Best PlacesSt. Louis County, MO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in St. Louis County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages hide a wide spread here, so the area matters as much as the address. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
St. Louis County ranks 811th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Paychecks stretch further here than almost anywhere else: the median household brings in $101,050, everyday costs sit below the national average, and an educated workforce ranks near the top of the country. The main drawbacks are noise, crime, and the weather.
The best neighborhoods in St. Louis County
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
The best areas in St. Louis County
The parts of St. Louis County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Chesterfield, Creve Coeur & Town and Country
Incomes run higher, more adults hold degrees, and local pay stretches further.
Ballwin, Fenton & Kirkwood
Crime runs lower and schools score higher.
University City, Overland & Clayton
Streets are more walkable, though homes cost more.
St. Louis, Concord & Webster Groves
More residents vote and health care is easier to reach.
Maryland Heights & Bridgeton
Fewer homes sit empty and prices have run up less.
Oakville, Mehlville & Lemay
Tree cover is thinner.
Maplewood, Richmond Heights & Northwoods
Biking is better and transit reaches more jobs.
Hazelwood, St. Ann & St. John
More households have young kids, though health outcomes score lower.
Florissant, Old Jamestown & Spanish Lake
Heat risk is higher.
St. Louis County shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 1% of the country and others in the top 2%. Pick the area first, then the home.
St. Louis County's strengths and weaknesses
St. Louis County lands in the middle because its strengths and weaknesses roughly balance. What local pay buys is the standout, in the top 2% of counties. An educated workforce and high incomes follow.
The one real hole is noise, near the bottom of the country. Crime and the weather also cost it ground. That varies block to block rather than evenly, and the map below shows where.
Where St. Louis County ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 98% of counties
- Educational attainmentBetter than 96% of counties
- Household income$101,050 median, better than 92% of counties
- TransitBetter than 92% of counties
- Internet speedBetter than 89% of counties
Where St. Louis County ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 1% of counties
- Crime safetyBetter than only 8% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 62 pleasant days a year, better than only 9% of counties
- Cheap childcare$1,131 a month, better than only 10% of counties
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 15% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in St. Louis County
A household needs to earn about $90,000 a year to comfortably buy the median St. Louis County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $101,050, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses St. Louis County's effective rate of 1.23%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in St. Louis County
St. Louis County's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for St. Louis County.
Who works in St. Louis County, and how
Work in St. Louis County centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 77%
- Work from home 18%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in St. Louis County
St. Louis County has more parkland per resident than 85% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of St. Louis County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is St. Louis County growing, and who is moving in?
St. Louis County has lost about 1% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from the rest of the St Louis, MO metro.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving St. Louis County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in St. Louis County, month by month
St. Louis County sees roughly 62 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 24. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 33° | 24° |
| April | 72° | 58° | 46° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 71° |
| October | 74° | 61° | 50° |
Flying in and out of St. Louis County
St Louis Lambert International sits about 7 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 7.5 million passengers in 2025, with 114 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around St. Louis County
Schools across St. Louis County average a C+, better than 53% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Conway ElementaryA+ · 78% proficient
- Meramec Elem.A+ · 77% proficient
- Chesterfield Elem.A+ · 74% proficient
Top middle schools
- Wydown MiddleA+ · 70% proficient
- Rockwood Valley MiddleA · 64% proficient
- Ladue Fifth Grade CenterA · 64% proficient
Top high schools
- Kirkwood Sr. HighA · 71% proficient
- Ladue Horton Watkins HighA · 68% proficient
- Clayton HighA− · 66% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every St. Louis County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
St. Louis County measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare St. Louis County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who St. Louis County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 98% of counties, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 18% already work from home.
Common questions about living in St. Louis County
Is St. Louis County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, St. Louis County ranks 811th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on what local pay buys, an educated workforce, and high incomes, and lowest on noise and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is St. Louis County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $324,547. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $101,050 median income, cost of living beats 98% of counties.
Is St. Louis County safe?
St. Louis County is safer than 8% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $792 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in St. Louis County?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 44 with lows near 24. That works out to about 62 pleasant days a year, more than 9% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in St. Louis County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Chesterfield, Creve Coeur & Town and Country, Ballwin, Fenton & Kirkwood, and University City, Overland & Clayton. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is St. Louis County good for families?
Schools beat 53% of counties, crime safety beats 8%, and childcare runs $1,131 a month.
Is St. Louis County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 98% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 89% of counties. About 18% of workers already work from home.
Compare St. Louis County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to St. Louis County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in St. Louis County represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
St. Louis County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for St. Louis County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in St. Louis County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of St. Louis County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in St. Louis County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
St. Louis County detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.