Best PlacesVernon County, MO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Vernon County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Vernon County ranks 2,410th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and low incomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Vernon 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.
Vernon County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Vernon County ranks high
- Cheap childcare$407 a month, better than 98% of counties
- Short commute19.4 minutes each way, better than 82% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than 78% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than 65% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 101 pleasant days a year, better than 61% of counties
Where Vernon County ranks low
- Household income$55,786 median, better than only 17% of counties
- Health outlookBetter than only 19% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 22% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 24% of counties
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 25% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Vernon County
A household needs to earn about $42,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Vernon County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $55,786, 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 Vernon County's effective rate of 0.68%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Vernon County
Vernon County's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Vernon County.
Who works in Vernon County, and how
Work in Vernon County centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in Vernon County
Vernon County has more restaurants and bars per resident than 88% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of Vernon County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Vernon County growing, and who is moving in?
Vernon County has lost about 6% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Camden County, MO.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Vernon County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Vernon County, month by month
Vernon County sees roughly 101 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 46, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46° | 33° | 25° |
| April | 71° | 57° | 46° |
| July | 90° | 78° | 68° |
| October | 73° | 58° | 47° |
Flying in and out of Vernon County
The nearest airport, Joplin Regional, is about 48 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kansas City International, about 103 miles away.
The best schools in and around Vernon County
Schools across Vernon County average a C+, better than 42% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Truman Elem.C+ · 37% proficient
- Rich Hill Elem.C+ · 35% proficient
- Sheldon Elem.C · 32% proficient
Top middle schools
- Nevada MiddleB− · 40% proficient
- El Dorado Springs MiddleC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Rich Hill HighB− · 43% proficient
- Nevada HighC+ · 38% proficient
- Sheldon HighC+ · 37% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Vernon County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Vernon 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 Vernon County against the other 3,143 counties.
Common questions about living in Vernon County
Is Vernon County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Vernon County ranks 2,410th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on affordable childcare, short commutes, and low disaster risk, and lowest on low incomes and health outcomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Vernon County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $163,158. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $55,786 median income, cost of living beats 24% of counties.
Is Vernon County safe?
Vernon County is safer than 45% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $433 per resident a year.
Compare Vernon County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Vernon County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Vernon 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.
Vernon County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Vernon County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Vernon County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Vernon County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Vernon County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Vernon 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.