8485+
Income and poverty

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median household income$71,198
Income per person$48,520
Poverty rate11.3%
Households on SNAP or cash assistance10.2%

Household income distribution

Under $10k5.5%
$10–15k2.0%
$15–20k3.7%
$20–25k3.9%
$25–30k4.1%
$30–35k5.5%
$35–40k3.6%
$40–45k3.1%
$45–50k3.4%
$50–60k7.7%
$60–75k9.3%
$75–100k14.9%
$100–125k9.9%
$125–150k6.5%
$150–200k7.0%
$200k or more10.1%

Income as declared to the IRS

Filed returns rather than survey responses, so this counts tax units and not households.

Tax returns filed13,710
Mean adjusted gross income$113,472
Returns declaring $200,000 or more9.1%
Returns, under $25k28.4%
Returns, $25k–$50k23.6%
Returns, $50k–$75k15.1%
Returns, $75k–$100k8.7%
Returns, $100k–$200k15.2%
Returns, $200k or more9.1%
Housing

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median home value$295,500
Median gross rent$1,209
Rent as a share of household income30.1%
Owner-occupied71.1%
Vacant homes11.9%
Median year built1982

What the homes are

Detached house63.6%
Attached house6.5%
2 to 4 units6.3%
5 to 19 units9.7%
20 or more units5.5%
Mobile home8.4%
Home values and rents today

Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, courtesy of Zillow. Monthly and current, where the Census figures above are a five-year average and are capped at $2,000,000.

Typical home value$406,395as of 2026-07
Typical home value, 1 yearup 0.8%
Typical home value, 5 yearsup 30.1%
Typical home value, 10 yearsup 106.8%
Typical asking rent$2,020as of 2026-07
Typical asking rent, 1 yearup 3.4%
Typical home value since 2000
200020132026$406,395$111,354

$111,354 in 2000 to $406,395 in 2026.

Work, commuting and education

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Unemployment rate3.1%
Bachelor's degree or higher45.9%
High school diploma or higher95.3%
Works from home17.4%
Drives to work alone63%
Takes public transport1.6%
Commutes 45 minutes or more7.6%
Health

CDC PLACES 2025 release, model-based estimates. These are modelled small-area estimates for adults, not counts of diagnosed cases.

Obesity34.8% 1.4 pts above the national average of 33.4%
Diagnosed diabetes10.8% 1.2 pts below the national average of 12%
Currently smokes12.2% 1 pts below the national average of 13.2%
High blood pressure35.3% 1.2 pts above the national average of 34.1%
Fair or poor general health17% 3.3 pts below the national average of 20.3%
No health insurance (18–64)5.5% 5.8 pts below the national average of 11.3%
Depression25.5% 3.6 pts above the national average of 21.9%
No leisure-time physical activity22.5% 2.9 pts below the national average of 25.4%
Arthritis30.4% 5.3 pts above the national average of 25.1%
Binge drinking16.5% 0.5 pts above the national average of 16%
Taking blood pressure medication78.8% 4.1 pts above the national average of 74.7%
Cancer (non-skin)10.8% 3.1 pts above the national average of 7.7%
Current asthma11.1% 0.7 pts above the national average of 10.4%
Coronary heart disease7% 0.8 pts above the national average of 6.2%
Routine check-up in past year80.9% 4.2 pts above the national average of 76.7%
Cholesterol screening88.4% 2.5 pts above the national average of 85.9%
Cognitive disability13% 1.8 pts below the national average of 14.8%
Colorectal screening74.8% 10.5 pts above the national average of 64.3%
COPD7.6% 1 pts above the national average of 6.6%
Visited a dentist73.5% 12.2 pts above the national average of 61.3%
Any disability30.6% same as the national average of 30.7%
Lacks emotional support19.5% 5.3 pts below the national average of 24.8%
Food insecurity10.7% 6.4 pts below the national average of 17.1%
Received food stamps9.8% 4.5 pts below the national average of 14.3%
Hearing disability7.8% 1.1 pts above the national average of 6.7%
High cholesterol35.9% same as the national average of 36.2%
Housing insecurity8.4% 5.4 pts below the national average of 13.8%
Independent living disability7.6% 0.8 pts below the national average of 8.4%
Lacks transport6.3% 2.9 pts below the national average of 9.2%
Loneliness30.8% 3.6 pts below the national average of 34.4%
Mammography use78.2% 2.3 pts above the national average of 75.9%
Poor mental health (14+ days)16.2% 0.6 pts below the national average of 16.8%
Mobility disability13% 1 pts below the national average of 14%
Poor physical health (14+ days)13.2% same as the national average of 13.5%
Self-care disability3.3% 0.7 pts below the national average of 4%
Utility shut-off threat6.2% 2.6 pts below the national average of 8.8%
Sleeps under 7 hours30% 6.4 pts below the national average of 36.4%
Stroke3.4% same as the national average of 3.4%
All natural teeth lost9% 4 pts below the national average of 13%
Vision disability4.2% 1.4 pts below the national average of 5.6%
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Business and employment

Census ZIP Code Business Patterns 2022

Business establishments1,164
People employed13,957
Annual payroll$728,133,000
Natural hazard risk

FEMA National Risk Index, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data — the NRI is not published per ZIP.

