City · Pemiscot County, Missouri

Steele, Missouri

Steele is a city in Pemiscot County, Missouri. It has 1,493 residents. Steele, Missouri has a quality-of-life score of 7 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,602 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Missouri it ranks #369 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on pharmacies (high), grocery stores (high) and public libraries (high). It ranks worst on average weekly wage (low), premature death (high) and life expectancy (low).

7Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,602 of 15,651 cities and towns
Missouri: #369 of 375 in MO
Population: 1,493 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 690.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 2970558

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 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.

Safety2#15,284/15,637
Economy3#15,107/15,631
Housing84#2,385/14,977
Health4#14,931/15,609
Healthcare6#14,686/15,650
Environment8#14,248/15,453
Education28#11,334/15,649
Infrastructure27#11,431/15,650
Community33#10,474/15,651
Leisure & amenities18#12,782/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Pharmacies · high3.5 /10k
98/100Missouri 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPemiscot County value
Grocery stores · high2.8 /10k
93/100Missouri 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPemiscot County value
Public libraries · high2.1 /10k
92/100Missouri 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesPemiscot County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.2×
88/100Missouri 3.3×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Missouri 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePemiscot County value
Average commute time · low18.7 min
85/100Missouri 23.5 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Average weekly wage · low$779
0/100Missouri $1,278United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPemiscot County value
Premature death · high20,426 /100k
1/100Missouri 9,683 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePemiscot County value
Life expectancy · low67.0 yrs
1/100Missouri 75.7 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePemiscot County value
Dentists · low7 /100k
1/100Missouri 64 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePemiscot County value
Primary care shortage · high21.0
1/100Missouri 10.5United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationPemiscot County value
Preventable hospital stays · high5,340 /100k
1/100Missouri 3,034 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePemiscot County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
1,976 (2015-2019) → 1,493 (2020-2024)
−24%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateImproving
47.3% (2015-2019) → 24.1% (2020-2024)
−23 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$30,577 (2015-2019) → $54,600 (2020-2024)
+79%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherImproving
79.7% (2015-2019) → 88.8% (2020-2024)
+9.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Poverty rateImproving
30.2% (2015-2019) → 24.4% (2020-2024)
−5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
29.4% (2015-2019) → 24.1% (2020-2024)
−5.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

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, Steele, Missouri improved on 1 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 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+79%$30,577 → $54,600

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Steele, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.0 min2015-2019	18.7 min2020-2024	+1.7 min	Within the margin of error	30%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.8%2015-2019	17.8%2020-2024	+4 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Broadband subscriptions	81.5%2015-2019	84.7%2020-2024	+3.2 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Effective property tax rate	1.17%2015-2019	0.95%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	61%
High school diploma or higher	79.7%2015-2019	88.8%2020-2024	+9.1 points	Within the margin of error	94%
Home price to income ratio	2.9×2015-2019	2.2×2020-2024	−0.7×	Within the margin of error	96%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5092015-2019	0.5162020-2024	+0.007	Within the margin of error	44%
Median household income	$30,5772015-2019	$54,6002020-2024	+79%	Improved	96%
Poverty rate	30.2%2015-2019	24.4%2020-2024	−5.9 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Rent-burdened households	48.0%2015-2019	44.8%2020-2024	−3.2 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	11.0%2015-2019	10.9%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	48%

“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 Steele, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Steele, 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, Steele, Missouri itself moved +7.1 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

1,493 residents (±299)

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

622 households (±117)

Steele, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k32%†202
$25k–50k14%†86
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

622 households (±117)

Steele, Missouri
Missouri share

Own49%307
Rent51%†315

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

618 workers (±132)

Steele, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone80%493
Carpool15%†90
Public transit1.0%†6

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 Pemiscot County, the county holding most of Steele's residents.

Pemiscot County has 284 employer establishments, 194 for every 10,000 residents (0.78× the US rate of 248; 0.79× Missouri's), with 3,374 paid employees at an average annual pay of $41,102. The Census Bureau also counts 828 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 284; 828 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 194; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 3,374
Average annual pay: $41,102; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	25	17.1	0.82×About typical	274	$25,712	33
Restaurants and other eating places	20	13.6	0.74×Fewer than typical	182	$20,159	3
Religious organizations	19	13	2.34×More than typical	48	$15,979	—
Individual and family services	18	12.3	4.39×More than typical	298	$25,728	6
Grocery and convenience stores	12	8.2	2.76×More than typical	157	$19,739	—
Home health care services	11	7.5	6.20×More than typical	224	$17,424	15
Truck transportation	11	7.5	1.48×More than typical	84	$68,607	38
Full-service restaurants	9	6.1	0.80×Too few to compare	56	$24,054	—
Limited-service restaurants	9	6.1	0.77×Too few to compare	111	$18,180	—
Banks and credit unions	7	4.8	1.48×Too few to compare	99	$56,758	—
Child day care services	7	4.8	1.96×Too few to compare	79	$26,722	54
Gasoline stations	7	4.8	1.47×Too few to compare	119	$29,210	—

Rank places for an industry Open Pemiscot County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 14,661 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 $1,957 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Steele, Missouri: $1.31 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1,957
Per resident: $1.31; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; 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

Federal Acquisition Service$1,957100%

Top recipients

FEDERAL CONTRACTS LLC$1,09756%
SUNBELT RENTALS, INC$86044%

Spending by fiscal year

5.2KFY2018
-398.9FY2020
2KFY2026

What was bought

Equipment maintenance$1,957100%

Top industries (NAICS)

Motor vehicle manufacturing · 3361$1,09756%
General rental centers · 5323$86044%

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

Steele, Missouri's figures are part of those of Pemiscot County, MO ($401.1K in FY2026), never added to them: 0.5% of that total.

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

See federal money in Pemiscot 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.

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

House

Jason SmithR-MO-8 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.3%

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.

Pemiscot County4100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Pemiscot 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/2970558

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends