The 10 Worst Small Towns In Missouri For 2024


The worst small towns in Missouri are Granby and Malden for 2024 based on Friday Night Science.

Most Americans have never been to small town Missouri. However, as the Missourian who live there know, small town Missouri is an awesome place to call home.

But is it all roses? Definitely not. Just like any other state, Missouri has its trouble spots. This article aims to determine, using Saturday Night Science, the absolute worst small towns to live in the Show Me State. Don’t freak out, we will use data to show which places have high crime, poverty, and unemployment.

After analyzing more than 228 of Missouri’s smallest cities, we came up with this list as the 10 worst small towns in Missouri where you’d never want to live:


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


These are the worst small towns in Missouri for 2024:

  1. Granby
  2. Malden
  3. Ellington
  4. Greenfield
  5. Steelville
  6. Carterville
  7. Houston
  8. Marble Hill
  9. Steele
  10. Senath

Worst Small Towns To Live In Missouri Map

So what is the worst small town to call home in Missouri for 2024? According to the most recent census data, Granby is the worst small town to live in Missouri.

While many of these small towns have seen better days, they have wonderful communities and people. This report in no way means to knock the folks that call towns like Granby home. Everyone

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers, or scroll to the bottom to see how your town ranked.

And if you already know about the small towns, check out the best places to live in Missouri or the worst places to live in Missouri.

If you’re looking for something more national, check out the worst cities in America or the worst states in America.

The 10 Worst Small Towns In Missouri For 2024

1. Granby

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 2,274
Median Home Value: $169,154
Median Income: $34,934
Unemployment Rate: 14.5%

2. Malden

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 3,790
Median Home Value: $77,596
Median Income: $35,451
Unemployment Rate: 7.5%

3. Ellington

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 1,302
Median Home Value: $160,381
Median Income: $40,000
Unemployment Rate: 26.2%

4. Greenfield

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 1,288
Median Home Value: $93,975
Median Income: $30,202
Unemployment Rate: 12.0%

5. Steelville

Overall SnackAbility

1
/10

Population: 1,515
Median Home Value: $185,581
Median Income: $35,000
Unemployment Rate: 9.1%

6. Carterville

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 1,951
Median Home Value: $110,962
Median Income: $45,708
Unemployment Rate: 8.6%

7. Houston

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 2,416
Median Home Value: $163,677
Median Income: $40,893
Unemployment Rate: 9.2%

8. Marble Hill

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 1,854
Median Home Value: $111,164
Median Income: $29,615
Unemployment Rate: 7.9%

9. Steele

Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 1,375
Median Home Value: $109,098
Median Income: $30,592
Unemployment Rate: 25.4%

10. Senath

Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 1,597
Median Home Value: $71,615
Median Income: $40,000
Unemployment Rate: 4.9%

Methodology: How do you decide if a small place in Missouri is lousy or not?

To rank the worst small towns to live in Missouri, we had to determine what criteria people like or dislike about a place. Assuming that people like low crime, solid education, things to do, and a stable economy isn’t a stretch.

We then analyzed the criteria using Saturday Night Science, the thinking you’d use at a bar. It seems like even your crazy Uncle would agree that a town with high crime is worse than a town with low crime; all else the same.

Using FBI crime data and the Census’s 2018-2022 American Community Survey, this is the criteria we used:

  • Population Density (The lower, the worse)
  • Highest Unemployment Rates
  • Low housing costs (meaning there’s no demand)
  • Adjusted Median Income (Median income adjusted for the cost of living)
  • Education (Number of high school dropouts)
  • High Crime

We looked at cities with populations between 1,000 and 5,000 people, of which there were many – 228 to be exact.

We get the crime numbers from the FBI, which gets them from the cities. Dropout numbers are based on the adult population, not just the current graduation rates of teenagers.

We base all our research on facts, which is meant as infotainment. We updated this article for 2024, which is our tenth time ranking the worst small places to live in Missouri.

There You Have It – The Worst Small Towns In Missouri

If you’re analyzing teeny places in the Show Me State with the worst economic situations, where there’s high crime and there’s not a lot to do, this is an accurate list.

The worst small towns in Missouri are Granby, Malden, Ellington, Greenfield, Steelville, Carterville, Houston, Marble Hill, Steele, and Senath.

If you’re curious enough, here are the best small towns to live in Missouri, according to science:

  1. Marthasville (Pop. 2,616)
  2. Weatherby Lake (Pop. 2,422)
  3. Warson Woods (Pop. 2,107)

For more Missouri reading, check out:

Worst Small Towns In Missouri

Rank Town Population Unemployment Rate Home Value Median Income
1 Granby 2,274 14.5% $169,154 $34,934
2 Malden 3,790 7.5% $77,596 $35,451
3 Ellington 1,302 26.2% $160,381 $40,000
4 Greenfield 1,288 12.0% $93,975 $30,202
5 Steelville 1,515 9.1% $185,581 $35,000
6 Carterville 1,951 8.6% $110,962 $45,708
7 Houston 2,416 9.2% $163,677 $40,893
8 Marble Hill 1,854 7.9% $111,164 $29,615
9 Steele 1,375 25.4% $109,098 $30,592
10 Senath 1,597 4.9% $71,615 $40,000
11 Pine Lawn 2,772 16.2% $43,788 $25,164
12 Licking 2,784 12.9% $176,557 $32,202
13 Noel 1,930 6.6% $144,261 $42,292
14 Hayti 2,367 12.5% $73,895 $22,202
15 Clarkton 1,094 2.6% $58,878 $39,219
16 Piedmont 2,739 5.8% $107,007 $35,341
17 Rich Hill 1,384 5.1% $111,643 $43,205
18 Leadwood 1,475 6.8% $65,471 $45,000
19 Charleston 4,683 7.9% $83,017 $29,306
20 Mansfield 1,351 6.0% $185,108 $30,870
21 Bloomfield 2,172 8.1% $124,665 $42,446
22 Willow Springs 2,125 9.0% $177,780 $39,654
23 Humansville 1,256 10.1% $156,003 $35,278
24 East Prairie 2,969 6.0% $97,359 $28,300
25 Campbell 1,639 8.0% $72,028 $45,577
26 Cabool 2,543 2.4% $175,825 $33,429
27 Lamar 4,298 9.7% $170,505 $32,907
28 Thayer 2,111 4.2% $131,626 $35,357
29 Pierce City 1,373 4.7% $116,023 $45,341
30 Canton 2,733 11.1% $152,790 $42,708
31 Bel-Ridge 2,687 18.3% $64,904 $38,642
32 Sarcoxie 1,464 9.2% $233,777 $36,908
33 Pagedale 2,592 4.1% $55,926 $29,112
34 Duenweg 1,604 2.8% $119,067 $46,917
35 Purdy 1,374 14.6% $176,995 $38,523
36 Anderson 2,561 2.6% $123,077 $47,500
37 Mountain View 2,558 2.6% $183,388 $43,611
38 Flordell Hills 1,448 31.7% $47,172 $32,906
39 Butler 4,541 14.7% $131,610 $33,548
40 Breckenridge Hills 4,452 8.2% $93,755 $49,198
41 Van Buren 1,125 0.3% $174,709 $22,143
42 Castle Point 2,940 6.5% $61,239 $34,190
43 Doniphan 2,138 6.0% $141,503 $41,927
44 Riverview 2,912 7.3% $57,782 $48,194
45 Portageville 2,918 4.5% $100,045 $34,105
46 Edina 1,379 3.4% $115,447 $40,714
47 Osage Beach 4,736 10.6% $340,267 $51,600
48 Sugar Creek 3,247 5.8% $149,731 $55,201
49 Oran 1,150 7.8% $133,060 $51,250
50 Osceola 1,071 5.4% $94,730 $37,083
51 Bernie 1,916 2.1% $94,973 $41,477
52 Richland 2,307 6.1% $176,571 $42,561
53 Stockton 1,932 8.6% $224,992 $37,868
54 Sweet Springs 1,258 6.6% $124,667 $46,974
55 Versailles 2,549 5.6% $209,867 $27,202
56 Ironton 1,639 5.4% $104,963 $43,606
57 Wellsville 1,177 4.5% $141,107 $57,708
58 Crane 1,470 4.3% $137,954 $45,234
59 El Dorado Springs 3,531 3.7% $144,743 $33,173
60 Wellston 1,913 3.0% $48,994 $35,278
61 Country Club Hills 1,201 10.4% $52,131 $46,357
62 Vinita Park 1,857 9.9% $83,682 $50,964
63 Louisiana 3,249 6.2% $117,385 $48,410
64 Grant City 1,004 1.2% $80,570 $36,429
65 Hillsdale 1,070 3.1% $38,425 $35,735
66 Ava 2,933 8.5% $205,152 $43,969
67 Cool Valley 1,175 4.2% $98,069 $49,792
68 Salem 4,673 7.0% $169,903 $35,413
69 Adrian 2,021 11.3% $217,603 $46,957
70 Gallatin 1,747 4.7% $224,189 $39,500
71 Elsberry 1,975 5.3% $157,816 $43,333
72 New Franklin 1,057 2.2% $169,133 $47,768
73 Warsaw 2,326 3.9% $163,827 $35,167
74 Potosi 2,559 2.3% $161,769 $39,676
75 La Plata 1,265 6.3% $100,252 $44,286
76 Albany 1,859 3.0% $90,948 $46,033
77 Claycomo 1,815 6.1% $203,239 $46,890
78 Marceline 2,190 4.5% $116,921 $47,596
79 St. Clair 4,771 6.7% $187,263 $37,764
80 Kahoka 2,134 6.4% $111,825 $41,250
81 Hanley Hills 1,612 6.3% $71,408 $47,083
82 Vandalia 3,382 3.3% $92,803 $43,654
83 Seymour 1,932 4.5% $226,096 $50,194
84 Edmundson 1,224 1.7% $111,742 $45,313
85 Slater 1,987 2.8% $93,145 $33,088
86 New Madrid 2,761 2.3% $99,361 $42,443
87 Camdenton 3,979 1.5% $300,091 $45,833
88 Marionville 2,551 9.9% $170,322 $47,557
89 Bismarck 1,617 3.9% $135,573 $42,188
90 Moline Acres 2,815 15.0% $76,203 $50,352
91 Riverside 4,017 4.6% $377,596 $47,668
92 Buffalo 3,319 2.8% $189,496 $27,332
93 Highlandville 1,039 6.9% $301,102 $46,667
94 Bowling Green 4,149 8.1% $180,448 $44,338
95 La Monte 1,029 2.6% $193,968 $60,474
96 Normandy 4,301 7.8% $76,046 $28,774
97 Windsor 3,002 3.4% $148,067 $50,592
98 Holden 1,840 5.4% $155,688 $58,661
99 Mountain Grove 4,498 0.8% $164,747 $38,103
100 Owensville 2,800 2.7% $192,848 $47,207
About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends.

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.

10 thoughts on “The 10 Worst Small Towns In Missouri For 2024

  1. Boo!! I live in Roscoe! Sure , most of us are unemployed. Most of us are retired . We didn’t move here to work. My husband and I have a great life here.

  2. I love in Browning and love it! Best school district around. Wouldn’t love anywhere else.

  3. Not sure how you come up with crap but it is highly inaccurate! Mt. Moriah is not a bad place. Most are RETIRED or still working. The percentage of those just not working is few. Also, a famous ball player was raised there. Get your facts straight before you bash their town.

    1. Not to mention the fact that they are geographically challenged. Take the Route 136 exit off of I-35 and head towards Iowa? Seriously?

  4. Bud Tapman, you should know by now that people in the poorest, least desirable towns in in Missouri and anywhere else have internet access. Stick to writing stories about places you’ve actually travelled through and visited, this is lazy writing and storytelling at best.

  5. I am from Hendrickson.mo Butler county,Blackriver township..I really enjoyed your roadsnacks…site..lol..at least one thing was not mentioned that we laugh at,,is Poplar Bluff.mo Butler county..hasn’t been called “”little Chicago”””lately…

  6. Judy Engle Oh..Mr Bud Tapman,you really do not know the joy of living in the small town of Climax Springs…we played basketball,had church 2-3 times a week,we learned how to help our neighbors,we worked hard, nothing was handed to us..Climax Springs brought out the best to prepare was for the big city…we have lawyers,Drs,union presidents,preachers,loan officers,Realtors …sec of state,financial advisors ,teachers…I was taught to invest in land my Senior yr…Thsnk You Mr Don Edwards…I am so proud to be from Climax Springs…

  7. I spent 17 years in blairstown, moved to roscoe for 4 years, and have lived in 4 other of the worst MO towns on your list. What’s that say about me?

  8. How about German town its very creepy I never wanna break done there again they refuse to help u and u try to get someone to help and they will shoot at u

  9. You may want to spend a little more time gathering your data. Neither Coffey, Mt. Moriah or Mc Fall have had a school for many years so school data not accurate! One has to appreciate a much slower pace of life in order to appreciate these small towns!

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