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An editorial illustration of Mill Creek, Washington
Snohomish County · Washington

Mill Creek, WA

Mill Creek is growing faster as a workplace than as a home base.

Population
21,630
3% more from 2021 to 2026
Family households
62.9%
±4 points at 90% confidence
Local jobs
6,867
18% more from 2018 to 2023
Median income
$124,364
±$11,276 at 90% confidence
City overview

The forces shaping Mill Creek now.

01
The trajectory

Mill Creek is growing faster as a workplace than as a home base.

Mill Creek’s population rose 3% from 2021–2026; its workplace job count rose 18% from 2018–2023. The source periods differ because the two series are released on different schedules.

Mill Creek can gain daytime customers from this job growth, but employers will draw more heavily on workers living elsewhere. Housing within reach of work and transportation at shift times become constraints on further growth.

Population: 2021–2026 · jobs: 2018–2023
02
The commute that shapes the city

Seattle matters more to Mill Creek’s workday than its own city line does.

28% of observed resident job destinations are in Seattle, followed by Everett at 16%.

Current GTFS schedules 2,641 weekday stop departures at 58 stops inside Mill Creek; that supply still needs to be tested against the route to Seattle, the largest outside job destination. Schedule supply is not ridership.

Workplace flows: 2023 · commute modes: ACS 2024
03
The local economic engine

Hospitality leads in Mill Creek, but 83% of jobs are elsewhere in the economy.

Mill Creek contains 6,867 workplace jobs. Hospitality accounts for 17% of them. Retail is next at 15%.

Mill Creek’s hospitality jobs depend on visitors and discretionary spending, while irregular schedules make late-day transportation and nearby housing especially relevant.

Workplace jobs: 2023
People

Who lives here—and which households shape demand?

The typical household estimate is 2.4 people. 63% are estimated to be family households, while 30% are estimated to be people living alone.

Average household size
2.4

±0.1 people at 90% confidence

Median age
39.3

±1.1 years at 90% confidence

Living alone
30%

±5 points at 90% confidence

Bachelor’s degree+
56%

Among residents age 25 and older. ±6 points at 90% confidence

Population composition

Who lives here

Estimated share of all Mill Creek residents. Each percentage uses the city’s total population as its denominator.

White, non-Hispanic61% ±5 pts
Hispanic / Latino, any race8.6% ±3 pts
Two or more races, non-Hispanic5.4% ±2 pts
Asian Indian4.3% ±2 pts
Chinese, except Taiwanese3.8% ±2 pts
Korean3.6% ±1 pts
Black, non-Hispanic3.2% ±1 pts
Filipino2.4% ±1 pts
Vietnamese2.3% ±2 pts
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic1.1% ±0.7 pts
Japanese0.8% ±0.6 pts
Malaysian0.7% ±0.8 pts
Pakistani0.6% ±0.7 pts
Taiwanese0.6% ±0.5 pts
Other Asian, not specified0.5% ±0.5 pts
Two or more Asian groups0.4% ±0.3 pts
Cambodian0.3% ±0.3 pts
Thai0.2% ±0.3 pts
American Indian / Alaska Native, non-Hispanic0.2% ±0.1 pts
Another race, non-Hispanic0.0% ±0.1 pts

0% published estimate: Hmong, Mongolian, Okinawan, Other East Asian, Burmese, Indonesian, Laotian, Mien, Singaporean, Other Southeast Asian, Bangladeshi, Bhutanese, Nepalese, Sikh, Sri Lankan, Other South Asian, Afghan, Kazakh, Uzbek, Other Central Asian, Other Asian, specified. Zero is not proof that no residents identify with that group.

ACS 2020–2024 · 5-year estimates
Dataset
U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates · tables B03002 and B02015
Period
2020–2024
Geography
Mill Creek Census place
Definition
Race and Hispanic/Latino origin are self-reported Census concepts. Hispanic/Latino may be of any race; the broad display uses non-Hispanic race categories plus Hispanic/Latino of any race.
Method
Every percentage is shown with its 90% margin of error. Detailed Asian estimates use the Asian-alone universe and are divided by the city population for display.
Open the official source ↗
Work

What powers the local economy—and how dependent is it?

Hospitality accounts for 17% of jobs located in Mill Creek. The city’s job base changed +76% between 2010 and 2023.

Jobs by sector

Workplace jobs inside the city—not the industries of residents who commute elsewhere.

Hospitality17%
Retail15%
Healthcare & Social Assistance14%
Construction / Real Estate11%
Education (includes academia/research)7%

Historical employer snapshot

Major employers named by the city; local headcounts were not published · Historical employer snapshot · 2019–2020 budget. The source is older than the current employer publication window; headcounts are historical, not current.

