Callaway County, Missouri Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Callaway County, MO Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
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B
Health Around averageHealthier than 88% of counties in Missouri
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C
Income Below average
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D
Education Well below averageBetter educated than 77% of counties in Missouri
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Callaway County | Missouri Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 44,740 | 6,186,340 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 52.8 | 88.8 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.01% | 0.28% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 38.1 | 37.5 | 37.3 |
| Households | 16,485 | 2,507,647 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Callaway County grew by 3.4% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 44,740 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Callaway County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 21.4% of residents. That is 1.8 points above Missouri as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 9,553 21.4% +0.2 pts
- Millennials 29–44 9,577 21.4% +0.1 pts
- Gen X 45–60 9,580 21.4% +1.8 pts
- Boomers 61–79 7,743 17.3% -0.6 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Missouri, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 48.4% of the people living in Callaway County and men 51.6%.
- Women 48.4% Missouri 50.7%
- Men 51.6% Missouri 49.3%
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100% of everyone living in Callaway County
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Economy
Callaway County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.
| Metric | Callaway County | Missouri Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $73,833 | $70,801 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 4.90% | 4.56% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.1% | 4.0% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Callaway County is about 4% higher than in Missouri.
Housing
| Metric | Callaway County | Missouri Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $217,592 | $145,462 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $886 | $1,033 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 75.5% | 68.1% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Callaway County is about 20.5 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $886 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Callaway County spend about 42 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 177 hours, about 7.4 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Callaway County | Missouri Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 21.2 | 21.0 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 42.4 | 41.9 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 177 | 175 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,482 | $5,415 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 10.0% | 13.0% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 6,418 | 7,545 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 593 | 923 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Missouri:
Saline County (11.9 min), Adair County (12.0 min), Nodaway County (12.1 min).
Slowest:
Bollinger County (33.1 min), Ray County (32.2 min), Maries County (31.9 min).
The average commute time in Callaway County is about the same as in Missouri.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Callaway County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Callaway County | Missouri Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 22.7% | 28.8% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.50 | 2.40 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Missouri:
St. Louis County (0.4), Platte County (0.4), Boone County (0.4).
Lowest:
Bollinger County (0.2), Wayne County (0.2), Ripley County (0.2).
Health
Callaway County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.
| Metric | Callaway County | Missouri Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 77.6 | 76.9 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 15.7% | 19.0% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 21.0% | 22.8% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Missouri:
St. Charles County (0.8), Platte County (0.8), Boone County (0.8).
Lowest:
Scotland County (0.7), Ripley County (0.7), Pemiscot County (0.8).
Callaway County, MO Compared With Nearby Counties
Callaway County, MO is the 3rd largest of the 4 counties compared here, 44,740 residents against a local median of 77,032. The measure that sets Callaway County, MO apart most is commute: 21.2 min, 27% above the local median of 16.7 min. That is the weaker end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves sit within 0.8 min of each other on commute, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Callaway County, MO, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Callaway County, MO has the 4th lowest commute of the 4 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Callaway County, MO | 44,740 | $73,833 #2/4 | $217,592 #3/4 | 21.2 min #4/4 |
| Audrain County, MO | 24,548 | $59,477 | $100,000 | 16.7 min |
| Boone County, MO | 188,044 | $72,634 | $248,529 | 16.9 min |
| Cole County, MO | 77,032 | $74,830 | $233,853 | 16.1 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Callaway County, Missouri.
What is the population of Callaway County, Missouri?
About 44,740 people live in Callaway County, Missouri, in 16,485 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 38.1, close to the U.S. median of 37.3.
Is Callaway County, Missouri urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Callaway County, Missouri has 53 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 61% of the U.S. average of 86.
How affordable is housing in Callaway County, Missouri?
The median home costs 2.9 times the median household income ($217,592 against $73,833), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $886 a month takes about 14% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
What share of adults in Callaway County, Missouri have a college degree?
22.7% of adults in Callaway County, Missouri hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 4), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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