Lansing, Michigan

Lansing is the capital city of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is about 1 to 2 hours west of Detroit. It is in the center of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan.

Lansing, Michigan
State capital city
Clockwise from top left: Downtown Lansing skyline, Michigan Supreme Court Hall of Justice, Jackson Field, Michigan State Capitol
Logo
Nickname(s):  Capital City, L-Town, "The Heart of Michigan"
Location within Clinton County (top), Eaton County (left), and Ingham County (right)
Lansing Location within the state of Michigan Show map of Michigan Lansing Location within the United States Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 42°42′51″N 84°33′36″W[1]
Country	United States
State	Michigan
Counties	Clinton, Eaton, and Ingham
Settled	1835
Incorporated	1859
Named for	Lansing, New York
Government
• Type	Strong mayor–council
Area [2]
• City	39.78 sq mi (103.03 km2)
• Land	39.14 sq mi (101.38 km2)
• Water	0.64 sq mi (1.65 km2)
• Urban	155.8 sq mi (354.4 km2)
• Metro	1,714.6 sq mi (4,440.8 km2)
Elevation [3]	853 ft (260 m)
Population  (2020)[4]
• City	112,644
• Density	2,877.68/sq mi (1,111.09/km2)
• Urban	318,300 (US: 128th)[5]
• Urban density	2,042.6/sq mi (788.7/km2)
• Metro	541,297 (US: 106th)
Demonym(s)	Lansingite, Lanstronaut (informal)
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes	48901, 48906, 48908–48913, 48915–48919, 48921, 48922, 48924, 48929, 48930, 48933, 48937, 48950, 48951, 48956
Area code	517
FIPS code	26-46000[6]
GNIS feature ID	1625035[1]
Website	Official website

Most of the city is in Ingham County, but parts are in Eaton and Clinton counties. As of the 2020 census, 112,644 people lived in Lansing.^[7] This makes it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The metropolitan area has 541,297 people, the third largest in Michigan after Detroit and Grand Rapids.

Lansing became Michigan's capital in 1847, ten years after Michigan became a state. It is an important center for education, government, business, and culture. The city is home to the Michigan State Capitol, the Michigan Supreme Court, and other major state offices. Neighboring East Lansing has Michigan State University, one of the largest universities in the U.S., with over 50,000 students.^[8]

Lansing is the only U.S. state capital that is not a county seat. The county seat of Ingham County is Mason, but some county offices are in Lansing.^[9][10]

The landscape is flat. There is a lot of agriculture.