Sterling Heights is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. A northern suburb of Detroit, Sterling Heights is located roughly 18 m…Sterling Heights is a city in Macomb County in the U.S. state of Michigan. A northern suburb of Detroit, Sterling Heights is located roughly 18 miles north of downtown Detroit. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 134,346, placing Sterling Heights as the second-largest suburb of Detroit, and the fourth-most populous city in Michigan.