Overall riskHigher than 60.3% of US census tracts
FEMA ratingVery Low to Relatively Moderate across the 7 census tracts this ZIP code covers
Expected annual loss61.9 out of 100
Community resilience94.3 out of 100

By hazard

Score is out of 100 and is the area-weighted average across the census tracts this ZIP code covers. The rating beside it is the highest any one of those tracts carries.

Winter weather99.4Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Cold wave98.1Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Landslide88.2Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Strong wind78.2Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Lightning77.6Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Coastal flooding76Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Hail70.3Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Wildfire61Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
River flooding52.2Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Tornado50.3Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Hurricane28.3Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Heat wave13.7Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Earthquake5.2Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Ice storm2.3Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Compared with Michigan and the United States

State and national columns are figures for those areas, not for this ZIP code. American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

This ZIPMichiganUnited States
Median household income$71,198$71,149$78,538
Income per person$48,520$39,538$43,289
Poverty rate11.3%13.1%12.4%
Median home value$295,500$217,600$303,400
Median gross rent$1,209$1,084$1,348
Homeownership71.1%72.9%65%
Bachelor's degree or higher45.9%31.8%35%
Unemployment rate3.1%5.8%5.2%
Works from home17.4%12%13.5%
Born outside the US1.7%7%13.9%
Median age47.140.138.7
Climate

NOAA US Climate Normals 1991-2020, from the nearest weather station with a full year of records. The station and its distance are named above, because a station forty kilometres away describes somewhere else.

Weather stationTRAVERSE CITY MUNSON, MI US1.9 km away
Rain in a year36 in
Snow in a year101 in

Average high and low by month

January27.8°F / 15.3°F2.71 in rain, 32.3 in snow
February29.7°F / 14.2°F2.03 in rain, 21.4 in snow
March39.4°F / 20.7°F2.13 in rain, 12.3 in snow
April51.9°F / 30.6°F3.44 in rain, 4.7 in snow
May65.1°F / 42.3°F3.45 in rain
June75°F / 52.7°F2.94 in rain
July79.4°F / 58.4°F2.76 in rain
August77.7°F / 57.3°F3.19 in rain
September70.6°F / 49.7°F3.61 in rain
October57.3°F / 39.1°F4.08 in rain, 0.1 in snow
November43.9°F / 29.7°F3.19 in rain, 5.6 in snow
December33.3°F / 21.6°F2.67 in rain, 24.6 in snow
Access to food

USDA Food Access Research Atlas, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Each figure is the share of the ZIP code's land area that falls in a tract carrying that flag.

Low income and far from a supermarket5% of this ZIP code's area
Far from a supermarket28% of this ZIP code's area
No vehicle and far from a supermarket5% of this ZIP code's area
School districts

NCES Geographic Relationship File 2025, which states the association between each district and each ZIP code tabulation area directly. Elementary and secondary districts can cover the same ground, so shares need not total 100%.

Traverse City Area Public Schools100% of this ZIP code's land area
Community and walkability

CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 and the EPA National Walkability Index, both estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Vulnerability figures are national percentile ranks, not measurements.

Overall social vulnerability18more vulnerable than 18% of US census tracts
Socioeconomic status24more vulnerable than 24% of US census tracts
Household characteristics15more vulnerable than 15% of US census tracts
Racial and ethnic minority status11more vulnerable than 11% of US census tracts
Housing type and transport36more vulnerable than 36% of US census tracts
Walkability7.6 out of 20Below average
Nearby ZIP codes

The closest ZIP codes by centre point, which is not the same as sharing a border.

49685 Traverse City, MI6.9 km away
49696 Traverse City, MI6.9 km away
49684 Traverse City, MI8.9 km away
49610 Acme, MI10.8 km away
49637 Grawn, MI15.2 km away
49690 Williamsburg, MI15.3 km away
49666 Mayfield, MI16.9 km away
49650 Lake Ann, MI18.7 km away
Location, counties and time zone

County shares from Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Time zone from the USDOT National Transportation Atlas, which renders the boundaries written into 49 CFR Part 71.

Grand Traverse County100% of this ZIP code's land area
Time zoneEastern (UTC-05:00 standard)
Daylight saving timeObserved
Land area47.31 sq mi
Water area26.19 sq mi
Population density532 people per sq mi
Latitude, longitude44.7631, -85.6206

Figures are published for this ZIP code or its Census tabulation area unless a section says otherwise. Estimates whose margin of error made them unreliable are omitted rather than shown. Sources: US Census Bureau, CDC, IRS.

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