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Adair County, MO

Migration of people and income, 20222023 filing years

At a glance (2023)

Cost of living
91
9% below the U.S. average
Median home value
$159,500
national $303,400
Home prices, 5 years
+32.7%
over the 5 years to 2023
Monthly rent
$782
national $1,348
Homeownership
61%
national 65%
Unemployment
3.3%
national 3.6%
Household income
$56,583
national $78,538
Median age
29.8 yrs
national 38.7

Cost of living is the statewide price level for Missouri (state avg).

The cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. The median home is valued at $159,500 (nominal). Home prices have risen about 33% over the five years to 2023. Median rent is about $782 a month. Unemployment averaged 3.3% in 2023 (national 3.6%). Median household income is $56,583. These figures describe all residents, not just tax filers, come from separate sources than the migration data on this page, and do not indicate why anyone moved.

Between the 2022 and 2023 filing years, Adair County, MO saw a net loss of 62 tax-filing households and a net loss of 52 individuals. Against a population of about 25,122, that is a net outflow of about 2.1 per 1,000 residents. On net, the area lost $6.6M in associated adjusted gross income (AGI, nominal dollars). The largest inflow, about 39 households, came from Macon County; the largest outflow, about 53 households, went to Boone County. In the prior (2022) filing year, the area saw a net loss of 188 individuals. These figures cover federal income tax filers only and do not indicate why people moved.

Net income (AGI)
-$6.6M
nominal dollars
Net households
-62
tax returns
Net people
-52
exemptions

-2.1 net people per 1,000 residents (population 25,122)

Income (AGI) in and out

Moved in$27M
Moved out$33.6M
Net -$6.6M (nominal)
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Adair County within Missouri

Adair County is outlined, with arrows tracing its largest moves to and from other Missouri counties. Hover any county for its figures; click to open it.

Net outNet in(AGI $)
Hover an area to trace its top 5 inbound (in) and outbound (out) moves.
Net income (AGI) that moved in minus out, in nominal dollars (not adjusted for inflation).Net tax returns (filing households) that moved in minus out.Net people per 1,000 residents, so larger and smaller areas compare fairly.
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Where movers came from

  1. 1Macon County, MO39$1.7M
  2. 2Sullivan County, MO38$1.3M
  3. 3Boone County, MO28$870K
  4. 4Schuyler County, MO27$935K
  5. 5Knox County, MO20$813K
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Where movers went

  1. 1Boone County, MO53$1.9M
  2. 2Macon County, MO46$1.9M
  3. 3Schuyler County, MO29$979K
  4. 4St. Louis County, MO25$917K
  5. 5Franklin County, OH25$700K
  6. 6St. Louis City, MO22$802K
  7. 7Sullivan County, MO20$1.3M
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Churn by county · both directions at once

The biggest two-way exchanges of filing households, 20222023. Moved in and moved out are gross one-way counts; net is the difference. Click a column to sort.

Macon County, MO3946-7-$241K
Boone County, MO2853-25-$1M
Sullivan County, MO3820+18+$34K
Schuyler County, MO2729-2-$44K
St. Louis County, MO25
Franklin County, OH25
St. Louis City, MO22
Knox County, MO20

Counts are filing households (IRS returns), matching the lists above; income is nominal AGI. A dash means the IRS published only one direction of that exchange (small flows are suppressed), so no net is computed.

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Net migration by year

Net 2012–2023: -$45.5M (-1,887 people)
20122023
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Net AGI and net people by year (nominal dollars)
YearNet AGINet people
2012+$2.2M-142
2013-$1.3M-62
2014-$3.9M-281
2015-$479K+50
2016-$7M-313
2017-$5.7M-168
2018-$2.5M-110
2019-$5.7M-262
2020-$2.8M-167
2021-$1.5M-192
2022-$10.4M-188
2023-$6.6M-52
Migration in context

How big is this move, relative to the county?

In the 20222023 filing year, about 52 more people left Adair County, MO than moved in (counting tax filers and their dependents) — a net loss of about $6.6M in income (nominal) — in a county of 25,168 people.

Population
25,168
Census 2023 estimate
Net migration rate
-2.1
net people per 1,000 residents
A town of 10,000 would net about -21 people.
Net income per resident
−$262
nominal dollars
-$6.6M total across 25,168 residents.

The rate lets you compare Adair County, MO with a countyof any size: it’s the net flow divided by population. The IRS counts tax filers; population counts all residents, so read the rate as a scale indicator, not a literal share of people.

