Vernon County, Missouri Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Vernon County, Missouri, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Vernon County, Missouri. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Vernon County, Missouri. The estimated population of Vernon County, Missouri is 19,831 people, with a median age of 41.5.

We can look at the total population in Vernon County over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
19,831
 -3.55% -4.04%
2020
20,560
 -0.17% -
2019
20,595
 -0.46% -
2018
20,691
+0.13%
-
2017
20,665
 - -

Population of Vernon County, Missouri by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
93.5%
94.1%
 -0.64%
Black/African American
0.3%
1.1%
 -72.73%
Native
0.3%
0.6%
 -50.00%
Hispanic
2.3%
2.1%
 +9.52%
Asian
0.7%
0.6%
 +16.67%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
2.9%
1.5%
 +93.33%
Other
0%
0%
 0.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Vernon County, Missouri by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 41.5 -0.48% 39.7 +2.58% 42.6 -1.16%
2020 41.7 +2.21% 38.7 0% 43.1 +1.17%
2019 40.8 -0.24% 38.7 -1.02% 42.6 +0.95%
2018 40.9 +0.49% 39.1 +0.51% 42.2 -0.47%
2017 40.7 - 38.9 - 42.4 -

The median age of Vernon County, Missouri gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 1,401 -4.45% 1,225 -3.88% 1,336 1,177
10 to 19 1,413 +3.26% 1,530 -1.97% 1,457 1,499
20 to 29 1,150 -7.16% 1,199 -3.36% 1,067 1,156
30 to 39 1,188 -16.35% 1,115 -18.84% 1,004 918
40 to 49 1,175 -6.99% 1,335 -9.21% 1,094 1,213
50 to 59 1,338 -0.7% 1,540 -21.09% 1,327 1,235
60 to 69 1,299 +2.1% 1,253 +14.78% 1,324 1,446
70+ 1,096 -0.08% 1,408 +5.77% 1,091 1,487

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Vernon County, Missouri is $49,494.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Vernon County.

  • Under 25
    $39,750.00
  • 25 to 44
    $60,421.00
  • 45 to 64
    $53,365.00
  • 65 and over
    $39,578.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Vernon County, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Vernon County, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Vernon County, Missouri is currently $62,810.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

1.97% of households in Vernon County are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Vernon County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    21.24%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    29.10%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    20.19%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    13.89%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    10.77%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    2.85%
  • $200,000 or more
    1.97%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Vernon County is $24,771.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Vernon County by the total population of Vernon County.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Vernon County, Missouri, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Vernon County to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    8.62%
  • Bachelor's degree
    19.01%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    12.34%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    58.04%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.00%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Vernon County that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Vernon County over the age of 16 is 15,534.

Of those people, a total of 58.00% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Vernon County is 55.40%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 1,172 49.10% 23.10%
20 to 24 years 1,135 80.40% 3.30%
25 to 29 years 1,088 80.80% 1.60%
30 to 34 years 1,011 85.00% 5.00%
35 to 44 years 2,106 77.90% 5.20%
45 to 54 years 2,442 76.20% 1.50%
55 to 59 years 1,232 75.40% 2.90%
60 to 64 years 1,499 37.70% 4.10%
65 to 74 years 2,204 31.90% 0.00%
75 years and over 1,645 5.50% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Vernon County. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 15,035 58.10% 4.20%
Black or African American 50 38.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 37 64.90% 0.00%
Asian 65 81.50% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 29 93.10% 0.00%
Two or more races 318 50.90% 9.30%
Hispanic or Latino 282 73.40% 8.20%
Not Hispanic or Latino 14,799 57.90% 4.10%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Vernon County as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Vernon County is 8,600, with median earnings of $30,447.00.

