City · Montgomery County, Missouri

Wellsville, Missouri

Wellsville is a city in Montgomery County, Missouri. It has 1,165 residents. Wellsville, Missouri has a quality-of-life score of 29 out of 100 (low), ranking #11,167 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Missouri it ranks #284 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), rent as share of income (low) and voter turnout (high). It ranks worst on suicide rate (high), primary care physicians (low) and distance to an emergency room (high).

29Low

Quality-of-life score: #11,167 of 15,651 cities and towns
Missouri: #284 of 375 in MO
Population: 1,165 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 758.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 2978406

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 71 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.

Safety44#8,827/15,637
Economy29#11,066/15,631
Housing100#42/14,977
Health14#13,413/15,609
Healthcare2#15,279/15,650
Environment63#5,775/15,453
Education31#10,835/15,649
Infrastructure23#12,031/15,650
Community51#7,596/15,651
Leisure & amenities18#12,780/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Home price to income ratio · low1.4×
99/100Missouri 3.3×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Rent as share of income · low18.6%
99/100Missouri 28.1%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Voter turnout · high80.5%
96/100Missouri 66.7%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionMontgomery County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Missouri 7.7 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMontgomery County value
Students per teacher · low11.2×
92/100Missouri 12.7×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsMontgomery County value
Public libraries · high1.7 /10k
89/100Missouri 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesMontgomery County value

Weaknesses

Suicide rate · high96.0 /100k
0/100Missouri 19.1 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMontgomery County value
Primary care physicians · low9 /100k
1/100Missouri 72 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMontgomery County value
Distance to an emergency room · high21.1 mi
2/100Missouri 6.6 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMontgomery County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low33.0%
3/100Missouri 76.6%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMontgomery County value
Dentists · low18 /100k
3/100Missouri 64 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMontgomery County value
Public EV charging ports · low0.0 /10k
3/100Missouri 5.3 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyMontgomery County value

Trends

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

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
61.5% (2015-2019) → 89.5% (2020-2024)
+28 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$42,697 (2015-2019) → $61,429 (2020-2024)
+44%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
7.9% (2015-2019) → 14.8% (2020-2024)
+6.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateImproving
14.4% (2015-2019) → 7.9% (2020-2024)
−6.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
24.6% (2015-2019) → 18.6% (2020-2024)
−6 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Income inequality (Gini index)Worsening
0.366 (2015-2019) → 0.467 (2020-2024)
+27%5 yearsCensus table B19083US 0.482 → 0.483

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, Wellsville, Missouri improved on 2 of 12 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.

Improved2

Broadband+28 points61.5% → 89.5%
Rent / income−6 points24.6% → 18.6%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Wellsville, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	32.0 min2015-2019	33.8 min2020-2024	+1.8 min	Within the margin of error	28%
Bachelor's degree or higher	7.9%2015-2019	14.8%2020-2024	+6.9 points	Within the margin of error	79%
Broadband subscriptions	61.5%2015-2019	89.5%2020-2024	+28 points	Improved	97%
Effective property tax rate	1.16%2015-2019	0.77%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	83%
High school diploma or higher	80.5%2015-2019	81.3%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	44%
Home price to income ratio	1.6×2015-2019	1.4×2020-2024	−0.3×	Within the margin of error	88%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3662015-2019	0.4672020-2024	+0.101	Within the margin of error	4%
Median household income	$42,6972015-2019	$61,4292020-2024	+44%	Within the margin of error	79%
Poverty rate	13.7%2015-2019	14.4%2020-2024	+0.7 points	Within the margin of error	37%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	24.6%2015-2019	18.6%2020-2024	−6 points	Improved	86%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	14.3%2015-2019	19.7%2020-2024	+5.5 points	Within the margin of error	9%

“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 Wellsville, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Wellsville, 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, Wellsville, Missouri itself moved +2.5 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

1,165 residents (±234)

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

410 households (±74)

Wellsville, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k23%†95
$25k–50k24%†99
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

410 households (±74)

Wellsville, Missouri
Missouri share

Own72%297
Rent28%†113

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

473 workers (±112)

Wellsville, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone75%353
Carpool13%†61
Public transit0.0%0

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 Montgomery County, the county holding most of Wellsville's residents.

Montgomery County has 239 employer establishments, 208 for every 10,000 residents (0.84× the US rate of 248; 0.85× Missouri's), with 2,351 paid employees at an average annual pay of $50,783. The Census Bureau also counts 897 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 239; 897 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 208; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 2,351
Average annual pay: $50,783; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	24	20.9	1.35×More than typical	175	$59,931	124
Restaurants and other eating places	15	13.1	0.71×Fewer than typical	165	$16,406	4
Insurance agencies and brokerages	11	9.6	2.18×More than typical	35	$42,343	28
Construction of buildings	10	8.7	1.15×About typical	28	$38,036	48
Truck transportation	10	8.7	1.73×More than typical	23	$68,522	40
Gasoline stations	9	7.9	2.42×Too few to compare	169	$28,148	—
Religious organizations	9	7.9	1.42×Too few to compare	54	$18,074	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	8	7	1.39×Too few to compare	33	$69,333	23
Banks and credit unions	8	7	2.16×Too few to compare	46	$57,565	—
Other specialty trade contractors	8	7	2.78×Too few to compare	54	$61,204	69
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	7	6.1	1.94×Too few to compare	91	$57,956	14
Full-service restaurants	7	6.1	0.80×Too few to compare	49	$19,020	—

Rank places for an industry Open Montgomery County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 11,464 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 Wellsville, 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

9.7KFY2017
10.6KFY2018
2.5KFY2019
2.3KFY2020
3.5KFY2021
483.4FY2022

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

Wellsville, Missouri's figures are part of those of Montgomery County, MO ($7,329 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: Wellsville is mostly in Montgomery County.

See federal money in Montgomery 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.

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

House

Robert F. Onder, Jr.R-MO-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 3.0%

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.

Montgomery County36100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Montgomery 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/2978406

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends