Living in West Plains, Missouri: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 16.1% below the U.S. average in the parts of Missouri outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.9 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood35 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 2.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 14.6 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town8 public schools: 6 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
A hospital close byOzarks Healthcare is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityMemphis is about 155 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means West Plains meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $169,900U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 19%Howell County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $810 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $44,002U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 52%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $930 a yearMissouri: $1,948
Homes built before 1940: 10%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 9%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 83.9U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Missouri outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 19% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Missouri outside metro areas, not West Plains alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 12,7802020: 12,203
Median age: 36.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 19%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 24%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 17%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 7%U.S.: 6%
College students: 7%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (33%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (11%); retail (9%)
Unemployment rate: 4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 21 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 4%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 28%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Ozarks Healthcare, West Plains, MO, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

8 public schools in West Plains, run by West Plains R-VII and Howell Valley R-I.

Colleges in or next to town: Missouri State University-West Plains (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Missouri's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 68%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 88%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 22°F
July average high: 89°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 44 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 108 a year
Rain and melted snow: 49.4 inches a year
Snow: 9 inches a year
Elevation: 995 feet

Weather station: W Plains (1 mile away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Springfield, MOCity of 170,00085

Memphis, TNMetro of 1.3 million155

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Springfield, Memphis.

Howell County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, not next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 7, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

7 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Courthouse Square Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Ozark National Scenic Riverways24 miles
Buffalo National River49 miles

Read about West Plains's history on Wikipedia.

Know West Plains?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Willow Springs, MO2,200 people, 18 miles
Mountain View, MO2,700 people, 20 miles
Thayer, MO1,900 people, 23 miles
Salem, AR1,600 people, 25 miles
Cabool, MO2,100 people, 30 miles
Cherokee Village, AR5,000 people, 35 miles

Smaller places

Pomona, MO (unincorporated)178 people, 9 miles
Brandsville, MO129 people, 11 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.