AlbertsonsHeadcount not published · 2019–2020 budget
Central MarketHeadcount not published · 2019–2020 budget
The Everett ClinicHeadcount not published · 2019–2020 budget
Lowe’s Home ImprovementHeadcount not published · 2019–2020 budget

City of Mill Creek 2019–2020 Biennial Budget ↗. Headcounts change faster than Census employment totals.

Housing

What kinds of homes exist—and where is pressure showing?

59% of occupied homes are estimated to be owner-occupied and 41% rented. The firmer current signal is construction intent: 0 homes were authorized in 2025, versus a recent pace of about 0 per year.

Home value profile

What owner-occupied homes are worth

Owner estimates from the 2020–2024 American Community Survey—not listings, recorded sales, or appraisals. The final Census band is open-ended: $2 million and above.

Median estimate$904k±24138.0 at 90% confidence
Middle half of homes$730k–$1.1MLower to upper quartile of owner estimates
Luxury-home concentration1%≈64 homes · estimated at $2M+
Under $500k8%
$500–749k19%
$750–999k38%
$1–1.49M27%
$1.5–1.99M7%
$2M+1%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year tables B25075–B25078. Values cover owner-occupied homes only and do not measure current asking prices or recent purchase prices.

The housing mix we can estimate confidently

This describes the existing stock. It does not imply that one building type is preferable.

Detached houses51%
Attached houses8%
2–4 unit buildings2%
5+ unit buildings38%
Other<1%
Owner-occupied
59%

±6 points at 90% confidence

Owner cost-burdened
25%

Spending 30% or more on selected owner costs. ±6 points at 90% confidence

Homes authorized, 2025
0

Permit authorizations—not construction starts or completed homes.

Residential buildings, 2025
0

One building can contain one home or many housing units.

Permit activity: U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, final annual estimate for 2025. Housing units authorized are not starts or completions.

Mobility

Where do residents need to go—and who has a real alternative to driving?

Current transit schedules include 58 stops and 2,641 weekday stop departures inside Mill Creek. The 2020–2024 ACS separately estimates how workers usually commuted; it does not count every transit trip or describe today's schedule.

Weekday departures
2,641

Scheduled stop departures in the current covered-feed snapshot—not riders.

Transit stops
58

Matched inside city limits; nearby cross-border stops are separate.

Top outside workplace
Seattle

28% of observed resident job destinations in 2023 LODES.

Usually drive alone
57%

Workers age 16+; ACS 2020–2024 estimate. ±6 points at 90% confidence

Where resident workers go

Top observed workplace destinations.

Seattle28%
Peak drive: 35–70 min
Everett16%
Peak drive: 15–40 min
Bellevue9%
Peak drive: 35–70 min
Redmond7%
Peak drive: 30–60 min
Bothell6%

The strongest outside connection is Seattle. Employer or corridor changes there can alter everyday life in Mill Creek, even when nothing changes inside the city boundary.

How residents usually get to work

Citywide ACS 2020–2024 estimates describe workers’ usual commute—not every trip made today.

Drive alone
57%

Share of workers usually driving alone. ±6 points at 90% confidence

Work from home
30%

Share of workers usually working from home. ±4 points at 90% confidence

Use public transit
4.4%

Usual commute mode—not all transit trips. ±2 points at 90% confidence

Commute 45+ minutes
29%

Share of workers with a one-way commute of at least 45 minutes. ±6 points at 90% confidence

For someone choosing a home in Mill Creek, the practical test is the trip to Seattle, the leading outside workplace destination in the published flows. These citywide shares cannot show whether that trip works from a particular address.

Typical drive times

About how long does it take to get where people go?

Work destinations are selected from observed resident job flows. These are broad, reviewed planning ranges from representative parts of Mill Creek—not live-traffic or door-to-door predictions.

Starting area
South Lake Union employment core

Seattle is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Mill Creek, representing 25% of matched resident jobs from this city.

40–70 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Highway-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.25x circuity factor and an assumed 45 km/h peak-effective / 70 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Everett employment area

Everett is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Mill Creek, representing 14% of matched resident jobs from this city.

15–40 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Local arterial-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.40x circuity factor and an assumed 28 km/h peak-effective / 42 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Downtown Bellevue employment core

Bellevue is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Mill Creek, representing 8% of matched resident jobs from this city.

35–70 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Highway-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.25x circuity factor and an assumed 45 km/h peak-effective / 70 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Overlake employment core

Redmond is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Mill Creek, representing 6% of matched resident jobs from this city.

