Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety26#11,502/15,637
Economy12#13,723/15,631
Housing75#3,794/14,977
Health11#13,929/15,609
Healthcare18#12,894/15,650
Environment67#5,150/15,453
Education28#11,195/15,649
Infrastructure15#13,374/15,650
Community61#6,082/15,651
Leisure & amenities24#11,906/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Voter turnout · high79.6%
95/100Missouri 66.7%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionHowell County value
Drug overdose deaths · low8.4 /100k
87/100Missouri 18.0 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataHowell County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Missouri 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHowell County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.56%
83/100Missouri 0.89%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Students per teacher · low12.1×
81/100Missouri 12.7×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsHowell County value
Grocery stores · high2.2 /10k
81/100Missouri 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsHowell County value

Weaknesses

Dental care shortage · high20.0
1/100Missouri 9.4United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationHowell County value
Adult smoking · high24.0%
3/100Missouri 19.5%United States 16.1%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Poverty rate · high28.1%
5/100Missouri 12.2%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Primary care shortage · high18.0
5/100Missouri 10.5United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationHowell County value
Average weekly wage · low$897
5/100Missouri $1,278United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsHowell County value
Frequent mental distress · high22.0%
6/100Missouri 19.8%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate

Trends

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

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
71.9% (2015-2019) → 88.4% (2020-2024)
+17 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
New homes permittedWorsening
5.3 /1k (2021) → 1.6 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−70%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Bachelor's degree or higherWorsening
26.3% (2015-2019) → 17.1% (2020-2024)
−9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.7× (2015-2019) → 3.9× (2020-2024)
+43%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Average commute timeWorsening
15.3 min (2015-2019) → 21.3 min (2020-2024)
+39%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Child poverty rateImproving
44.0% (2015-2019) → 36.4% (2020-2024)
−7.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%

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, West Plains, Missouri improved on 1 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 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

Broadband+17 points71.9% → 88.4%

Declined2

Bachelor's+−9.2 points26.3% → 17.1%
Price / income+1.2×2.7× → 3.9×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of West Plains, Missouri between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.3 min2015-2019	21.3 min2020-2024	+5.9 min	Within the margin of error	7%
Bachelor's degree or higher	26.3%2015-2019	17.1%2020-2024	−9.2 points	Declined	2%
Broadband subscriptions	71.9%2015-2019	88.4%2020-2024	+17 points	Improved	84%
Child poverty rate	44.0%2015-2019	36.4%2020-2024	−7.6 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Effective property tax rate	0.73%2015-2019	0.56%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	51%
High school diploma or higher	90.2%2015-2019	86.2%2020-2024	−4 points	Within the margin of error	8%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	3.9×2020-2024	+1.2×	Declined	17%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4792015-2019	0.4372020-2024	−0.041	Within the margin of error	80%
Median household income	$36,8652015-2019	$44,0022020-2024	+19%	Within the margin of error	32%
Poverty rate	27.6%2015-2019	28.1%2020-2024	+0.5 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Rent as share of income	28.1%2015-2019	28.4%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	53%
Rent-burdened households	45.1%2015-2019	47.6%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Within the margin of error	47%
Unemployment rate	1.6%2015-2019	4.2%2020-2024	+2.6 points	Within the margin of error	12%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	14.6%2015-2019	18.8%2020-2024	+4.2 points	Within the margin of error	13%

“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 West Plains, Missouri five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of West Plains, 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, West Plains, Missouri itself moved −6.4 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

12,441 residents (±71)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39
20–29
10–19
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 30–39 women (+3.3 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

12,441 residents (±71)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

White94%11,704
Black1.0%†120
Hispanic or Latino0.2%†30
Asian0.5%†68
American Indian and Alaska Native0.2%†26
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%†2
Other or two or more races3.9%491

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Other or two or more races (+2.0 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

8,231 residents (±352)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

No high school diploma14%1,137
High school or GED39%3,245
Some college17%1,425
Associate degree12%†1,017
Bachelor's degree9.5%†783
Graduate degree7.6%†624

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: High school or GED (+7.0 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B15003View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