Women in Vernon County, Missouri earning approximately 85.10% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 8,600 $30,447.00
Male 4,468 $33,367.00
Female 4,132 $28,396.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 1,145 $36,381.00
Business and Financial 324 $30,714.00
Computer and Mathematical 132 $41,164.00
Architecture and Engineering 62 $58,704.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 63 $32,316.00
Community and Social Service 262 $31,636.00
Legal 57 $95,859.00
Educational and Library 616 $39,475.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 67 $28,688.00
Healthcare Practitioners 597 $33,304.00
Healthcare Support 381 $22,775.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 25 $4,044.00
Law Enforcement 87 $40,602.00
Food Preparation and Serving 380 $10,255.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 246 $22,500.00
Personal Care and Service 128 $12,682.00
Sales 655 $26,463.00
Office and Administrative Support 1,160 $30,772.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 144 $27,045.00
Construction and Extraction 457 $25,150.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 175 $28,958.00
Production 901 $32,860.00
Transportation and Material Moving 309 $30,720.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 772 $31,094.00 373 $39,779.00
Business and Financial 144 $38,194.00 180 $30,268.00
Computer and Mathematical 132 $41,164.00 0 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 35 $52,361.00 27 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 22 $44,118.00 41 $31,507.00
Community and Social Service 51 $35,781.00 211 $31,547.00
Legal 18 $0.00 39 $50,750.00
Educational and Library 122 $41,438.00 494 $38,592.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 21 $51,250.00 46 $27,750.00
Healthcare Practitioners 161 $40,650.00 436 $31,538.00
Healthcare Support 80 $17,041.00 301 $23,623.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 23 $4,191.00 2 $0.00
Law Enforcement 87 $40,602.00 0 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 200 $11,563.00 180 $8,214.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 182 $28,542.00 64 $4,559.00
Personal Care and Service 12 $0.00 116 $12,292.00
Sales 327 $39,866.00 328 $21,618.00
Office and Administrative Support 136 $52,500.00 1,024 $30,525.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 104 $39,000.00 40 $23,500.00
Construction and Extraction 457 $25,150.00 0 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 175 $28,958.00 0 $0.00
Production 775 $34,564.00 126 $13,000.00
Transportation and Material Moving 232 $40,333.00 77 $22,257.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 7,783 households in Vernon County, with an average household size of 2.46 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 4,859 families in Vernon County with an average family size of 3.09 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 3,839 315 705 2,924
Average Household Size 3.11 4.28 3.26 1.23
Total Families 3,839 315 705 0
Average Household Size 3.08 3.41 3.01 0

Poverty

Of the 4,859 families in Vernon County, 8.10% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Vernon County:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 8,997 housing units in Vernon County, Missouri.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 7,783 86.51%
Vacant 1,214 13.49%

20.11% of the total 8,997 housing units in Vernon County are rental units. This is approximately 1,809 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 5,813 are occupied by the owner - or 64.61% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Vernon County is $679.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Vernon County that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    161
  • Less than $500
    441
  • $500 to $999
    1,097
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    271
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    0
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in Vernon County is $111,200.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Vernon County that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    971
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    1,676
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    1,127
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    795
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    609
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    481
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    110
  • $1,000,000 or more
    44

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Vernon County. The chart below shows the number of properties in Vernon County that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    2,025
  • 1940 to 1949
    633
  • 1950 to 1959
    410
  • 1960 to 1969
    853
  • 1970 to 1979
    1,427
  • 1980 to 1989
    1,066
  • 1990 to 1999
    1,247
  • 2000 to 2009
    1,001
  • 2010 to 2013
    333
  • 2014 or later
    2

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Vernon County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    651
  • 1 vehicle available
    2,199
  • 2 vehicles available
    2,703
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    2,230

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Vernon County get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Vernon County that commute to work in a particular way.

19.6 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Vernon County.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    601
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    1,765
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    1,163
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    1,054
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    679
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    352
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    746
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    63
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    173
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    190
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    303
  • 90 or more minutes
    167

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Vernon County, Missouri in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Places in Vernon County, Missouri

We have data for 28 places in Vernon County, Missouri. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.