The 10 Best Counties To Live In Missouri For 2024


The best counties in Missouri are St. Charles County and Platte County for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Some of you might be asking yourself, at this very moment, is Missouri a good place?

The answer is unequivocally yes… if you know where to locate the best counties to live in Missouri.

Lucky for you, we’re here to help you identify the best counties to live in the Show Me State based on the most recently available data from the Census. And this isn’t our first rodeo — we’ve been using Saturday Night Science to rank places for years.

The question becomes if you wanted to relocate to the best part of Missouri, where would you go? To answer that, we looked at crime, cost of living, and demographic data for all 115 counties in the state.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Table | FAQs | Summary


St. Charles County is the county to be when it comes to living the good life in Missouri. And you should avoid Dunklin County if you can — at least according to the data.

Now you know exactly where to move in Missouri. Keep on reading for more about the top ten and a detailed methodology.

Or, check out the best places to live in Missouri and the cheapest places to live in Missouri.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The Best Counties To Live In Missouri For 2024

1. St. Charles County

Lake St. Louis, MO

Source: HomeSnacks

Biggest Place: O’Fallon
Population: 406,262
Median Income: $99,596 (best)
Median Home Price: $331,696 (2nd best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.1% (3best)
More on St. Charles CountyData

2. Platte County

Kansas City, MO

Source: Wikipedia User | CC-BY-SA-3.0

Biggest Place: Kansas City
Population: 107,033
Median Income: $92,543 (2nd best)
Median Home Price: $351,816 (best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.6% (39th best)
More on Platte CountyData

3. Osage County

Biggest Place: Linn
Population: 13,374
Median Income: $70,313 (13th best)
Median Home Price: $246,145 (18th best)
Unemployment Rate: 1.0% (2nd best)
More on Osage CountyData

4. Clay County

Excelsior Springs, MO

Source: Wikipedia User Americasroof | CC BY-SA 3.0

Biggest Place: Kansas City
Population: 253,085
Median Income: $82,264 (5th best)
Median Home Price: $293,194 (8th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.0% (5best)
More on Clay CountyData

5. Cole County

Jefferson City, MO

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Jefferson City
Population: 76,890
Median Income: $70,667 (11th best)
Median Home Price: $242,890 (2best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.1% (30th best)
More on Cole CountyData

6. St. Louis County

Ballwin, MO

Source: Wikipedia User FlickreviewR 2 | CC BY-SA 2.0

Biggest Place: Florissant
Population: 999,703
Median Income: $78,067 (7th best)
Median Home Price: $297,251 (6th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.3% (59th best)
More on St. Louis CountyData

7. Andrew County

Savannah, MO

Source: Wikipedia User Ichabod | CC BY-SA 3.0

Biggest Place: Savannah
Population: 18,069
Median Income: $68,774 (16th best)
Median Home Price: $243,559 (20th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.1% (54th best)
More on Andrew CountyData

8. Christian County

Springfield, MO

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Springfield
Population: 89,568
Median Income: $75,787 (9th best)
Median Home Price: $290,594 (9th best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.6% (38th best)
More on Christian CountyData

9. Cass County

Kansas City, MO

Source: Wikipedia User | CC-BY-SA-3.0

Biggest Place: Kansas City
Population: 108,205
Median Income: $82,473 (4th best)
Median Home Price: $300,643 (5th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.5% (64th best)
More on Cass CountyData

10. Jefferson County

Arnold, MO

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Arnold
Population: 226,984
Median Income: $77,217 (8th best)
Median Home Price: $251,310 (16th best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.8% (4best)
More on Jefferson CountyData

Methodology: How do you determine which Missouri county is the best?

To give you the best county in Missouri, we have to look at a handful of metrics that signal the quality of a place. To do that, we made assumptions about what’s in a “best county” and what isn’t. For reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, Saturday Night Science.

With that in mind, we went to two of the best data sources on the internet. Namely, the American Community Survey data and FBI Crime data for the most recent period.

We paid particular attention to:

  • Violent Crime Rates
  • Property Crime Rates
  • Median Home Values
  • Median Income
  • Unemployment Rates
  • Adult Education Levels
  • Health Insurance Coverage
  • Poverty Rates

We then ranked each county in Missouri across each of the criteria from one to 115, with one being the best.

Taking the average rank across all criteria, we created a quality of life score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Best County To Live In Missouri.”

The result is some of the safest, quietest, and best counties to raise a family in the Show Me State.

We updated this article for 2024. This report is our tenth time ranking the best counties to live in Missouri.

Read on to see why St. Charles County is the best county, while Dunklin County is probably in contention for being the worst county in Missouri.

Summary: The Best Counties In Missouri To Call Home For 2024

Living in Missouri can vary from one part of the state to the next — who woulda thought?

The best counties in Missouri are St. Charles County, Platte County, Osage County, Clay County, Cole County, St. Louis County, Andrew County, Christian County, Cass County, and Jefferson County.

But now you know the outstanding parts and the parts to avoid, and that’s why you came here to learn at the end of the day.

You are welcome.

Here’s a look at the worst counties in Missouri according to the data:

  1. Dunklin County
  2. Pemiscot County
  3. Wayne County

For more Missouri reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Best Counties In Missouri

Rank County Population Median Income Median Home Price
1 St. Charles County 406,262 $99,596 $331,696
2 Platte County 107,033 $92,543 $351,816
3 Osage County 13,374 $70,313 $246,145
4 Clay County 253,085 $82,264 $293,194
5 Cole County 76,890 $70,667 $242,890
6 St. Louis County 999,703 $78,067 $297,251
7 Andrew County 18,069 $68,774 $243,559
8 Christian County 89,568 $75,787 $290,594
9 Cass County 108,205 $82,473 $300,643
10 Jefferson County 226,984 $77,217 $251,310
11 Lafayette County 32,858 $78,397 $209,259
12 Franklin County 104,858 $70,111 $240,561
13 Lincoln County 60,172 $82,543 $272,403
14 Ste. Genevieve County 18,494 $61,215 $235,513
15 Cape Girardeau County 81,703 $65,070 $219,330
16 Boone County 184,043 $66,564 $287,445
17 Dekalb County 11,838 $67,910 $207,808
18 Ray County 23,122 $69,779 $232,307
19 Gasconade County 14,801 $62,638 $194,087
20 Warren County 35,729 $75,531 $296,528
21 Clinton County 21,155 $66,494 $251,411
22 Johnson County 54,025 $62,503 $263,150
23 Callaway County 44,517 $70,599 $218,065
24 Ralls County 10,356 $62,615 $213,516
25 Marion County 28,525 $62,492 $161,324
26 Nodaway County 21,140 $53,917 $203,177
27 Jackson County 715,526 $65,169 $225,075
28 Pulaski County 53,726 $62,541 $200,223
29 Cooper County 16,893 $62,239 $216,490
30 Greene County 299,188 $54,968 $234,021
31 Carroll County 8,513 $59,101 $133,055
32 Saline County 23,219 $55,396 $150,445
33 Holt County 4,274 $55,153 $137,660
34 Livingston County 14,402 $58,772 $157,904
35 Daviess County 8,418 $59,706 $230,328
36 Camden County 43,227 $59,834 $324,968
37 Chariton County 7,417 $61,910 $119,411
38 Montgomery County 11,421 $58,660 $180,728
39 Stone County 31,314 $58,392 $328,679
40 Macon County 15,173 $54,113 $166,216
41 Howard County 10,142 $59,023 $194,115
42 Atchison County 5,270 $58,521 $125,256
43 Perry County 18,970 $61,486 $201,496
44 Moniteau County 15,401 $66,792 $205,427
45 Newton County 59,019 $60,313 $209,803
46 Linn County 11,892 $58,435 $122,593
47 Miller County 24,855 $53,490 $241,759
48 Schuyler County 4,066 $53,728 $137,497
49 Harrison County 8,190 $51,809 $112,982
50 Putnam County 4,698 $50,950 $174,372
51 Worth County 1,982 $43,536 $105,003
52 Phelps County 44,843 $53,242 $188,090
53 Caldwell County 8,876 $58,269 $193,660
54 Shelby County 6,049 $50,387 $150,332
55 Monroe County 8,668 $50,245 $177,477
56 Webster County 39,265 $65,103 $247,713
57 Mercer County 3,517 $55,592 $120,449
58 Polk County 31,877 $54,487 $245,582
59 Taney County 56,202 $54,467 $253,038
60 Barry County 34,701 $55,592 $219,359
61 Sullivan County 5,983 $53,438 $72,731
62 Maries County 8,454 $56,491 $220,852
63 Scott County 38,055 $54,621 $139,951
64 Pettis County 43,059 $57,581 $176,419
65 Scotland County 4,720 $58,656 $115,677
66 Clark County 6,693 $53,362 $125,639
67 Gentry County 6,219 $53,799 $98,678
68 Jasper County 122,788 $54,963 $202,292
69 Henry County 22,064 $54,903 $185,856
70 Shannon County 7,132 $46,767 $165,082
71 Adair County 25,299 $51,020 $169,627
72 St. Louis City 298,018 $52,941 $207,504
73 Buchanan County 84,544 $58,303 $153,905
74 Pike County 17,719 $53,363 $171,303
75 Madison County 12,649 $54,042 $154,629
76 Bollinger County 10,658 $52,306 $172,664
77 Iron County 9,538 $53,401 $135,777
78 Knox County 3,772 $49,167 $130,554
79 St. Clair County 9,330 $43,483 $150,771
80 Bates County 16,101 $54,122 $185,706
81 Randolph County 24,652 $51,480 $151,516
82 Laclede County 36,060 $49,202 $209,619
83 St. Francois County 66,814 $53,083 $168,887
84 Lewis County 9,987 $49,779 $154,068
85 Vernon County 19,777 $53,318 $144,682
86 Cedar County 14,314 $43,589 $190,866
87 Lawrence County 38,231 $52,225 $178,760
88 Audrain County 24,873 $51,745 $145,486
89 Morgan County 21,169 $48,841 $266,874
90 Crawford County 23,023 $52,367 $198,604
91 Benton County 19,616 $50,229 $166,396
92 Dent County 14,509 $51,410 $175,104
93 Dallas County 17,158 $46,547 $215,109
94 Dade County 7,598 $46,806 $162,479
95 Douglas County 11,803 $47,848 $208,967
96 Stoddard County 28,656 $51,703 $132,260
97 Washington County 23,580 $49,364 $159,656
98 Barton County 11,683 $48,105 $171,440
99 Carter County 5,299 $45,737 $113,229
100 Hickory County 8,452 $33,302 $178,483
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.