5,051 households (±319)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $25k30%1,535
$25k–50k24%1,235
$50k–75k18%†899
$75k–100k14%†683
$100k–150k8.5%†430
$150k–200k3.2%†164
$200k or more2.1%†105

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

5,051 households (±319)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Own52%2,634
Rent48%2,417

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

2,348 households (±371)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $75047%1,111
$750–1,00029%†692
$1,000–1,50023%†533

Home values

2,634 homes (±327)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Under $150k41%1,093
$150k–250k36%942
$250k–400k18%†462

Age of homes

5,726 homes (±301)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

2010 or later9.2%†526
2000–200911%†631
1980–199922%1,279

Size of homes

5,726 homes (±301)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Studio2.1%†122
1 bedroom11%†645
2 bedrooms35%2,011

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

5,145 workers (±414)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Drive alone79%4,068
Carpool14%†741
Public transit0.0%0
Walk1.0%†53
Bike0.0%0
Work from home3.6%†184
Other1.9%†99

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

4,961 workers (±391)

West Plains, Missouri
Missouri share

Under 15 min65%3,227
15–29 min14%†675
30–44 min9.1%†449

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 West Plains, 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 Howell County, the county holding most of West Plains's residents.

Howell County has 1,076 employer establishments, 264 for every 10,000 residents (1.06× the US rate of 248; 1.08× Missouri's), with 15,374 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,121. The Census Bureau also counts 3,424 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,076; 3,424 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 264; US 248 · Missouri 244
Paid employees: 15,374
Average annual pay: $42,121; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	92	22.6	1.08×About typical	1,518	$57,308	113
Restaurants and other eating places	66	16.2	0.88×About typical	1,308	$19,119	18
Specialty trade contractors	53	13	0.84×About typical	385	$65,509	404
Automotive repair and maintenance	49	12	2.39×More than typical	210	$38,962	104
Truck transportation	47	11.5	2.28×More than typical	231	$50,368	152
Lessors of real estate	43	10.6	0.86×About typical	97	$36,299	244
Religious organizations	40	9.8	1.77×More than typical	187	$18,545	—
Individual and family services	33	8.1	2.89×More than typical	380	$27,511	12
Full-service restaurants	32	7.9	1.02×About typical	434	$20,767	6
Offices of other health practitioners	31	7.6	1.25×More than typical	131	$40,244	53
Insurance agencies and brokerages	26	6.4	1.45×More than typical	100	$43,790	39
Limited-service restaurants	26	6.4	0.80×Fewer than typical	831	$18,350	9

Rank places for an industry Open Howell County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 40,725 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 $1.7M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in West Plains, Missouri: $138 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1.7M; +753% vs FY2025
Per resident: $138; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.7%; US 30%
Single offer: 1.8%; 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 the Army$1.7M97%
Defense Logistics Agency$24K1.4%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$18.3K1.1%
National Park Service$9,8060.6%
Department of the Air Force$5,0890.3%
National Transportation Safety Board$8230.0%
Defense Contract Management Agency$5660.0%

Top recipients

DRS SUSTAINMENT SYSTEMS, INC$1.7M97%
ASRC FEDERAL FACILITIES LOGISTICS, LLC$24.6K1.4%
AIR EVAC EMS, INC$18.3K1.1%
LABOR OMNIA VINCIT JV LLC$9,8060.6%
DEIDIKER ACCOUNTING & CONSULTING LLC$8230.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.4MFY2017
59.1KFY2018
395.8KFY2019
49.1KFY2020
717.1KFY2021
1.8MFY2022
1.7MFY2023
883.9K

Top industries (NAICS)

Other transportation equipment manufacturing · 3369$1.7M97%
Other ambulatory health care services · 6219$15.8K0.9%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$9,8060.6%
Electrical equipment manufacturing · 3353$8,8700.5%
Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$8,7500.5%
Plastics product manufacturing · 3261$4,826

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 West Plains, Missouri, so they do not add up across cities.

West Plains, Missouri's figures are part of those of Howell County, MO ($52.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 3.3% of that total.

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

See federal money in Howell 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.

West Plains, 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.

Howell County26100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

West Plains, MO22

Other cities and towns in Howell 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/2978928

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends