City · Webster County, Missouri

Seymour, Missouri

Seymour is a city in Webster County, Missouri, part of the Springfield, MO metro area. It has 2,179 residents. Seymour, Missouri has a quality-of-life score of 20 out of 100 (very low), ranking #12,591 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Missouri it ranks #340 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on effective property tax rate (low), home price to income ratio (low) and unemployment rate (low). It ranks worst on distance to an emergency room (high), adult smoking (high) and restaurants and bars (low).

20Very low

Quality-of-life score: #12,591 of 15,651 cities and towns
Missouri: #340 of 375 in MO
Population: 2,179 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 626.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 2966800

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 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.

Safety43#8,923/15,637
Economy30#10,929/15,631
Housing93#1,094/14,977
Health10#13,981/15,609
Healthcare4#15,009/15,650
Environment68#4,897/15,453
Education14#13,460/15,649
Infrastructure6#14,741/15,650
Community43#8,981/15,651
Leisure & amenities1#15,430/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Effective property tax rate · low0.45%
91/100Missouri 0.89%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Home price to income ratio · low2.3×
86/100Missouri 3.3×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Unemployment rate · low1.7%
86/100Missouri 4.0%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Property crime rate · low586 /100k
84/100Missouri 1,644 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationWebster County value
Rent-burdened households · low45.2%
80/100Missouri 45.6%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Rent as share of income · low27.1%
77/100Missouri 28.1%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071

Weaknesses

Distance to an emergency room · high20.9 mi
3/100Missouri 6.6 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesWebster County value
Adult smoking · high23.5%
3/100Missouri 19.5%United States 16.1%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Restaurants and bars · low4.0 /10k
5/100Missouri 8.6 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWebster County value
Adult obesity · high44.5%
6/100Missouri 38.9%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Dental care shortage · high18.0
6/100Missouri 9.4United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationWebster County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · low1.6 /10k
7/100Missouri 4.6 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWebster County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
2,022 (2015-2019) → 2,179 (2020-2024)
+7.8%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateWorsening
29.0% (2015-2019) → 49.9% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
62.2% (2015-2019) → 45.2% (2020-2024)
−17 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Poverty rateWorsening
19.9% (2015-2019) → 31.4% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
71.9% (2015-2019) → 80.4% (2020-2024)
+8.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$36,397 (2015-2019) → $51,591 (2020-2024)
+42%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

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, Seymour, Missouri improved on 1 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 11 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.

Improved1

Household income+42%$36,397 → $51,591

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Seymour, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	26.8 min2015-2019	31.0 min2020-2024	+4.2 min	Within the margin of error	13%
Bachelor's degree or higher	9.3%2015-2019	10.4%2020-2024	+1 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Broadband subscriptions	71.9%2015-2019	80.4%2020-2024	+8.5 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Child poverty rate	29.0%2015-2019	49.9%2020-2024	+21 points	Within the margin of error	4%
Effective property tax rate	0.57%2015-2019	0.45%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	40%
High school diploma or higher	81.5%2015-2019	86.6%2020-2024	+5.1 points	Within the margin of error	82%
Home price to income ratio	2.3×2015-2019	2.3×2020-2024	+0.0×	Within the margin of error	78%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3852015-2019	0.4102020-2024	+0.025	Within the margin of error	30%
Median household income	$36,3972015-2019	$51,5912020-2024	+42%	Improved	76%
Poverty rate	19.9%2015-2019	31.4%2020-2024	+11 points	Within the margin of error	3%
Rent as share of income	32.3%2015-2019	27.1%2020-2024	−5.2 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Rent-burdened households	62.2%2015-2019	45.2%2020-2024	−17 points	Within the margin of error	91%

“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 Seymour, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Seymour, 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, Seymour, Missouri itself moved +6.9 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

2,179 residents (±378)

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

874 households (±141)

Seymour, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k27%†232
$25k–50k20%†177
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

874 households (±141)

Seymour, Missouri
Missouri share

Own63%551
Rent37%†323

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

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

983 workers (±185)

Seymour, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone83%819
Carpool9.8%†96
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 Springfield, 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 Webster County, the county holding most of Seymour's residents.

Webster County has 743 employer establishments, 179 for every 10,000 residents (0.72× the US rate of 248; 0.73× Missouri's), with 7,474 paid employees at an average annual pay of $44,130. The Census Bureau also counts 3,838 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 743; 3,838 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 179; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 7,474
Average annual pay: $44,130; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	83	20	1.29×More than typical	447	$50,123	575
Ambulatory health care services	50	12.1	0.58×Fewer than typical	278	$54,777	81
Restaurants and other eating places	43	10.4	0.56×Fewer than typical	695	$17,809	13
Religious organizations	34	8.2	1.48×More than typical	132	$25,955	—
Building equipment contractors	32	7.7	1.28×More than typical	164	$43,738	75
Lessors of real estate	32	7.7	0.63×Fewer than typical	79	$31,253	272
Automotive repair and maintenance	31	7.5	1.48×More than typical	98	$41,480	119
Construction of buildings	31	7.5	0.99×About typical	81	$45,457	475
Truck transportation	29	7	1.38×More than typical	253	$65,490	181
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	27	6.5	2.07×More than typical	188	$55,681	151
Limited-service restaurants	22	5.3	0.66×Fewer than typical	531	$16,520	—
Offices of other health practitioners	21	5.1	0.83×About typical	64	$38,906	41

Rank places for an industry Open Webster County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 41,476 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 $35.3K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Seymour, Missouri: $16.22 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $35.3K; −26% vs FY2025
Per resident: $16.22; US $1,994
Sole-source: 91%; US 30%
Single offer: 9.1%; 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

National Institutes of Health$35K99%
Defense Logistics Agency$3941.1%

Top recipients

SNODGRASS CONTRACTING LLC$35K99%
CHAMP INDUSTRIES, INC.$3941.1%

Spending by fiscal year

2.2KFY2017
3.3KFY2018
2.6KFY2019
3.2KFY2020
19.4KFY2021
37.4KFY2022
160.7KFY2023
105.6KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Facilities support services · 5612$32.1K91%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$2,8898.2%
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$1980.6%
Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$1480.4%
Hardware manufacturing · 3325$42.240.1%
Engine, turbine, and power transmission equipment manufacturing · 3336$35.27

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

Seymour, Missouri's figures are part of those of Webster County, MO ($1.4M in FY2026), never added to them: 2.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Webster 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.

Seymour, Missouri is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Webster County32100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Springfield, MO49

Other cities and towns in Webster 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/2966800

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends