MOMap-doton-Clever, 2004
Clever’s story
134 years in pictures
Census counts: 248 in 1910, 2,918 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1960 on.
- 1892Clever is settled
Photo: Hog Farm · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
3,143
2025 Census estimate · +7.4% since 2020
Typical home
$273K
+3.6% in a year
Household income
$78K
median
Median age
30.6
years
Jobs based here
409
A commuter town
TownGrade
B+
#67 of 247 in MO
Is Clever a good place to live?
Clever is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B+ overall, 67th of 247 graded towns in Missouri, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is incomes: the median household earns $78K. It also does better than most on schools: its schools rank ahead of 69% of Missouri towns. A typical home there costs about $273K, 4.2 years of the Springfield metro’s $65K median household income. Among 247 Missouri towns, just 4 have a lower share of residents 65 or older than Clever.
A growing town
Clever has grown 47% since 2010
2,139 counted in 2010 and 2,918 in 2020; an estimated 3,143 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 7.4% since 2020, after 36.4% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How Clever grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Missouri), ordered by how far Clever is from typical.
Jobs & incomeA−Open →SchoolsB+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 6.4 of 20; 5.4% of households have no car; 1.2% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →HealthHealthier than 62% of U.S. towns; Cox Medical Centers 12.4 miles awayBOpen →Cost of livingBOpen →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 47% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors1 mile of trailDOpen →History1 notable person born hereC−Open →Civic life3.6 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsA−Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Clever: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Clever, and how to reach them.
PowerOzark Electric Coop15.6¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterClever PWSNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpFridayTown’s haulerTown site
Register to voteOnlineIn Missouri you can register online until 27 days before Election Day, in person until 27 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 27 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereChristianChristian County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2019
ZIP code6563165631 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Clever.
Clever has less diabetes than most of Missouri and sends most of its workers to Springfield and beyond, but it has little public open land.
OutdoorsD
0% of Clever is conserved land
Just 0 of its 1,040 acres are conserved, so there is little public open land in Clever itself; its outdoors grade is D.
1.0 miles of trail. In Clever, the trail network density is 0.6 miles per square mile, above Missouri’s towns (0.3) and close to U.S. towns (0.4).
#61for trails in MO
0%
conserved · 0 of 1,040 acres
1.0 mi
of trails · 0.6 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
SchoolsB+
Clever’s grade for schools is a B+
Public schools: the Clever R-V school district. The largest public high school is Clever High, with 397 students. Its two schools are below.
69%of MO districts it outscoresB+School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clever Elem.Largest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 871 | B− |
| Clever HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 397 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MO on state tests and graduation
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A−
About half of Clever’s working residents commute to Springfield
Clever has 409 jobs for its 1,370 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here grew from 306 in 2013 to 409.
In Clever, the mean commuting time is 29 minutes, above both the Missouri town median (22 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Only 5% of working residents stay in Clever for work; the rest commute out. 5.9% of Clever residents live below the poverty line. Jobs based in Clever grew to 409 in 2023, 103 more than in 2013.
5%work in town
| Clever | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 5.9% | 14% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.5% | 13% | 8% |
| Median household income | $78,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Clever5%
Springfield46%
Republic6%
Ozark4%
Nixa3%
15 mi
median commute distance
409
jobs based in Clever
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 33% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Who lives here
Clever skews younger than Missouri
Clever’s midpoint age is 30.6 years. People 65 and older are 8% of residents (18% statewide); children under 18 are 31% of residents (22% statewide). Population is up 7.4% in the town since 2020, to 3,143 by the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. Four-year graduates: a quarter of adults 25 and older here, 32% across Missouri.
30.6median age · MO 39
| Clever | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 30.6 years | 38.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 25% | 22% | 29% |
CleverMissouriUnited States
Ages · share of residents
22%
Education · adults 25 and older
No diploma7%
High school31%
Some college28%
Associate’s9%
Bachelor’s17%
Graduate8%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.2 points. Across Missouri, 50.7% of residents are women. Median age: women 30.9, men 29.6.
| Clever | MO | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 17.8% | 11.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 22.4% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 16.5% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.7% | 11.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 6.8% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 3.8% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4% | 7.3% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.7% | 8.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.9% | 30.2% | 26% |
| Some college | 28.4% | 20.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.8% | 8.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 17.2% | 19.8% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8% | 12.6% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 3,100, single groups can be off by several points
Climate
Four seasons and hot summers in Clever
The range runs from 24° on a January night to 88° on a July afternoon, with about 12 inches of snow a winter.
12″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter26–46°
Spring44–67°
Summer65–87°
Fall46–69°
Oct 23
typical first frost
Apr 15
typical last frost
+0.6°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HealthB
Clever stands out in Missouri and nationally: a smaller share of its adults have diabetes
Its widest gap with Missouri is diabetes: 7.8% of its 1,994 adults have diabetes, against 12.1% statewide.
In Clever, 11% of adults worry about having enough food. Among 247 Missouri towns, just 9 have a lower share of adults who have high blood pressure than Clever. Against the Missouri average, Clever comes out ahead on 9 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 3.
62%healthier than U.S. townsBHealth Grade
| Clever | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 16% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 37% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 7.8% | 12% | 12% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 75% | 78% | 79% |
32 measures vs. Missouri
9 better20 too close to call3 worse
| What stands out | Clever | MO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 7.8% | 12.1% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 4.4% | 6.8% |
| More binge drinkers | 19.9% | 16.3% |
Cox Medical Centers
12.4 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
76th
percentile among MO towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Safety
Crime reported in Clever
Clever's reported crime rate is well below Missouri's. Its violent offense rate is 5.8 per 1,000 residents. Among 179 Missouri towns, just 9 have a lower property crime rate than Clever.
| Clever | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2022) | 5.8 per 1,000 residents | 2.5 | 1.9 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2022) | 5.2 per 1,000 residents | 19.1 | 14.1 |
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
Clever5.8
Missouri5
U.S.4
Property crime per 1,000 residents
Clever5.2
Missouri24.2
U.S.20
18
violent crimes reported in 2022
16
property crimes reported in 2022
FBI crime data, 2022 · crimes reported to police
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
Natural hazards: moderate risk in Clever, mostly inland flooding
Households in Clever have drawn federal disaster aid in 5 declared disasters, most recently in 2017. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 53% of U.S. communities.
47risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingTornadoesHeat waves
5
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
HousingCost of living grade B
Clever’s grade for cost of living is a B
The typical Clever home is worth about $273,000, up 3.6% in a year, close to the Missouri typical home. Homes sold in Clever spent a median 41 days on the market. For households in the town, the share who live in a home they own is 68%.
$273KZillow home value
| Clever | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 68% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,151 a month | $970 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Clever$273K
Missouri$265K
Market temperature
41
days on market
+3.6%
value change, 1 year
5
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Nearby attractions
All 13 attractions →Silver Dollar City and 7 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Clever. Close and well known come first.
26 mi Theme parkSilver Dollar City
34 mi LakeTable Rock Lake
4 mi National BattlefieldWilson's Creek National Battlefield371K visitors a year
29 mi MuseumTitanic Museum9 mi MuseumRiverbluff Cave26 mi CaveMarvel CaveSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Silver Dollar City: Nan Fry, CC BY 2.0 · Table Rock Lake: KTrimble (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wilson's Creek National Battlefield: National Park Service, Public domain · Titanic Museum: Brad A. Totman, Public domain
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Keep exploring
Everything we know about Clever
20pages on Clever
The big questions
SchoolsB+Beat 69% of MO districts · 2 schoolsSafety5.8 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (2022)HealthBBetter than MO on 9 of 32 CDC measuresCost of livingB$273K typical home · up 3.6% in a yearWork & commuteA−$78K median household income · 409 jobs hereNatural hazardsB−FEMA risk higher than 47% of U.S. communities · inland flooding
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Clever
About 5 of every 100 Clever residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Missouri.
A commuter town
95% of working residents leave Clever for work
Where Clever’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
409jobs based in Clever
5%of working residents work in town
15 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Clever
City in Missouri, United States
Clever is a city in Christian County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2020 census, Clever had a population of 2,918. It is part of the Springfield, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area. Clever, like the rest of Christian County, saw a significant increase in population between 2000 and 2010.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.3 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,378 ft
- ZIP code
- 65631
Clever’s neighbors
One town shares a border with Clever.
BillingsClever
How the neighbors grade
Billings has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Clever and Billings report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Clever with a neighbor →
Questions about Clever
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Clever, MO a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. Clever grades B+ overall, better than 73% of U.S. towns and #67 of 247 in Missouri. It grades B for health and B+ for schools.
Is Clever, MO expensive?
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.