Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 6,717, settled in 1798.
Cottleville is one of the best-graded places in America: an A+, 4th among Missouri's 247 graded towns. It reports less crime per resident than 98% of U.S. towns, the median household earns $131K, and its public schools beat 95% of Missouri towns on state tests and graduation. The exception is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 86% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Cottleville’s median household income is $131,000, above both the Missouri town median ($62,000) and the median of U.S. towns ($80,000). Only 22 of Missouri’s 419 towns score lower on cost of living. Cottleville is home to St Charles Community College.
Where Cottleville beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Warren Elem. | K–5 | 729 |
| St. Joseph School | PK–8 | 1,011 |
| Saeger Middle | 6–8 | 750 |
3,075 counted in 2010 and 5,611 in 2020; an estimated 6,717 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 19.6% since 2020, after 82.5% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Missouri), ordered by how far Cottleville is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for safety (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D for hazard risk (better than 9%), so the A+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1798, comes before those of 97% of the Missouri towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 225 in 1880, a low of 184 in 1980, 5,611 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers and 4 maps from 1954 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Cottleville. Close and well known come first.
Big draw33 mi State parkCahokia
Big draw27 mi Stadium & arenaThe Dome at America's Center
17 mi Theme parkMid America Adventure
27 mi Stadium & arenaBusch Stadium
27 mi National ParkGateway Arch National Park2.2M visitors a year
33 mi LandmarkMonks MoundCahokia: Thank You (24 Millions ) views, CC BY 2.0 · The Dome at America's Center: Paul Sableman, CC BY 2.0 · Mid America Adventure: Chris Hagerman from New Port Richey, FL, US, CC BY 2.0 · Busch Stadium: Lee Ann Ratledge, CC BY 4.0 · Gateway Arch National Park: Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Monks Mound: Skubasteve834, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Cottleville, 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 Cottleville.
Cottleville has schools in the top 5% of Missouri, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Missouri (mostly inland flooding) and has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Missouri.
At 6.3 years of the St. Louis metro’s $80K median household income, the typical home (about $503K) costs more against local pay than in 94% of Missouri towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living. 64.1% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 45.6% across Missouri.
The typical Cottleville home is worth about $503,000, up 3.9% in a year, 89% above the Missouri typical home. The median rent in Cottleville is $1,624 a month.
| Cottleville | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,624 a month | $970 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 81% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A+ ranks #11 of the 247 Missouri towns we grade for schools. Its A+ for schools comes with a C− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $503K.
Its public schools are run by Francis Howell R-III. Three of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Francis Howell Central High, with 1,750 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saeger MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 750 | A |
| Francis Howell Central HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,750 | A |
| Warren Elem.Top results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 729 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MO on state tests and graduation
Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2024, 0.2 per 1,000 residents.
Cottleville’s property crime rate is 0.5 per 1,000 residents. Among 177 Missouri towns, just 5 have a lower violent crime rate than Cottleville.
| Cottleville | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 0.5 per 1,000 residents | 14 | 11.5 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 0.2 per 1,000 residents | 2.2 | 1.7 |
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
Its widest gap with Missouri is tooth loss: 7.4% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 15.8% statewide. Against the 4,408 U.S. towns with household incomes like Cottleville’s, it is less healthy than 51%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
Cottleville beats the Missouri average on 19 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 20% of adults binge drink in Cottleville.
| Cottleville | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 16% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 37% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 15% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 22% | 19% |
| What stands out | Cottleville | MO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.4% | 15.8% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.3% | 13.7% |
| More binge drinkers | 19.9% | 16.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of Missouri towns, with expected losses of about $1,740 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Since 1982, 27 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Cottleville.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
2.0 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Scott A Lewis Park, at 63 acres.
| Cottleville | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 8.4% | 2.1% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cavalry Park | 1 mi | 29 |
| 2. Scott A Lewis Park | — | 63 |
| 3. College Meadows Park | — | 53 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Cottleville has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 22° and about 14 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Cottleville has about as many jobs (3,317) as working residents, but only 64 people both live and work here. Jobs based here grew from 1,149 in 2013 to 3,317.
Most working residents leave Cottleville for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Cottleville grew to 3,317 in 2023, 2,168 more than in 2013. Among 247 Missouri towns, just 9 have a lower share of residents below the poverty line than Cottleville.
| Cottleville | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 2% | 14% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.2% | 13% | 8% |
| Work from home | 14% | 9% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
11 within 15 miles of the center of Cottleville
About 6 of every 100 Cottleville residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Missouri.
City in Missouri, United States
Cottleville is a city in St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,611 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Cottleville.
| Town | MO rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cottleville | #4 | A+ | C− | A+ | A+ | A− |
| St. Peters | #43 | A− | C+ | B− | A | B+ |
| O'Fallon | #23 | A | C | A− | A | A− |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Cottleville grades A+ overall, better than 96% of U.S. towns and #4 of 247 in Missouri. It grades A− for health, A+ for safety and A+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. That is 6.3 years of the area's median household income ($80,196 across the St. Louis, MO-IL metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
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