county

Mercer County, MO

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

AI Overview

Mercer County is a small, agriculture-oriented rural county in northern Missouri with a population of 3,501 that has contracted by 4.4% over the past five years. The labor force participation rate stands at 55.3%, unemployment is low at 2.3%, and median worker earnings reach $36,071, with just 17.9% of residents holding a bachelor's degree or higher. Housing costs are exceptionally low—median home values at $95,300 and median gross rent at $548 per month—against a median household income of $62,679, pointing to a cost structure well below national norms.

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

Population

3,501

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$62,679

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

42.4 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-4.4% since 2018

Mercer County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone3,218 (92.4%)
  • Some Other Race Alone81 (2.3%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races75 (2.2%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race44 (1.3%)
  • Asian Alone31 (0.9%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone23 (0.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish85
  2. 2.German or other West Germanic54
  3. 3.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)20
  4. 4.Other Asian and Pacific Island15

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

24.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

54.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

21.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

3.6%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

223

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$30,600

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$26,940

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

2.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

14.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance379
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)296
  3. 3.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining196
  4. 4.Retail Trade (Group)186
  5. 5.Construction (Group)96

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations507
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations287
  3. 3.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations271
  4. 4.Service Occupations230
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations182

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 12.05×)280
  2. 2.Manufacturing (LQ 2.03×)295
  3. 3.Retail Trade (LQ 1.05×)167
  4. 4.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 0.98×)335

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$95,300

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$548/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

81.0%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $300,000 to $399,999108 (10.2%)
  • $125,000 to $149,99996 (9.1%)
  • $60,000 to $69,99994 (8.9%)
  • $100,000 to $124,99985 (8.1%)
  • $50,000 to $59,99976 (7.2%)
  • $40,000 to $49,99964 (6.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

17.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

90.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

55.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$36,071

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

22.6 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone1,060 (73.0%)
  • Worked At Home192 (13.2%)
  • Carpooled151 (10.4%)
  • Bicycle21 (1.4%)
  • Walked18 (1.2%)
  • Public Transit6 (0.4%)

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.