35–60 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Highway-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.25x circuity factor and an assumed 45 km/h peak-effective / 70 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Method, review date, and sources

Planning estimate; actual time varies by departure time, route, traffic, weather, incidents, and closures.

Estimates are derived from reviewed origin/destination coordinates using a documented distance-to-time heuristic (circuity factor and assumed effective speed by corridor type and period), then deliberately widened and rounded to a broad band. No live routing or traffic API was called.

Estimates reviewed 2026-09-10. Starting point: selected representative area.

City boundary and regional context● nearby   ● work destinations
Daily life

Community institutions and local activity

Public schools, libraries, pharmacies, and listed everyday places show part of the local inventory inside Mill Creek; taxable sales show the scale and direction of local commercial activity. Residents also use places across city lines, so a boundary count is not the same as access.

Local field guide

Places for everyday needs in Mill Creek

Care, errands, food, fitness, and personal services gathered into one browsable directory.

Hospitals0 in cityFind nearby
Explore all hospitals near Mill CreekOpen
Clinics and urgent care15 listedView 8 places
Akiko Hall, Md, MphMapCarbon Health Urgent Care Mill Creek - Shops at the FarmMapEvergreenhealth Urgent Care, Mill CreekMapFlourish Family MedicineMapGuardian Family CareMapJinat J Parveen, MdMapKinwellMapNorth Sound PediatricsMapExplore all clinics and urgent care in MapsOpen
Pharmacies7 listedView all
Cascadia Pharmacy Mill Creek15407 MAIN ST STE 104 · MILL CREEK, WA 98012-7375MapCvs Pharmacy #1165016222 BOTHELL-EVERETT HIGHWAY · MILL CREEK, WA 98012-1520MapOptum Care Washington Pllc15418 MAIN ST · SUITE 106 · MILL CREEK, WA 98012MapQfc Pharmacy926 164TH ST SE · MILL CREEK, WA 98012-6305MapRite Aid Pharmacy 052043202 132ND STREET SE · MILL CREEK, WA 98012-5624MapSafeway Pharmacy #14133322 132ND ST SE · MILL CREEK, WA 98012-5654MapSafeway Pharmacy #151413314 BOTHELL EVERETT HWY · MILL CREEK, WA 98012-5509MapExplore all pharmacies in MapsOpen
Coffee13 listedView 8 places
Bequest Coffee CoMapBuffalo EspressoMapDiedrich Espresso Mill CreekMapFarmhouse EspressoMapFrostMapNewsroom Mill CreekMapRusty Pelican CafeMapSaw Mill CafeMapExplore all coffee in MapsOpen
Fitness10 listedView 8 places
9Round Kickboxing FitnessMapBalance Performance FitnessMapCurves of Mill CreekMapHome Fitness With AnaMapHot Yoga Inc.MapInner Athlete Fitness StudioMapLA FitnessMapPlanet FitnessMapExplore all fitness in MapsOpen
Groceries4 listedView all
Fridas Mexican RestaurantMapSafewayMapTown & Country Market Mill CreekMapTrigger Panda IncMapExplore all groceries in MapsOpen
Convenience5 listedView all
Amazon GoMapCentral MarketMapJacksons Food StoresMapRite AidMapRocketMapExplore all convenience in MapsOpen
Restaurants66 listedView 8 places
Ai Sushi And RollMapAkane RamenMapArirang Korean BBQ and PhoMapAzteca Mexican RestaurantsMapAzulMapAzul Restaurant and LoungeMapBlazing Onion Burger CompanyMapBlue Foods Group, Inc. Dba AzulMapExplore all restaurants in MapsOpen
Salons and barbers44 listedView 8 places
425 Beauty LashesMapAntonio Melani Salon, Mill CreekMapB'MoreBeautiful LLCMapBlue Iris SalonMapBravataMapBrie Labrash HairMapCelsius SalonMapColour Play Salon LLCMapExplore all salons and barbers in MapsOpen

Counts reflect current directory records associated with the city, not a complete business census or a measure of access. Large categories show a sample.

Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), snapshot 2026-08-13; Overture Maps Foundation, release 2026-08-19.0; U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (NPPES NPI Registry), snapshot 2026-09-09.

Public library footprint

Mill Creek Library

Floor area shows the scale of the physical branches. Physical circulation is 2024 checkouts—not visits, unique users, or digital borrowing—and people routinely use libraries across city lines.

Branch floor area
7,400 sq ft

All matched branches must report floor area before a city total is shown.

Physical checkouts
484,195

Annual branch activity; not limited to city residents. All matched branches must report before a city total is shown.

Mill Creek LibrarySno-Isle Libraries
7,400 sq ft484,195 physical checkouts60 scheduled hours/week

Source: Washington State Library public-library statistics, 2024. System-wide visits, digital circulation, and program attendance cannot be assigned honestly to one branch, so they are not folded into these city totals.

Education footprint

The schools inside Mill Creek.

Institution counts and enrollment will remain separate. A school can serve students from outside the city, and residents may attend a school across the boundary or elsewhere in their district.

Public elementary1
  • Mill Creek Elementary SchoolEverett School District
Public middle1
  • Heatherwood Middle SchoolEverett School District
Public high1
  • Henry M. Jackson High SchoolEverett School District
Other public programs0

None in the current OSPI city-boundary match.

Public-school names and levels come from OSPI. Private schools, complete IPEDS college coverage, enrollment by level, and graduate destinations are active additions; absence here should not yet be read as “none.”

Retail role

Mill Creek sits near the regional middle for retail activity per resident.

The sales total does not point strongly toward either a major regional shopping role or an unusually small local retail base.

Retail sales per resident, 2024
$9,382

Higher than 44% of 82 tracked cities.

Change from 2023
+0.4%

Nominal retail-sales change; inflation can account for some or all of an increase.

See the underlying sales totals
Retail trade, 2024
$202.9M

Sales reported by businesses classified in retail trade.

All taxable sales
$468.9M

Includes taxable activity outside retail trade.

Retail share
43%

Retailing industries’ share of all taxable sales.

Tracked-city median
$10,670

Median retail sales per resident across cities with comparable data.

Civic life

In Mill Creek, the council—not the mayor—hires the person who runs City Hall.

Mill Creek voters elect the council, which hires a professional city manager to run administration. The mayor is selected from the council, so executive oversight works through the council rather than a separately elected chief executive.

Government form
Council–Manager

The elected council hires and oversees the city manager.

Mayor listed
Stephanie Vignal

Generally selected from the council—not a separately elected executive.

Council representatives listed
7

Current directory entries; vacancies or updates can make this differ from authorized seats.

Incorporated
1983

Code city under Washington law.

Where decisions happen

When does the Mill Creek council meet?

Regular meeting schedule listed in the current municipal directory:

1st, 2nd & 4th Tue - 6:00pm

Schedules change and special meetings are separate. Check the city site for the live agenda, staff reports, public-comment rules, and video.

Official city site ↗Current officials directory ↗
Election record

Where to check Mill Creek election results.

Regular municipal offices generally return in 2027. Special measures can appear earlier, and charter provisions can differ.

The next data step is city-specific turnout, contested-seat share, ballot measures, and campaign money. Until those are normalized, Metroscope links the official record instead of guessing from partisan elections.

Structure, meetings, and current officials: Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington (MRSC), checked 2026-09-08. Election administration and certified results: the county election offices listed above. Confirm live agendas and officeholders at the source.

Change

What is changing the city’s trajectory?

Population and jobs do not always move together. Reading both helps distinguish a growing employment center from a city whose households are increasingly tied to opportunities elsewhere.

Residents
21,630

3% more from 2021 to 2026

Local jobs
6,867

18% more from 2018 to 2023

Retail trade, 2023–2024
+0.4%

Nominal taxable-sales change; not adjusted for inflation.

Data & details — selected comparable metrics across 82 places
Local jobs
LODES
6,867
1,506656,821
Higher than only 33% of places
Long-run job change
LODES
+76%
−3%+166%
Higher than 85% of places
Weekday transit departures
GTFS snapshot
2,641
19256,385
Higher than 53% of places
Multifamily permitting
Census BPS
Near a 15-year low
Recent annual pace compared with this city's own 2010–2025 record
2BR Fair Market Rent
HUD, county-level
$2,549
FY2027 HUD program benchmark; chart shows FY2020–FY2027 history. Shared across this HUD metro area—not a place-specific market rent.
Work — sector breakdown
Share of local jobs by sector · LODES · workplace location, not resident industry
Hospitality17% (1,164)
Retail15% (1,010)
Healthcare & Social Assistance14% (931)
Construction / Real Estate11% (740)
Education (includes academia/research)7% (497)
Finance7% (470)
Manufacturing (includes, but is not limited to, aerospace)7% (460)
Logistics / Industrial6% (444)
Other5% (341)
Professional Services (partial technology proxy)4% (291)
Administrative & Support Services4% (274)
Government (Public Administration)3% (173)
Information (partial technology proxy)1% (72)
Where Mill Creek's workforce lives (inbound)
LODES OD — commuting flows into local jobs
Everett
14.6%
Seattle
13.1%
Mill Creek
9.0%
Marysville
6.5%
Lake Stevens
4.7%