10 Best Places To Raise A Family In Missouri For 2018

If you’re like the rest of us, you’re looking for the perfect place for your family. But you have a strict criteria; the city has to be safe, affordable, and stimulating. Basically, the place you move – or even visit – has to be outright perfect.

Is that attainable? Perhaps not, but we’ll get you as close as we can.

Promise.

According to the United States Census, the number of American families who move is trending downwards Why is that? Perhaps it has to do with the ‘safety net’ factor: We get comfortable where we live, and we’re afraid to try a new move. What if the schools are bad? What if it’s dangerous?

Well, we can pretty much guarantee that if you choose the cities we’re mentioning below, you won’t lose any sleep whatsoever.

So, where are the best cities for families in Missouri? We’ve got the answers here.

These are the best cities to raise a family in the Show Me State:

1. Jackson (Photos | Homes For Sale)
2. Moberly (Photos | Homes For Sale)
3. Webster Groves (Photos | Homes For Sale)
4. Maryville (Photos | Homes For Sale)
5. Washington (Photos | Homes For Sale)
6. Carthage (Photos | Homes For Sale)
7. Marshall (Photos | Homes For Sale)
8. Mexico (Photos | Homes For Sale)
9. Neosho (Photos | Homes For Sale)
10. Kirkwood (Photos | Homes For Sale)

If you’re thinking of making a move to Missouri, and want a family-friendly place, we’ve got you covered. And if you already have kids, we’re surprised you made it this far into the article and hope your little ones give you a couple of more minutes of free time.

Keep on reading for a detailed methodology.

Or, check out the best places to live in Missouri and, for those of you on a budget, the cheapest places to live in Missouri.

How do you determine which place is best for families in Missouri anyways?

To give you the places in Missouri which are best for families, we have to look at a handful of metrics. Of course, we want to measure the type of people who live in each city, and make some assumptions about what’s family-friendly and what isn’t.

So we researched the internet for a database that contains all that information.

How we crunched the family friendly numbers for the Show Me State

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using U.S. Census data produced for the state of Missouri, we looked at every single city in the state. We paid particular attention to:

• Crime (Both violent and property)
• Quality of local schools
• Distance to a major city without necessarily being in it
• % of households with children
• Family-friendly amenities nearby (museums, libraries and colleges)

We then gave each city a Family Score.

The higher the score, the better the city is for families. We also limited our results to cities with populations over 10,000 people. For Missouri, that meant a total of 71 cities.

Read on to see why Jackson is where all the families are headed, while Branson is probably a place made for singles.

1. Jackson

Population: 14,641
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 50
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 34.2%
More on Jackson: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Jackson is a city in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,758 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cape Girardeau County. It is a principal city of the Cape Girardeau-Jackson, MO-IL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

2. Moberly

Population: 13,867
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 38
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 30.2%
More on Moberly: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Moberly is a city in Randolph County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,974 at the 2010 census.

3. Webster Groves

Population: 23,111
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 59
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 33.3%
More on Webster Groves: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Webster Groves is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis in St. Louis County, Missouri. The population was 22,995 at the 2010 census.

4. Maryville

Population: 11,957
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 44
Closest Major City: Omaha
Households with kids: 20.5%
More on Maryville: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Maryville is a city and county seat of Nodaway County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 11,972. Maryville is home to Northwest Missouri State University, Northwest Technical School, and the Missouri Academy of Science, Mathematics and Computing.

5. Washington

Population: 14,012
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 35
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 34.4%
More on Washington: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Washington is a city on the Missouri River in Franklin County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,892 from the 2010 census. It is the corncob pipe capital of the world, with Missouri Meerschaum located on the riverfront.

6. Carthage

Population: 14,247
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 52
Closest Major City: Tulsa
Households with kids: 40.7%
More on Carthage: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Carthage is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 14,378 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Jasper County and is nicknamed “America’s Maple Leaf City.”

7. Marshall

Population: 12,984
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 57
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 34.9%
More on Marshall: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Marshall is a city in Saline County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,065 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Saline County. The Marshall Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Saline County. It is home to Missouri Valley College.

