Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
De Soto grades A− overall, ranked 22nd of 150 in Kansas, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Its schools rank ahead of 94% of Kansas towns and residents are healthier than 83% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $104K. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $429K for a typical one and 5.1 times the Kansas City metro’s $83K median household income. 11% of residents are 65 or older in De Soto, below both Kansas’ towns (17%) and U.S. towns (18%). Sunflower Village Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Among 103 Kansas towns, just 8 have a higher typical home value than De Soto.
Where De Soto beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kansas), ordered by how far De Soto is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1828, comes before those of 99% of the Kansas towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 35 in 1860, 6,118 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 2005 and 3 maps from 1951 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in De Soto, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in De Soto.
De Soto has schools in the top 5% of Kansas, trades workers with Overland Park and other neighbors and has hotter summers than most of the country, though not than most of Kansas.
The median property tax bill is $5,552, against $2,798 across Kansas, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical De Soto home is worth about $429,000, up 4.3% in a year, 74% above the Kansas typical home.
| De Soto | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,158 a month | $975 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 72% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A ranks #4 of the 151 Kansas towns we grade for schools.
Its public schools are run by the De Soto school district. Three of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is De Soto High School, with 918 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starside ElemLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 428 | A− |
| De Soto High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 918 | A− |
| Lexington Trails Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 393 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KS on state tests and graduation
31% of adults sleep under 7 hours in De Soto. De Soto beats the Kansas average on 8 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 15% of adults report frequent mental distress in De Soto.
| De Soto | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 35% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 17% | 17% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 31% | 33% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 22% | 23% |
| What stands out | De Soto | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.7% | 13% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.5% | 8.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
July afternoons average 89.1°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 87% of Kansas places with climate records; January nights average 20.1°.
De Soto has chilly winters and warm summers. The July high in De Soto is 89°F. About 12 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| De Soto | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 89°F | 91°F | 85°F |
| January low | 20°F | 21°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
De Soto has grown 16% since 2020, to 7,083 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 38% of De Soto adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more.
| De Soto | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 38% | 29% | 29% |
| Median age | 38.4 years | 38.1 years | 40.5 years |
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.3 points. Across Kansas, 49.8% of residents are women.
| De Soto | KS | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.5% | 12.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 17.9% | 11.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.8% | 10.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.8% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.3% | 12.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 15.1% | 11.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.8% | 12.2% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 5.5% | 10.1% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.3% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6% | 8% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.3% | 25.4% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.8% | 21.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.7% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 25.1% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 13.1% | 13.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
De Soto has about as many jobs (3,290) as working residents, but only 448 people both live and work here. The average commute takes 27.5 minutes, against 19.7 across Kansas.
Most working residents leave De Soto for work: only 15% work in town. De Soto’s average trip to work is 28 minutes. Since 2013, De Soto has added 369 jobs, to 3,290 in 2023.
| De Soto | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 20 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $104,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.1% | 9.2% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 15% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
2.7 miles of trail in 7 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is De Soto Wilderness Park, at 58 acres.
| De Soto | Kansas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1.5% | 2.1% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kill Creek Streamway Park | 0.5 mi | 54 |
| 2. Riverfest Park | 0.4 mi | 46 |
| 3. Lexington Lake Park | 0.4 mi | 19 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 57% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around De Soto. Close and well known come first.
Big draw28 mi Stadium & arenaArrowhead Stadium
28 mi Stadium & arenaKauffman Stadium
31 mi Park & preserveSubTropolis
26 mi Stadium & arenaCPKC Stadium
31 mi Theme parkWorlds of Fun
24 mi Stadium & arenaT-Mobile CenterArrowhead Stadium: Ichabod, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Kauffman Stadium: Mysteryman28, Public domain · SubTropolis: ErgoSum88, Public domain · CPKC Stadium: elisfkc2, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Worlds of Fun: Tkexb173 at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · T-Mobile Center: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0
4 within 15 miles of the center of De Soto
About 5 of every 100 De Soto residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Kansas.
3 notable people were born in De Soto.
City in Kansas, United States
De Soto is a city along the Kansas River, in Johnson and Leavenworth counties in the U.S. state of Kansas, and part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 6,118, and the 2025 estimate is 7,083.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with De Soto.
| Town | KS rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| De Soto | #22 | A− | C | — | A | A− |
| Lexington Township | — | — | C | — | A | A− |
| Lenexa | #23 | A− | C− | B− | A− | A |
| Olathe | #18 | A− | C | B− | A− | A |
| Shawnee | #26 | A− | C | C+ | A | A |
| Sherman Township | #10 | A | B | — | A | B+ |
Lexington Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. De Soto, Lexington Township and Sherman Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare De Soto with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. De Soto grades A− overall, better than 81% of U.S. towns and #22 of 150 in Kansas. It grades A− for health and A for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
3 notable people were born here, including Frank H. Lee and Stanley T. Adams.
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