St. Louis, Missouri
Cost of living, housing, income, commute, climate, and safety — compiled for relocators researching St. Louis.
Key figures
Each metric shows how St. Louis compares with the U.S. baseline (ACS/BLS nationals where available; catalog-city averages for crime, climate, and commute). Income, housing, population, and crime are for the incorporated city (city limits), not the broader metro/MSA — unemployment is county-level (BLS LAUS).
- Population
- 293,109City limits · not metro/MSA
- Median household income
- $55,279Incorporated place (ACS)30% below U.S. avgU.S. $78,538
- Housing cost index
- 67ACS home+rent vs U.S. (100 = avg)33% below U.S. avgU.S. 100
- Median home value
- $185,100City limits (ACS)39% below U.S. avgU.S. $303,400
- Median rent
- $978City limits (ACS)27% below U.S. avgU.S. $1,348
- Unemployment
- 4.0%County LAUS · not city-onlyNear U.S. avg (4.2 pts)U.S. 4.2 pts
- Avg commute
- 24 minNear U.S. avg (25 min)U.S. 25 min
- Walk Score
- 6544% above U.S. avgU.S. 45
- Violent crime rate
- 1927.3annualized per 100k · citywide220% above U.S. avgU.S. 602.7
- Property crime rate
- 6183.3annualized per 100k · citywide100% above U.S. avgU.S. 3084.9
- Summer high
- 88°FNear U.S. avg (87°F)U.S. 87°F
- Winter low
- 27°F7.0°F below U.S. avgU.S. 34°F
- Annual rainfall
- 40.8 in24% above U.S. avgU.S. 32.9 in
- Sunny days
- 2487% below U.S. avgU.S. 266
Compare St. Louis with another city
St. Louis, Missouri counts about 293,109 residents inside the city limits. Median household income is roughly $55,279, while the ACS housing-cost index sits near 67 — among the more affordable large markets in this catalog on housing costs (100 ≈ U.S. average). Entry home prices around $185,100 still look attainable compared with coastal metros.
St. Louis is compact enough that a single wrong neighborhood choice is easy to feel day to day — visit at commute hour before signing. Figures on this page are merged from Census ACS, BLS LAUS, FBI Crime Data Explorer, and NOAA Climate Normals — use them to compare St. Louis with nearby alternatives before you relocate.
Continental seasons and a central U.S. logistics position shape daily life. The normals show about 40.8 inches of rain and 248 sunny days across a typical year. Plan on roughly 24 minutes each way for a typical commute; Walk Score is about 65. Unemployment recently ran near 4.0%, broadly in line with many large U.S. counties. FBI CDE violent-offense rates run comparatively high (~1927.3 per 100k annualized), so block-by-block due diligence is especially important.
Nearby & similar cities
Continue researching with these internal links — each page is a full data profile.
Sources
- Census / ACS: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 5-year (St. Louis city, 1600000US2965000)
- BLS: BLS LAUS LAUCN295100000000003 (St. Louis city, May 2026)
- Crime: FBI CIUS Table 8 (2019) city offenses known to law enforcement — rates per 100k; CDE API unavailable at enrich time
- Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 Monthly Normals (USW00003960 CAHOKIA ST LOUIS AP)
Last updated 2026-07-28