Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Brookfield gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $136K for a typical one, or 2.2 years of the county’s $62K median household income. It grades B overall, 87th among Missouri's 247 graded towns. The low prices come with trade-offs. Residents are less healthy than 80% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates, and the median household income is $53K, and 14% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, its schools rank ahead of 80% of Missouri towns. 44% of working residents work locally in Brookfield, against 13% in Missouri’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. Brookfield is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 77% of U.S. towns.
Where Brookfield beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Missouri), ordered by how far Brookfield is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 402 in 1870, a peak of 6,428 in 1930, 4,111 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1861 and 2 maps from 1946 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Brookfield, 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 Brookfield.
Brookfield is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has homes that are cheap against local pay, but it has seen reported crime rise by a third or more.
At 2.2 years of the county’s $62K median household income, the typical home (about $136K) costs less against local pay than in 87% of Missouri towns; that ratio is one input to its A+ for cost of living. Home values rose 50% in five years, to about $136K, against 26% across Missouri.
Brookfield’s median rent is $711 a month. Typical home values rose 11% in the year to September 2026.
| Brookfield | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $711 a month | $972 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 70% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 6,792 U.S. towns with household incomes like Brookfield’s, it is less healthy than 58%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
34% of Brookfield adults get no exercise outside work. Brookfield beats the Missouri average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 9. 17% of Brookfield adults report frequent physical distress.
| Brookfield | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 30% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 17% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 22% | 19% |
| What stands out | Brookfield | MO |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 22.2% | 15.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.8% | 8% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.7% | 6.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Brookfield has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 18° and about 19 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 66% of U.S. communities. Since 1996, 19 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Brookfield.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 1,627 working residents takes 14.3 minutes, against 23.5 across Missouri.
The average trip to work in Brookfield is 14 minutes. Jobs based in Brookfield grew to 2,150 in 2023, 173 more than in 2013. The top destinations are Marceline (8%), Chillicothe (6%) and Columbia (2%).
| Brookfield | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 14 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $53,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Reported crimes rose from 57 to 81 over the last three FBI years, a rise beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. At 22.7 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 52% of Missouri’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
0.4 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves.
| Brookfield | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1% | 2.1% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Graff Field Park | — | 3 |
| 2. West Twin Park | 0.2 mi | 2 |
| 3. East Twin Park | 0.2 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Brookfield; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Brookfield residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Missouri.
8 notable people were born in Brookfield.
City in Missouri, United States
Brookfield is a city in Linn County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,111 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Brookfield grades B overall, better than 61% of U.S. towns and #87 of 247 in Missouri. It grades C− for health, C+ for safety and A− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a C−.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A+.
8 notable people were born here, including Lewis R. Foster and Doris Akers.