City · Lafayette County, Missouri

Higginsville, Missouri

Higginsville is a city in Lafayette County, Missouri, part of the Kansas City, MO-KS metro area. It has 4,781 residents. Higginsville, Missouri has a quality-of-life score of 51 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #7,651 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Missouri it ranks #134 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on income inequality (Gini index) (low), time spent in the emergency room (low) and home price to income ratio (low). It ranks worst on access to exercise opportunities (low), gyms and fitness centers (low) and average weekly wage (low).

51Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #7,651 of 15,651 cities and towns
Missouri: #134 of 375 in MO
Population: 4,781 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 1,268.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 2931960

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety32#10,678/15,637
Economy64#5,587/15,631
Housing90#1,569/14,977
Health41#9,244/15,609
Healthcare17#13,020/15,650
Environment84#2,527/15,453
Education47#8,295/15,649
Infrastructure50#7,809/15,650
Community66#5,312/15,651
Leisure & amenities8#14,359/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Higginsville, Missouri ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Lafayette County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.311
99/100Missouri 0.465United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Time spent in the emergency room · low106 min
94/100Missouri 161 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLafayette County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.0×
91/100Missouri 3.3×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Public libraries · high1.8 /10k
89/100Missouri 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesLafayette County value
Pharmacies · high2.4 /10k
87/100Missouri 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLafayette County value
Average commute time · low19.7 min
86/100Missouri 23.5 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Access to exercise opportunities · low32.4%
3/100Missouri 76.6%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLafayette County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.0 /10k
4/100Missouri 1.2 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLafayette County value
Average weekly wage · low$903
6/100Missouri $1,278United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLafayette County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · low1.5 /10k
6/100Missouri 4.6 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLafayette County value
Primary care physicians · low24 /100k
7/100Missouri 72 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLafayette County value
Hospital quality rating · low2.0
9/100Missouri 3.1United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLafayette County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Child poverty rateImproving
39.4% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−39 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateImproving
24.8% (2015-2019) → 6.8% (2020-2024)
−18 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$45,921 (2015-2019) → $81,033 (2020-2024)
+76%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
71.6% (2015-2019) → 85.1% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
New homes permittedWorsening
1.1 /1k (2021) → 0.6 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−41%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
23.3% (2015-2019) → 29.9% (2020-2024)
+6.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Higginsville, Missouri improved on 5 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved5

Child poverty−39 points39.4% → 0.0%
Poverty−18 points24.8% → 6.8%
Household income+76%$45,921 → $81,033
Inequality−0.0970.408 → 0.311
Broadband+14 points71.6% → 85.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Higginsville, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.2 min2015-2019	19.7 min2020-2024	+0.5 min	Within the margin of error	41%
Bachelor's degree or higher	23.3%2015-2019	29.9%2020-2024	+6.6 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Broadband subscriptions	71.6%2015-2019	85.1%2020-2024	+14 points	Improved	75%
Child poverty rate	39.4%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	−39 points	Improved	99%
Effective property tax rate	1.01%2015-2019	0.91%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	35%
High school diploma or higher	88.3%2015-2019	88.0%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	30%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	2.0×2020-2024	−0.2×	Within the margin of error	87%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4082015-2019	0.3112020-2024	−0.097	Improved	95%
Median household income	$45,9212015-2019	$81,0332020-2024	+76%	Improved	96%
Poverty rate	24.8%2015-2019	6.8%2020-2024	−18 points	Improved	99%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	23.3%2015-2019	24.2%2020-2024	+0.9 points	Within the margin of error	48%
Rent-burdened households	42.5%2015-2019	39.1%2020-2024	−3.4 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	12.5%2015-2019	13.5%2020-2024	+0.9 points	Within the margin of error	35%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Higginsville, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Higginsville, Missouri in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Higginsville, Missouri itself moved +8.4 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

4,781 residents (±17)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

1,986 households (±205)

Higginsville, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k8.3%†164
$25k–50k21%†411
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

1,986 households (±205)

Higginsville, Missouri
Missouri share

Own74%1,479
Rent26%507

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+24.7 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

2,661 workers (±273)

Higginsville, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone83%2,221
Carpool9.6%†255
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Kansas City, MO-KS

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Lafayette County, the county holding most of Higginsville's residents.

Lafayette County has 732 employer establishments, 220 for every 10,000 residents (0.89× the US rate of 248; 0.90× Missouri's), with 6,755 paid employees at an average annual pay of $43,632. The Census Bureau also counts 2,364 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 732; 2,364 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 220; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 6,755
Average annual pay: $43,632; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Lafayette County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	72	21.7	1.40×More than typical	421	$56,494	288
Restaurants and other eating places	54	16.3	0.89×About typical	683	$16,662	5
Ambulatory health care services	37	11.1	0.53×Fewer than typical	235	$64,243	71
Religious organizations	37	11.1	2.01×More than typical	218	$21,073	—
Truck transportation	31	9.3	1.85×More than typical	96	$64,833	51
Other specialty trade contractors	29	8.7	3.48×More than typical	209	$63,531	109
Limited-service restaurants	28	8.4	1.05×About typical	530	$14,381	4
Construction of buildings	25	7.5	1.00×About typical	126	$40,333	107
Services to buildings and dwellings	25	7.5	1.12×About typical	48	$35,917	177
Lessors of real estate	22	6.6	0.54×Fewer than typical	33	$28,848	220
Gasoline stations	21	6.3	1.95×More than typical	314	$30,850	—
Insurance agencies and brokerages	21	6.3	1.44×More than typical	48	$55,958	40

Rank places for an industry Open Lafayette County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 33,216 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated -$53.65 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Higginsville, Missouri: -$0.01 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$53.65; −125% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$0.01; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

MOI, INC.-$53.650.0%

Spending by fiscal year

3.2KFY2024
213FY2025
-53.7FY2026

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Higginsville, Missouri, so they do not add up across cities.

Higginsville, Missouri's figures are part of those of Lafayette County, MO ($4.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Higginsville is mostly in Lafayette County.

See federal money in Lafayette County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Higginsville, Missouri is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Mark AlfordR-MO-4 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 1.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Lafayette County56100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Kansas City, MO-KS73

Other cities and towns in Lafayette County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/2931960

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends