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Place dossier plate
SheetKS-BAXTER-SPRINGS-KS · Baxter Springs, KS 3,863 pop · income 35th pct · 6 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Baxter Springs
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Baxter Springs on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Leland · lowest
39,767
Leland · lowest
39,767 median HH income
30.9% of the leader · rank #1
Sullivan · near
60,137
Sullivan · near
60,137 median HH income
46.8% of the leader · rank #2
Baxter Springs · this city
60,139
Baxter Springs · this city
60,139 median HH income
46.8% of the leader · rank #3
Broadview · near
60,139
Broadview · near
60,139 median HH income
46.8% of the leader · rank #4
East Marianna · near
60,139
East Marianna · near
60,139 median HH income
46.8% of the leader · rank #5
De Smet · near
60,139
De Smet · near
60,139 median HH income
46.8% of the leader · rank #6
Auburn Lake T… · highest
128,500
Auburn Lake T… · highest
128,500 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Baxter Springs on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 3,863.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Baxter Springs - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Baxter Springs places in the 35th percentile for household income and the 32nd percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
35th
percentile, household income
6th
percentile, home value
6th
percentile, median rent
32nd
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Baxter Springs, KS
Baxter Springs is a small town in Kansas, home to 3,863 residents per U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Baxter Springs households earn a median of $60,139 annually, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 13.7%. Home values in Baxter Springs run a median of $87,600, and the median resident age is 38.2 years. 18.0% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 63.0% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 1 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Construction Slowdown), down 86% from five years earlier. Crime here tracks close to the national norm: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 1993.2 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, near the national average (agency reporting is voluntary, so this measures reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Living costs in Kansas run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Kansas scores 90.1 (Well Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $947 monthly. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Kansas run around $217, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. Workers in Baxter Springs report an average commute of 18.5 minutes, with 84.0% driving alone and 4.4% working from home. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 29.9 out of 100 (Very Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Baxter Springs's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from within-city variation to work and mobility to comparison shortlist to population change to reported crime to schools and households to housing and income; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Baxter Springs, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, commute-mode shares, matched public-school count, within-city Census tract profiles, FBI reported-crime rates, local building permits.
All six city-specific enrichment layers used by this profile are present.
1. Within-city variation
What can 6 Census tracts reveal inside Baxter Springs?
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
What does the journey to work look like in Baxter Springs?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 84.0%. The reported mean trip to work is 18.5 minutes.
Which cities make useful reference points for Baxter Springs?
Within Kansas, the closest population matches are Goodland (3,878 residents, $53,929 income); Lindsborg (3,773 residents, $69,559 income); Scott City (3,955 residents, $54,026 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Forestville, CA (3,862 residents); Leland, MS (3,864 residents); Irwin, PA (3,862 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Is Baxter Springs growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -60 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -1.5% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 1 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Reported crime
What can the FBI record say about safety in Baxter Springs?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 1993.2 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 13% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Property rate
1757.1
Violent rate
236.0
Total reported rate
1993.2
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
What does the education layer cover for Baxter Springs?
The NCES join finds 4 public schools within the city match. 18.0% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
Matched public schools
4
Bachelor's degree+
18.0%
Poverty estimate
13.7%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
How far does income reach against housing in Baxter Springs?
The home-value-to-income reference is relatively compact: the ACS median home value is 1.5 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 13.7%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. The ratio makes housing the clearest place to start this profile, but a low multiple can coexist with slow demand, older stock, or household-level hardship. Compare the home-value distribution and same-state peer table before treating it as an advantage.
Household income
$60,139
Home value
$87,600
Value / income
1.5×
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
Below median income · poverty 13.7% (Above-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
90.1 (US=100)
Affordable · BEA RPP 2024, Kansas average
D
City profile score · Baxter Springs, KS
43/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Cost of living A
90.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Violent crime D
236 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Household income F
$60,139
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share F
18.0%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Poverty rate F
13.7%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Baxter Springs profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 85/100 (A) · 90.1 index
Violent crime: 42/100 (D) · 236 /100k
Household income: 35/100 (F) · $60,139
Bachelor's+ share: 28/100 (F) · 18.0%
Poverty rate: 25/100 (F) · 13.7%
Where Baxter Springs sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Baxter Springs's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Baxter Springs highlighted among 27 peers.Read the chart values
Baxter Springs, KS (this city): home $87,600, crime 1,993/100k
Irwin, PA : home $198,700, crime 130/100k
Goodland, KS : home $112,800, crime 1,731/100k
Scott City, KS : home $166,400, crime 723/100k
Hesston, KS : home $183,000, crime 520/100k
Hugoton, KS : home $118,400, crime 448/100k
Clay Center, KS : home $133,600, crime 1,281/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Baxter Springs compare to other US cities?
Baxter Springs measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income35% higher than other cities
Home value6% pricier than other cities
Median rent6% pricier than other cities
Safety32% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at Kansas, Baxter Springs ranks #77 of 109 Kansas cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Baxter Springs against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Kansas only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Kansas-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Baxter Springs near the bottom of Kansas's cities
Among the 552 Kansas cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Baxter Springs ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Baxter Springs only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#264 of 527
50th percentile in Kansas
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 552
0th percentile in Kansas
Median Home Value
#302 of 527
43rd percentile in Kansas
Poverty Rate
#117 of 552
79th percentile in Kansas
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#334 of 552
39th percentile in Kansas
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Kansas only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
35th percentile nationally for median household income · 32nd percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Baxter Springs's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Baxter Springs's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Baxter Springs's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$87,600Among the most affordablemore affordable than 94% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Baxter Springs's home-value-to-income ratio: 1.5×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#331 of 15,516
More affordable than 98% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#325 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 1.5×, Baxter Springs sits in the affordable band:
national rank #331 of 15,516 and #325 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
The multiple is comparatively compact among tracked cities, but a low ratio can still coexist with slow demand or household-level hardship.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$60,139Baxter Springs, KS median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Baxter Springs, KS median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Baxter Springs, KS.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)18.0%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)13.7%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)63.0%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
3,863
Median Income
$60,139
Median Home Value
$87,600
Median Age
38.2
Poverty Rate
13.7%
Labor force participation
63.0%
Bachelor's Degree+
18.0%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
1993.2
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
236.0
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
1757.1
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
4
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Baxter Springs's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
3,883 residents
2021
3,862 residents
2022
3,826 residents
2023
3,830 residents
2024
3,842 residents
2025
3,823 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📉 Construction Slowdown
Total Permits (2024)
1
housing units authorized
Single-Family
1
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
0.3
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
7
5
2
$0.6M
2020
8
6
2
$0.7M
2021
0
0
0
-
2022
4
2
2
$0.3M
2023
2
2
0
$0.1M
2024
1
1
0
$0.1M
Permit volume decreased 86% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
18.5 minutes
Drive Alone
84.0%
Carpool
7.0%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
3.0%
Work from Home
4.4%
Other
1.6%
Based on 1,839 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Kansas statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $217
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Kansas at $217 (electricity about $110 , water and sewer about $42 ).
These are Kansas statewide averages, not a meter reading for Baxter Springs. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Kansas's BEA cost-of-living index is 90.1 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Baxter Springs is $947/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Kansas statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 29.9 / 100 (Very Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Kansas statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Baxter Springs sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Baxter Springs compares to similar-size Kansas cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.