county

Howard County, MO

Demographic and economic profile of Howard County, MO, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Howard County is a small, predominantly rural Missouri county of 10,141 residents with an economy reflected in a GDP per capita of $22,441 and median household income of $65,938. The labor force is relatively limited, with a 57.6% participation rate and 28.0% holding a bachelor's degree or higher, while median worker earnings of $36,695 and a median home value of $145,300 point to a low-cost operating environment. Population has been essentially flat over five years (+0.3%), and an 80.3% homeownership rate with median gross rent of $807/month underscores the county's affordable, stable residential profile.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

10,141

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$65,938

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

39.0 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+0.3% since 2018

Howard County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone8,779 (86.5%)
  • Black or African American Alone561 (5.5%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race333 (3.3%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races209 (2.1%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone151 (1.5%)
  • Some Other Race Alone88 (0.9%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish63
  2. 2.Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)22
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic21
  4. 4.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)20
  5. 5.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic8

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

22.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

58.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

19.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

514

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$22,441

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$30,241

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

4.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

12.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,334
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)467
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)467
  4. 4.Construction (Group)417
  5. 5.Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing334

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations1,522
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations847
  3. 3.Service Occupations794
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations686
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations630

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 3.18×)229
  2. 2.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.33×)1,399
  3. 3.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.25×)331
  4. 4.Finance, Insurance, & Real Estate (LQ 1.11×)335
  5. 5.Manufacturing (LQ 1.08×)485

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$145,300

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$807/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

78.7%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $300,000 to $399,999341 (12.1%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999308 (10.9%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999250 (8.9%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999241 (8.5%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999203 (7.2%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999176 (6.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

28.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

89.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

57.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$36,695

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

26.5 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

3.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone3,356 (75.7%)
  • Carpooled468 (10.6%)
  • Worked At Home434 (9.8%)
  • Walked101 (2.3%)
  • Other42 (0.9%)
  • Public Transit35 (0.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.