City · St. Charles County, Missouri

St. Paul, Missouri

St. Paul is a city in St. Charles County, Missouri, part of the St. Louis, MO-IL metro area. It has 3,456 residents. St. Paul, Missouri has a quality-of-life score of 88 out of 100 (very high), ranking #1,862 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Missouri it ranks #5 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on poverty rate (low), median household income (high) and loneliness (low). It ranks worst on high ozone days (high), comfortable days (low) and time spent in the emergency room (high).

88Very high

Quality-of-life score: #1,862 of 15,651 cities and towns
Missouri: #5 of 375 in MO
Population: 3,456 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 479.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 2965108

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 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.

Safety87#1,976/15,637
Economy97#412/15,631
Housing86#2,080/14,977
Health76#3,718/15,609
Healthcare60#6,300/15,650
Environment9#13,999/15,453
Education94#992/15,649
Infrastructure87#2,011/15,650
Community80#3,089/15,651
Leisure & amenities54#7,149/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Poverty rate · low0.5%
100/100Missouri 12.2%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001High uncertainty
Median household income · high$159,022
96/100Missouri $71,583United States $81,6042020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19013
Loneliness · low29.1%
95/100Missouri 32.5%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Unemployment rate · low0.5%
95/100Missouri 4.0%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.349
93/100Missouri 0.465United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Pharmacies · high2.7 /10k
93/100Missouri 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSt. Charles County value

Weaknesses

High ozone days · high6 days
13/100Missouri 2 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySt. Charles County value
Comfortable days · low23.6%
16/100Missouri 24.9%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationSt. Charles County value
Time spent in the emergency room · high207 min
17/100Missouri 161 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSt. Charles County value
Grocery stores · low1.1 /10k
19/100Missouri 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSt. Charles County value
Social associations · low7.0 /10k
23/100Missouri 11.5 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSt. Charles County value
Public libraries · low0.3 /10k
25/100Missouri 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesSt. Charles County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
2,295 (2015-2019) → 3,456 (2020-2024)
+51%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
0.0% (2015-2019) → 33.3% (2020-2024)
+33 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
New homes permittedWorsening
33.4 /1k (2021) → 7.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−78%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
2.0% (2015-2019) → 10.9% (2020-2024)
+9 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Median household incomeImproving
$110,000 (2015-2019) → $159,022 (2020-2024)
+45%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
37.9% (2015-2019) → 42.7% (2020-2024)
+4.7 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, St. Paul, Missouri improved on 1 of 9 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 8 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+45%$110,000 → $159,022

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 9 measures

Change of every measure of St. Paul, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	28.9 min2015-2019	24.3 min2020-2024	−4.6 min	Within the margin of error	88%
Bachelor's degree or higher	37.9%2015-2019	42.7%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Within the margin of error	65%
Broadband subscriptions	93.0%2015-2019	95.5%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Within the margin of error	17%
Effective property tax rate	1.10%2015-2019	1.03%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	30%
High school diploma or higher	96.2%2015-2019	98.1%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Home price to income ratio	3.0×2015-2019	2.8×2020-2024	−0.2×	Within the margin of error	87%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3982015-2019	0.3492020-2024	−0.048	Within the margin of error	83%
Median household income	$110,0002015-2019	$159,0222020-2024	+45%	Improved	80%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%

“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 St. Paul, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of St. Paul, 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, St. Paul, Missouri itself moved +8.5 points in standing on average over the same 8 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

3,456 residents (±26)

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

1,198 households (±81)

St. Paul, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k0.7%†8
$25k–50k6.6%†79
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,198 households (±81)

St. Paul, Missouri
Missouri share

Own99%1,183
Rent1.3%†15

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+5.4 points).

† 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

1,887 workers (±191)

St. Paul, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone74%1,390
Carpool5.0%†95
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 St. Louis, MO-IL

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 St. Charles County, the county holding most of St. Paul's residents.

St. Charles County has 8,946 employer establishments, 214 for every 10,000 residents (0.86× the US rate of 248; 0.88× Missouri's), with 143,624 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,505. The Census Bureau also counts 33,519 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 8,946; 33,519 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 214; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 143,624
Average annual pay: $56,505; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	766	18.3	0.88×About typical	6,102	$71,352	1,291
Restaurants and other eating places	738	17.7	0.96×About typical	17,815	$21,900	124
Specialty trade contractors	691	16.6	1.07×About typical	6,676	$68,601	1,862
Lessors of real estate	431	10.3	0.84×About typical	1,331	$44,655	3,752
Services to buildings and dwellings	352	8.4	1.25×More than typical	3,059	$41,380	1,434
Limited-service restaurants	333	8	0.99×About typical	7,082	$20,162	61
Full-service restaurants	305	7.3	0.95×About typical	9,131	$23,978	43
Construction of buildings	289	6.9	0.92×About typical	1,711	$70,354	857
Offices of other health practitioners	281	6.7	1.11×About typical	1,670	$50,136	765
Insurance agencies and brokerages	240	5.7	1.31×More than typical	1,406	$72,343	760
Automotive repair and maintenance	239	5.7	1.14×About typical	1,849	$47,150	272
Real estate agents and brokers	202	4.8	0.99×About typical	307	$50,629	1,245

Rank places for an industry Open St. Charles County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 417,442 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 $330.4K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in St. Paul, Missouri: $95.59 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $330.4K; +10% vs FY2025
Per resident: $95.59; US $1,994
Sole-source: 3.9%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

Department of Veterans Affairs$162.4K49%
Defense Logistics Agency$84.9K26%
Indian Health Service$29.6K9.0%
National Institutes of Health$21.4K6.5%
Department of the Air Force$15.5K4.7%
National Aeronautics and Space Administration$12.8K3.9%
Department of the Navy$3,6531.1%

Top recipients

MACKWORTH USA, LLC$143.3K43%
PHOENIX TEXTILE CORPORATION$125.4K38%
LOWREY RESEARCH & ANALYTICS LLC$29.6K9.0%
RPMC LASERS INC.$16.5K5.0%
WILLERDING ACQUISITION CORP.$15.5K4.7%

Spending by fiscal year

1MFY2017
1.1MFY2018
637.7KFY2019
907KFY2020
499.5KFY2021
791.8KFY2022
395.1KFY2023
400.8K

Top industries (NAICS)

Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$140.3K42%
Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing · 3254$84.8K26%
Data processing, hosting, and related services · 5182$29.6K9.0%
Textile furnishings mills · 3141$24.5K7.4%
Cut and sew apparel manufacturing · 3152$19.1K5.8%
Semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing · 3344

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 St. Paul, Missouri, so they do not add up across cities.

St. Paul, Missouri's figures are part of those of St. Charles County, MO ($43.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.8% of that total.

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

See federal money in St. Charles 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.

St. Paul, 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.

St. Charles County92100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

St. Louis, MO-IL72

Other cities and towns in St. Charles 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/2965108

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends