Health care · Small-town market · Michigan
Medical and dental practices in the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area
How the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for medical and dental practices: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #147 of 538 scored small-town markets
#7 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan
- Listings
- 78
- 9 chain locations (12%)
- Official establishments
- 27
- −30.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $17.6M
- On medical and dental services · $1,249 a household
- Spending per listing
- $225K
- 48% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 55.4
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 36,081
- −1.9% since 2020
See the medical and dental practices around any address in the Sault Ste. Marie area
The site report maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Sault Ste. Marie area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 78 medical and dental practices in the Sault Ste. Marie area. Of those, 9 are chain locations, or 12%, against 11% across the U.S. That is 55.4 per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 84.5.
Household spending on medical and dental services in the Sault Ste. Marie area comes to about $17.6M a year: $1,249 per household, 3% below the U.S. average. Spread across 78 medical and dental practices, that is $225K per practice, 48% above the U.S. figure of $152K.
In 2023, official counts showed 27 businesses with payroll in the Sault Ste. Marie area classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers, down 30.8% from 2019. That is one for every 521 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. Another 8 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates show the Sault Ste. Marie area declined 1.9% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For medical and dental practices, the Sault Ste. Marie area has a Groundwork market score of 62 (upper middle): #147 of 538 scored small-town markets and #7 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Michigan.
How the Sault Ste. Marie area compares
The same measures for Michigan and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the medical and dental practices counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Sault Ste. Marie area | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 55.4 | 80.4 | 84.5 |
| Spending per listing | $225K | $176K | $152K |
| Households per official establishment | 521 | 285 | 270 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −30.8% | +0.1% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.9% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,249 | $1,412 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $62,217 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 62 | 57 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 27−30.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 361
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $25.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 8Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 789 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 115The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Sault Ste. Marie area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Sault Ste. Marie area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 36,081−1.9% since 2020
- Households
- 14,080
- Median age
- 42.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,559 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 23
- Median household income
- $62,217+33.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $76,569
- Median home value
- $161,900
- Jobs located here
- 11,286
- Daytime population
- 35,358Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sault Ste. Marie area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the medical and dental practices on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Sault Ste. Marie area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDoctors, dentists and clinics across Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Michigan for medical and dental practices, numbered among those based in Michigan, with the Sault Ste. Marie area marked.
Top small-town markets in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Holland, MI | 85 | 223 | 49.0 | $298K | +2.1% | #12 of 538 |
| 2Houghton, MI | 72 | 83 | 53.8 | $242K | +1.8% | #72 of 538 |
| 3Hillsdale, MI | 70 | 93 | 52.1 | $250K | 0.0% | #86 of 538 |
| 4Cadillac, MI | 70 | 113 | 57.6 | $222K | +2.0% | #89 of 538 |
| 5Coldwater, MI | 67 | 96 | 56.8 | $225K | +2.5% | #114 of 538 |
| 6Sturgis, MI | 66 | 130 | 55.0 | $235K | +0.1% | #125 of 538 |
| 7Sault Ste. Marie, MI | 62 | 78 | 55.4 | $225K | −1.9% | #147 of 538 |
| 8Owosso, MI | 60 | 153 | 54.4 | $242K | −0.4% | #167 of 538 |
| 9Big Rapids, MI | 60 | 118 | 70.6 | $177K | +4.7% | #175 of 538 |
| 10Marquette, MI | 56 | 194 | 68.7 | $189K | +2.3% | #215 of 538 |
Other business types in the Sault Ste. Marie area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
- Doctors, dentists and clinics62
- Dentists and orthodontists75
- Primary care and pediatrics54
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics
- Chiropractors
- Physical therapy37
- Optometrists and eye care48
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many medical and dental practices are in the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area?
There are 78 medical and dental practices on map listings in the Sault Ste. Marie area as of September 2026. 9 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count every outpatient clinic and practice, and urgent care. Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in 2023, down 30.8% from 2019. Official counts list 8 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area spend on medical and dental services?
About $17.6M a year, or $1,249 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 78 medical and dental practices on map listings, it comes to $225K per practice. It is estimated from the incomes of the 14,080 households in the Sault Ste. Marie area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area compare with the U.S. for medical and dental practices?
The Sault Ste. Marie area has 55.4 medical and dental practices per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 84.5. Spending per practice is $225K, 48% above the U.S. figure of $152K. At the national ratio of medical and dental practices to household spending, the Sault Ste. Marie area would have about 115, against 78 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 521 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. The official count fell 30.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Sault Ste. Marie, MI area growing?
Population estimates put the Sault Ste. Marie area at 36,081 people in 2025, down 1.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 14,080 households. Median household income in the Sault Ste. Marie area is $62,217, 23% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 33.8%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Sault Ste. Marie area scores 62 for medical and dental practices (upper middle), #147 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Sault Ste. Marie area. It maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for medical and dental practices · All 56 business types in the Sault Ste. Marie area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sault Ste. Marie area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Sault Ste. Marie area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.