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Components of population change · 2023 (Census)

Where the county’s overall change came from. Census counts all residents; the IRS migration above is one slice of the domestic-migration component.

Births
+286
Deaths
-223
Net domestic migration
-149
Net international migration
+129
Total change
+44

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Figures are people, not tax filers.

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Income & cost of living

What a dollar is worth here

Prices around Adair County, MO run about 9% below the national average. In plain terms: $100 spent here buys about what $110 buys in the average American community. The figures below apply that to income, each compared to the U.S. average of $70,002 per person.

Income per person
$39,985
what people here earn (BEA 2023, nominal)
43% below the U.S. average
Price level
91.1
100 = U.S. average prices (BEA price parity)
everyday costs about 8.9% lower than average
What that income buys
$43,889
local income restated at U.S.-average prices
37% below the U.S. average
Cheaper than U.S. avgU.S. average (100)Pricier

This county isn't in a metro area that BEA prices separately, so cost of living shows the Missouri (state avg) figure.

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Where the cost comes from · price parity by category

Index where 100 = U.S. average for that category. Housing is usually what separates one place from another.

Housing & rents70.5
Goods97.3
Utilities85.6
Other services94.4

Housing is measured from rents (including an estimated rental value for owner-occupied homes), so a run-up in purchase prices shows here only as it reaches rents. Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Covers all residents, a separate universe from the IRS filer income above. How the data works.

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Who lives here

The people of Adair County, MO

American Community Survey, 2019–2023 (a 5-year average of all residents, not just tax filers).

Median age
29.8
years
Median household income
$56,583
per household (ACS 2019–2023, nominal)
28% below the U.S. median
College degree
35%
adults 25+ with a bachelor's or higher
Poverty rate
21.2%
residents below the poverty line
Average commute
16 min
mean travel time to work
Broadband at home
82%
households with any broadband
Race and ethnicity (share of residents)
White 88%Hispanic 3%Black 4%Asian 2%Other 3%

White, Black, and Asian counts are people who are not Hispanic or Latino; Hispanic or Latino can be of any race. Shares are rounded and may not total 100.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Covers all residents, a separate universe from the IRS filer data. A 5-year estimate is an average over 2019–2023; compare years at least five apart, since consecutive windows overlap. How the data works.

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Housing · what it costs to live here (ACS 2019–2023)

Median home value
$159,500
owner-occupied homes
47% below the U.S. median
Median rent
$782
gross rent per month
42% below the U.S. median
Homeownership
61%
of occupied homes are owner-occupied
Home-price appreciation · FHFA index, 2023
Past year
+7.8%
price change, 2022 to 2023
Past 5 years
+33%
price change, 2018 to 2023

A repeat-sales index (how much the same homes changed in price), so it tracks the market over time rather than the current level. Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency, annual all-transactions HPI; the county series is FHFA’s developmental index.

New home construction · building permits, 2023
18new housing units authorized in 2023
Single-family 100%Multifamily 0%

Units authorized by residential building permits (new supply), summed from counties for the state and U.S. Permits are authorizations, not completions. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.

Home value is what owners estimate their homes are worth, not recent sale prices. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2019–2023), nominal dollars. How the data works.

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Local economy & risk

Jobs and natural hazards

Unemployment rate
3.3%
BLS 2023 annual average
Labor force
10,770
10,412 employed
Disaster declarations
1
major federal, 2023
most common: Severe Storm

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS) and FEMA. A disaster declaration marks federal assistance eligibility, not damage severity, and says nothing about why anyone moved. How the data works.

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Unemployment now
3.9%
April 2026 · ▼ 0.1 points vs April 2025
January 2024April 2026

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS). Monthly unemployment for this county, not seasonally adjusted. Updated every month, so it moves faster than the annual average above. How the data works.

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How Adair County, MO has voted. Certified returns, popular vote only. This is a separate dataset from the migration figures on this page.

YearDemocraticRepublicanOtherMarginTotal
20243,3346,771134R +33.610,239
20203,7106,413213R +26.210,336
20163,5006,030696R +24.710,226
20124,2195,651256R +14.110,126
20085,7355,891245R +1.311,871
20044,9386,36799R +12.511,404
20004,1016,050401R +18.510,552

Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab county returns (CC0). Margins are the popular-vote gap as a share of all votes cast.

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