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Place dossier plate
SheetMO-FAIR-GROVE-MO · Fair Grove, MO 1,551 pop · income 52nd pct
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 Fair Grove
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Fair Grove on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Bismarck · lowest
41,550
Bismarck · lowest
41,550 median HH income
50.5% of the leader · rank #1
Fair Grove · this city
71,447
Fair Grove · this city
71,447 median HH income
86.8% of the leader · rank #2
Hernando · near
71,451
Hernando · near
71,451 median HH income
86.8% of the leader · rank #3
Oak City · near
71,452
Oak City · near
71,452 median HH income
86.8% of the leader · rank #4
Perley · near
71,458
Perley · near
71,458 median HH income
86.8% of the leader · rank #5
Bear Dance · near
71,458
Bear Dance · near
71,458 median HH income
86.8% of the leader · rank #6
Springmont · highest
82,353
Springmont · highest
82,353 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
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Fair Grove on ACS population and median household income
. 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: 1,551.
Fair Grove ranks in the 52nd percentile for household income nationally, out of every US city with at least 1,000 residents. Source: Census ACS.
52nd
percentile, household income
39th
percentile, home value
7th
percentile, median rent
📝 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: Fair Grove, MO
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 1,551 residents in Fair Grove, a small town within Missouri. Fair Grove households earn a median of $71,447 annually, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 4.3%. Home values in Fair Grove run a median of $189,200, and the median resident age is 28.8 years. About 24.4% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 69.9% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 12 residential building permits were authorized in Fair Grove (Building Boom), up 140% from five years earlier, per Census BPS data.
Living costs in Missouri run below the national norm: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Missouri scores 90.8 (Well Below Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. Statewide, HUD pegs Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit at $972 monthly. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Missouri's average monthly utility costs around $219 (state average). On FEMA's National Risk Index, this area rates 50.6 out of 100 for natural-hazard exposure (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Fair Grove'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 work and mobility to population change to comparison shortlist 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 Fair Grove, city-specific coverage includes matched public-school count, annual population history, commute-mode shares, local building permits.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles, FBI reported-crime rates; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
Question 1
What does the journey to work look like in Fair Grove?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 76.2%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
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.
Is Fair Grove growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +57 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +3.6% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 12 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.
Which cities make useful reference points for Fair Grove?
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.
Within Missouri, the closest population matches are Advance (1,549 residents, $51,583 income); Crane (1,545 residents, $47,892 income); Bismarck (1,560 residents, $41,550 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Dixon, NM (1,551 residents); Goliad, TX (1,551 residents); Cactus Flats, AZ (1,550 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.
What does the education layer cover for Fair Grove?
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.
The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 24.4% 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.
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.
Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in Fair Grove?
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. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 2.6 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 4.3%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Value / income
2.6×
Home value
$189,200
Household income
$71,447
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
Above median income · poverty 4.3% (Below-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
90.8 (US=100)
Affordable · BEA RPP 2024, Missouri average
C+
City profile score · Fair Grove, MO
63/100
4 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-
90.8 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Poverty rate B
4.3%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income C-
$71,447
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share D
24.4%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Violent crime N/A
N/A
No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).
Fair Grove profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 83/100 (A-) · 90.8 index
Poverty rate: 70/100 (B) · 4.3%
Household income: 51/100 (C-) · $71,447
Bachelor's+ share: 47/100 (D) · 24.4%
How does Fair Grove compare to other US cities?
Here's how Fair Grove stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income52% higher than other cities
Home value39% pricier than other cities
Median rent7% pricier than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Fair Grove against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Missouri only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Missouri-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Fair Grove near the bottom of Missouri's cities
Among the 875 Missouri cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Fair Grove ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Fair Grove only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#204 of 842
76th percentile in Missouri
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 875
0th percentile in Missouri
Median Home Value
#189 of 833
77th percentile in Missouri
Poverty Rate
#637 of 875
27th percentile in Missouri
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#226 of 875
74th percentile in Missouri
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 Missouri only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
52nd percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How Fair Grove's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$189,200Among the most affordablemore affordable than 61% 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
Fair Grove's home-value-to-income ratio: 2.6×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#4,751 of 15,516
More affordable than 69% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#4,198 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 2.6×, Fair Grove sits in the affordable band:
national rank #4,751 of 15,516 and #4,198 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
$71,447Fair Grove, MO median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Fair Grove, MO median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Fair Grove, MO.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)24.4%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)4.3%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)69.9%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
1,551
Median Income
$71,447
Median Home Value
$189,200
Median Age
28.8
Poverty Rate
4.3%
Labor force participation
69.9%
Bachelor's Degree+
24.4%
Schools
Total Schools
3
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Fair Grove's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
1,588 residents
2021
1,608 residents
2022
1,601 residents
2023
1,612 residents
2024
1,619 residents
2025
1,645 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Building Boom
Total Permits (2024)
12
housing units authorized
Single-Family
0
detached homes
Multifamily
12
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
7.7
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
5
5
0
$0.8M
2020
11
11
0
$2.6M
2021
0
0
0
-
2022
6
6
0
$1.6M
2023
4
4
0
$1.1M
2024
12
0
12
$2.2M
Permit volume increased 140% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
76.2%
Carpool
10.2%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.3%
Work from Home
13.3%
Based on 772 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Missouri statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $219
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Missouri at $219 (electricity about $105 , water and sewer about $42 ).
These are Missouri statewide averages, not a meter reading for Fair Grove. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Missouri's BEA cost-of-living index is 90.8 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Fair Grove is $972/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Missouri statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 50.6 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Missouri statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Fair Grove sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Fair Grove compares to similar-size Missouri 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, 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.