8. Mexico

Population: 11,622
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 40
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 30.9%
More on Mexico: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Mexico, formerly known as New Mexico, is a city in Audrain County, Missouri. The population was 11,543 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat, home to the Missouri Military Academy, and annually hosts the Miss Missouri Pageant. The micropolitan statistical area consists of Audrain County.

9. Neosho

Population: 12,144
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 40
Closest Major City: Tulsa
Households with kids: 36.0%
More on Neosho: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Neosho residents. Neosho lies on the western edge of the Ozarks.

10. Kirkwood

Population: 27,614
Family Friendly Amenities Score: 57
Closest Major City: St. Louis
Households with kids: 27.8%
More on Kirkwood: Photos | Homes For Sale | Data

Kirkwood is an inner-ring suburb of St. Louis located in St. Louis County, Missouri. As of the 2010 census, the city’s population was 27,540. Founded in 1853, the city is named after James P. Kirkwood, builder of the Pacific Railroad through that town. It was the first planned suburb located west of the Mississippi River.

Load More Cities

There You Have It – The Best Places To Raise A Family In Missouri

If you’re looking for a breakdown of cities in Missouri ranked by criteria that most would agree make a place a great spot for families, this is an accurate list.

Here’s a look at the best cities for singles Missouri according to the data:

1. Branson
2. Raytown
3. Grandview

For more Missouri reading, check out:

• 10 Most Dangerous Cities in Missouri
• 10 Safest Places In Missouri
• These Are The 10 Richest Cities In Missouri

Detailed List Of The Best Places For Families In Missouri

Rank	City	Population	Amenities Score
1	Jackson	14,641	47
2	Moberly	13,867	57
3	Webster Groves	23,111	36
4	Maryville	11,957	52
5	Washington	14,012	43
6	Carthage	14,247	46
7	Marshall	12,984	48
8	Mexico	11,622	45
9	Neosho	12,144	61
10	Kirkwood	27,614	62
11	Union	10,813	66
12	O’fallon	84,018	49
13	Eureka	10,497	49
14	Ballwin	30,431	30
15	Cameron	10,150	36
16	Ozark	18,867	54
17	Florissant	52,218	39
18	Harrisonville	10,002	45
19	St. Peters	55,820	57
20	Wentzville	34,176	54
21	Manchester	18,183	37
22	Kirksville	17,592	41
23	Town And Country	11,001	44
24	Lee’s Summit	94,257	46
25	West Plains	12,259	45
26	Chesterfield	47,717	52
27	Warrensburg	19,932	44
28	Rolla	19,904	56
29	Hannibal	17,707	59
30	Nixa	20,520	54
31	Lake St. Louis	15,150	34
32	Sikeston	16,464	43
33	Sedalia	21,441	63
34	Liberty	30,239	50
35	Crestwood	11,941	52
36	Troy	11,374	45
37	Creve Coeur	18,072	52
38	Poplar Bluff	17,198	49
39	Maryland Heights	27,359	55
40	Festus	11,929	42
41	Grain Valley	13,273	48
42	Lebanon	14,652	40
43	Ferguson	21,035	57
44	Columbia	117,165	55
45	Hazelwood	25,604	44
46	Raymore	20,107	31
47	Republic	15,766	46
48	Fulton	12,886	47
49	Arnold	21,196	53
50	Clayton	16,034	45
51	Farmington	17,881	45
52	Bolivar	10,592	49
53	Excelsior Springs	11,480	50
54	Kennett	10,500	66
55	Blue Springs	53,641	35
56	St. Charles	68,341	54
57	Joplin	51,231	45
58	Cape Girardeau	39,200	66
59	Independence	117,217	100
60	St. Ann	12,931	49
61	Bellefontaine Neighbors	10,785	58
62	Overland	15,932	46
63	Belton	23,236	60
64	Springfield	165,138	85
65	St. Louis	316,030	76
66	St. Joseph	76,901	60
67	Bridgeton	11,698	47
68	Gladstone	26,562	51
69	Grandview	25,126	58
70	Raytown	29,366	46
71	Branson	11,158	50