Census-designated place · St. Francois County, Missouri

Terre du Lac, Missouri

Terre du Lac is a census-designated place in St. Francois County, Missouri, part of the Farmington, MO metro area. It has 2,516 residents. Terre du Lac, Missouri has a quality-of-life score of 52 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #7,573 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Missouri it ranks #133 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on income inequality (Gini index) (low), pharmacies (high) and home price to income ratio (low). It ranks worst on average weekly wage (low), dental care shortage (high) and life expectancy (low).

52Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #7,573 of 15,651 cities and towns
Missouri: #133 of 375 in MO
Population: 2,516 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 360.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 2972772

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.

Safety19#12,637/15,637
Economy53#7,304/15,631
Housing95#787/14,977
Health23#11,962/15,609
Healthcare44#8,801/15,650
Environment59#6,390/15,453
Education73#4,190/15,649
Infrastructure64#5,558/15,650
Community57#6,791/15,651
Leisure & amenities15#13,316/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Terre du Lac, Missouri ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “St. Francois 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) · low0.320
95/100Missouri 0.465United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Pharmacies · high2.8 /10k
94/100Missouri 2.1 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSt. Francois County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.3×
83/100Missouri 3.3×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Hospital quality rating · high4.0
80/100Missouri 3.1United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSt. Francois County value
Rent-burdened households · low0.0%
80/100Missouri 45.6%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
High school diploma or higher · high96.3%
80/100Missouri 91.8%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003

Weaknesses

Average weekly wage · low$886
4/100Missouri $1,278United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSt. Francois County value
Dental care shortage · high18.0
6/100Missouri 9.4United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSt. Francois County value
Life expectancy · low72.0 yrs
7/100Missouri 75.7 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSt. Francois County value
Primary care shortage · high17.0
9/100Missouri 10.5United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSt. Francois County value
Premature death · high12,751 /100k
9/100Missouri 9,683 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSt. Francois County value
Firearm deaths · high22.4 /100k
10/100Missouri 20.1 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSt. Francois County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,662 (2015-2019) → 2,516 (2020-2024)
−5.5%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
54.0% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−54 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
51.0% (2015-2019) → 27.3% (2018-2022)
−24 pts3 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
13.2% (2015-2019) → 27.1% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateImproving
27.9% (2015-2019) → 13.9% (2020-2024)
−14 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
84.0% (2015-2019) → 95.7% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%

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, Terre du Lac, 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

Bachelor's++14 points13.2% → 27.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 9 measures

Change of every measure of Terre du Lac, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	35.8 min2015-2019	35.5 min2020-2024	−0.3 min	Within the margin of error	51%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.2%2015-2019	27.1%2020-2024	+14 points	Improved	96%
Broadband subscriptions	84.0%2015-2019	95.7%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Effective property tax rate	0.74%2015-2019	0.61%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	43%
High school diploma or higher	94.4%2015-2019	96.3%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	2.3×2020-2024	−0.2×	Within the margin of error	85%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3562015-2019	0.3202020-2024	−0.036	Within the margin of error	78%
Median household income	$62,6272015-2019	$86,0192020-2024	+37%	Within the margin of error	69%
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 Terre du Lac, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Terre du Lac, 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, Terre du Lac, Missouri itself moved +12.1 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

2,516 residents (±496)

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

958 households (±173)

Terre du Lac, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k7.2%†69
$25k–50k16%†155
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

958 households (±173)

Terre du Lac, Missouri
Missouri share

Own97%933
Rent2.6%†25

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+19.5 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

1,208 workers (±404)

Terre du Lac, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone66%†793
Carpool12%†146
Public transit

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 Farmington, 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 St. Francois County, the county holding most of Terre du Lac's residents.

St. Francois County has 1,438 employer establishments, 215 for every 10,000 residents (0.86× the US rate of 248; 0.88× Missouri's), with 17,990 paid employees at an average annual pay of $39,714. The Census Bureau also counts 4,007 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,438; 4,007 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 215; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 17,990
Average annual pay: $39,714; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	143	21.3	1.02×About typical	1,245	$59,018	149
Restaurants and other eating places	107	16	0.87×About typical	2,169	$17,835	13
Specialty trade contractors	99	14.8	0.95×About typical	823	$62,262	357
Religious organizations	60	9	1.61×More than typical	317	$19,041	—
Limited-service restaurants	53	7.9	0.99×About typical	1,069	$18,949	6
Truck transportation	49	7.3	1.45×More than typical	271	$48,373	96
Lessors of real estate	45	6.7	0.55×Fewer than typical	88	$36,477	387
Full-service restaurants	43	6.4	0.84×About typical	929	$17,638	3
Individual and family services	42	6.3	2.24×More than typical	528	$24,661	39
Offices of physicians	41	6.1	0.94×About typical	404	$85,067	40
Building equipment contractors	40	6	0.99×About typical	470	$62,221	54
Construction of buildings	38	5.7	0.75×Fewer than typical	150	$63,740	189

Rank places for an industry Open St. Francois County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 67,027 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 $10K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Terre du Lac, Missouri: $3.98 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $10K
Per resident: $3.98; US $1,994
Sole-source: 34%; 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

Environmental Protection Agency$6,56966%
Offices, Boards and Divisions$3,45434%

Top recipients

TETRA TECH, INC.$6,56966%
JESS GROUP LLC$3,45434%

Spending by fiscal year

4.4KFY2017
66.6KFY2018
1.1KFY2019
-128.4FY2020
822FY2021
1KFY2023
-620.7FY2024
10KFY2026

Top industries (NAICS)

Management, scientific, and technical consulting services · 5416$6,56966%
Legal services · 5411$3,45434%

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 Terre du Lac, Missouri, so they do not add up across cities.

Terre du Lac, Missouri's figures are part of those of St. Francois County, MO and Washington County, MO ($17.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.1% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Terre du Lac is mostly in St. Francois County.

See federal money in St. Francois 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.

Terre du Lac, 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.

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Farmington, MO25

Other cities and towns in St. Francois 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
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/2972772

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends