Scores by category

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

Safety43#8,934/15,637
Economy65#5,417/15,631
Housing96#580/14,977
Health34#10,380/15,609
Healthcare51#7,718/15,650
Environment49#7,870/15,453
Education75#3,835/15,649
Infrastructure67#5,145/15,650
Community89#1,677/15,651
Leisure & amenities67#5,224/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Palmyra, Missouri ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Marion 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

Social associations · high17.6 /10k
96/100Missouri 11.5 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarion County value
Rent as share of income · low19.5%
95/100Missouri 28.1%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Pharmacies · high2.8 /10k
94/100Missouri 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMarion County value
Voter turnout · high78.5%
94/100Missouri 66.7%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionMarion County value
Average commute time · low17.0 min
91/100Missouri 23.5 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Restaurants and bars · high12.6 /10k
89/100Missouri 8.6 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMarion County value

Weaknesses

Flu vaccinations · low19.0%
1/100Missouri 44.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarion County value
Hospital quality rating · low2.0
9/100Missouri 3.1United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMarion County value
Distance to an airport · high90 mi
13/100Missouri 40 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauMarion County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,675 /100k
15/100Missouri 3,034 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarion County value
Life expectancy · low73.7 yrs
16/100Missouri 75.7 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarion County value
Premature death · high11,324 /100k
18/100Missouri 9,683 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarion County value

Trends

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

Child poverty rateImproving
26.4% (2015-2019) → 4.0% (2020-2024)
−22 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
18.4% (2015-2019) → 36.1% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Poverty rateImproving
17.1% (2015-2019) → 5.4% (2020-2024)
−12 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
80.4% (2015-2019) → 91.9% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,215 (2015-2019) → $69,922 (2020-2024)
+51%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
18.8% (2015-2019) → 27.4% (2020-2024)
+8.6 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, Palmyra, Missouri improved on 3 of 12 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.

Improved3

Poverty−12 points17.1% → 5.4%
Household income+51%$46,215 → $69,922
Broadband+12 points80.4% → 91.9%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Palmyra, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	18.5 min2015-2019	17.0 min2020-2024	−1.4 min	Within the margin of error	65%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.8%2015-2019	27.4%2020-2024	+8.6 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Broadband subscriptions	80.4%2015-2019	91.9%2020-2024	+12 points	Improved	67%
Effective property tax rate	0.93%2015-2019	0.69%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	65%
High school diploma or higher	89.1%2015-2019	94.6%2020-2024	+5.4 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	2.6×2020-2024	+0.1×	Within the margin of error	73%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3662015-2019	0.3812020-2024	+0.015	Within the margin of error	38%
Median household income	$46,2152015-2019	$69,9222020-2024	+51%	Improved	86%
Poverty rate	17.1%2015-2019	5.4%2020-2024	−12 points	Improved	95%
Rent as share of income	22.8%2015-2019	19.5%2020-2024	−3.3 points	Within the margin of error	76%
Rent-burdened households	18.4%2015-2019	36.1%2020-2024	+18 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.2%2015-2019	4.7%2020-2024	−2.5 points	Within the margin of error	73%

“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 Palmyra, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Palmyra, 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, Palmyra, Missouri itself moved +7.5 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

3,623 residents (±15)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 40–49 men (+3.4 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

3,623 residents (±15)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

White83%2,994
Black5.1%†184
Hispanic or Latino3.1%†111

Education

2,455 residents (±150)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

No high school diploma5.4%†133
High school or GED37%898
Some college18%†445

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

1,415 households (±110)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k15%†207
$25k–50k20%†280
$50k–75k20%†282
$75k–100k14%†204
$100k–150k22%†317
$150k–200k6.4%†90
$200k or more2.5%†35

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $100k–150k (+13.7 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,415 households (±110)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Own72%1,024
Rent28%†391

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

360 households (±120)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $75047%†168
$750–1,00019%†69
$1,000–1,50031%†113

Home values

1,024 homes (±148)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $150k35%†356
$150k–250k37%381
$250k–400k24%†246

Age of homes

1,640 homes (±135)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

2010 or later6.3%†104
2000–20094.9%†80
1980–199921%†344

Size of homes

1,640 homes (±135)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom12%†192
2 bedrooms30%499

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

1,564 workers (±188)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone80%1,245
Carpool6.3%†98
Public transit0.0%0
Walk4.5%†70
Bike0.0%0
Work from home8.8%†138
Other0.8%†13

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+6.1 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

1,426 workers (±202)

Palmyra, Missouri
Missouri share

Under 15 min40%†569
15–29 min47%665
30–44 min11%†155

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Hannibal, MO

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 Marion County, the county holding most of Palmyra's residents.

Marion County has 797 employer establishments, 282 for every 10,000 residents (1.14× the US rate of 248; 1.16× Missouri's), with 10,807 paid employees at an average annual pay of $47,451. The Census Bureau also counts 1,907 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 797; 1,907 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 282; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 10,807
Average annual pay: $47,451; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	64	22.6	1.23×About typical	1,021	$20,179	10
Ambulatory health care services	54	19.1	0.92×About typical	851	$88,008	60
Individual and family services	39	13.8	4.93×More than typical	155	$31,703	12
Religious organizations	36	12.7	2.30×More than typical	227	$20,639	—
Limited-service restaurants	29	10.3	1.28×More than typical	517	$20,108	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	27	9.6	1.90×More than typical	106	$41,425	28
Gasoline stations	26	9.2	2.84×More than typical	274	$30,880	—
Full-service restaurants	25	8.8	1.15×About typical	424	$20,969	—
Construction of buildings	24	8.5	1.12×About typical	65	$52,769	111
Insurance agencies and brokerages	23	8.1	1.85×More than typical	66	$67,364	49
Lessors of real estate	23	8.1	0.66×Fewer than typical	49	$28,020	238
Banks and credit unions	21	7.4	2.30×More than typical	309	$51,686	3

Rank places for an industry Open Marion County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 28,270 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Palmyra, Missouri: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; 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

Spending by fiscal year

-3.6FY2017
66FY2018
-66FY2019

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 Palmyra, Missouri, so they do not add up across cities.

Palmyra, Missouri's figures are part of those of Marion County, MO ($515.2K 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: Palmyra is mostly in Marion County.

See federal money in Marion 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.

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

House

Sam GravesR-MO-6 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 7.0%

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.

Marion County65100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Hannibal, MO63

Other cities and towns in Marion 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/2956036