• $40.77- Average monthly minimum cost for internet service
• 95.3% - Households with access to broadband service at speeds of 25 Mbps downstream / 3 Mbps upstream
• 32.5% - Households that do not subscribe to fixed home broadband service
• 2 out of 5 - Households with annual household incomes less than $20,000 subscribe to dial-up only internet service or have no internet connection at all at home
• 1 out of 11 - Households that rely on a smartphone as the only computing device in the home
• 1 in 8 - Households that rely solely on cellular data plans accessible on smartphones or mobile devices

The Michigan High-Speed Internet Office (MIHI)

This state agency was created in 2021 to help bridge the Digital Divide to coordinate all state, federal, philanthropic and private investments toward broadband access and usage. In the next year, the MIHI office will release new data as a result of programs funding from the Bipartisan Broadband Infrastructure Law and other broadband programs. The State Digital Equity Grant Program, in particular, will require the state to perform a needs assessment that identifies barriers to digital equity in Michigan faced by covered populations. Covered populations include those living in low-income households or rural areas, older adults, veterans, racial or ethnic minorities, and individuals with disabilities, language barriers or who are incarcerated.

Connected Nation Michigan (CN Michigan)

CN Michigan is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving broadband access, adoption, and usage across Michigan. CN Michigan has partnered with the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) to create the Connecting Michigan Taskforce (CMIT) and works with numerous other state and federal agencies, as well as private partners, to make broadband more accessible for all Michiganders. 

CN Michigan began in 2011 as part of a national effort to map, and expand broadband by gathering provider data to form a statewide broadband map and performing statewide business and residential technology assessments. CN Michigan combines public data with detailed insights from service providers, residents and field validation across the state to identify where internet service is available and where gaps remain. This results in an interactive broadband map, state and county broadband availability statistics and a statewide map of publicly-available Wi-Fi hotspots.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

This federal agency, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, is responsible for advising the nation on telecommunications and information policy issues. In this role, the NTIA shares insights on a number of issues relevant to promoting high-speed internet in American communities. The NTIA offers numerous resources available to the public, including: 

• A series of publications outlining its research into issues related to digital inclusion
• The National Broadband Availability Map, which includes several public tools that can assist in learning about and applying for broadband grants. These include:
  • An interactive map showing indicators of broadband need
  • Reports for every county in the nation showing demographic features and statistics about internet connections
  • Maps showing awards for the NTIA’s Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP)
  • A dashboard showing grants awarded through the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Capital Projects Fund (CPF)
  • A dashboard to help communities learn about the Connecting Minority Communities (CMC) pilot program
• Information and application instructions for several grants administered by the NTIA that are designed to help expand high-speed internet access and usage

U.S. Census Bureau’s Community Profile

Here you can find the newest demographic characteristics for your community. From the link above, you can enter your county's name in the search bar at the top of the page. From there, you can view your community’s profile by selecting the map on the right side of the screen. This profile will outline census data, including information about the local population, income and poverty, unemployment, business information and other facts that can be useful when preparing a grant application. Data for these profiles come from two sources at the Census Bureau:

• The American Community Survey (ACS)
• The Decennial Census of Population and Housing 

In addition to the community profiles noted above, you can find a table of internet subscriptions by every county in Michigan.

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

The FCC collects and shares broadband information from a variety of sources. You can find reports showing the latest broadband availability and usage information; more than 40 databases with granular information collected by the FCC; working papers designed to stimulate discussion and spur innovation; and national maps highlighting everything from fixed broadband deployment to areas available for funding through FCC grants.

The FCC is also working to update its current fixed and mobile broadband maps with more detailed and precise information through its Broadband Data Collection (BDC) program. You can help this effort by sharing your experience with internet service or downloading the FCC Speed Test app to provide anonymous data that will inform the FCC’s efforts to improve broadband service.

Pew Research Center

The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan think tank that conducts regular surveys about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world, including technology and the internet. The Pew Research Center provides insights and trends on technology policy issues, mobile and social media usage, the demographics of internet users and home internet usage. These national reports and figures can provide insights and a point of comparison for more localized findings in your community.

NDIA State Digital Equity Scorecard

The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) has compiled a state-by-state comparison of what steps each state has taken to improve digital inclusion. These comparisons include numerous practices, from collecting and disseminating comprehensive user-friendly data about digital skill needs statewide to the presence and quality of a state broadband plan. These statewide metrics can prove useful for efforts to close the Digital Divide across the state.

Microsoft’s Digital Equity Data Dashboard 

Microsoft recently released an interactive tool to help identify areas where digital equity gaps may exist, based on low rates of broadband availability, adoption, or usage; areas where broadband may be too expensive; low rates of educational attainment or computer ownership; or high rates of disability and poverty, to name a few factors. This tool lets a user see the areas in their state or county where the risk for digital inequity is the highest, based on inputs the user determines. Data for this tool comes from the U.S. Census Bureau, FCC broadband availability reports, BroadbandNow, and proprietary data collected as part of Microsoft’s Airband Initiative.