Purdy, MO 65734, USA - panoramio (1), 2015
Purdy’s story
146 years in pictures
The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 2004.
- 1880Purdy is settled
PurdyMO
A town of 1,062, settled in 1880.
Photo: Bill Miller · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
1,062
2025 Census estimate · +3.2% since 2020
Typical home
$214K
+3.9% in a year
Household income
$37K
median
Median age
30.8
years
Jobs based here
262
Balanced
Is Purdy a good place to live?
Purdy’s best subject grade is an A+ for cost of living; its weakest is a D− for incomes. 37% of residents live below the poverty line in Purdy, against 14% in Missouri’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. No town in Missouri scores higher than Purdy on cost of living. Purdy has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Purdy stand out
Where Purdy beats most towns.
Small town
1,062 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
How Purdy grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Missouri), ordered by how far Purdy is from typical.
Cost of livingA+Open →Jobs & incomeD−Open →HealthLess healthy than 84% of U.S. towns; Cox Monett Hospital 6.9 miles awayC−Open →SchoolsC−Open →Hazard riskinland flooding tops the listCOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 6.3 of 20; 11.7% of households have no car; 1.2% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
OutdoorsConserved land, trails and parksDOpen →HistoryC+Open →Civic life3.1 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsC−Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 30.8; 8% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Purdy: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Purdy, and how to reach them.
PowerBarry Electric CoopEIAHIFLD · EIA
WaterPurdy PWSNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet9 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Purdy’s trash rules yet
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 hereBarryBarry County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2019
ZIP code6573465734 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 Purdy.
HealthC−
A larger share of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Purdy than in most of Missouri or the rest of the country
16% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Purdy, above both the Missouri town median (9.4%) and the median of U.S. towns (8.1%). 76% of Purdy adults had a checkup this year. Purdy beats the Missouri average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 12.
17%healthier than U.S. townsC−Health Grade
| Purdy | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 30% | 25% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 9.4% | 8.1% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 22% | 19% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Missouri
1 better19 too close to call12 worse
| What stands out | Purdy | MO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.5% | 8.6% |
| More uninsured adults | 15.7% | 8.7% |
Cox Monett Hospital
6.9 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
SchoolsC−
Public schools in Purdy fall behind 82% of Missouri districts
Its public schools are run by Purdy R-II. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
18%of MO districts it outscoresC−School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purdy Elem.Largest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 303 | C− |
| Purdy HighLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 267 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MO on state tests and graduation
Climate
Four seasons and hot summers in Purdy
Purdy has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 25° and about 7 inches of snow falls in a winter.
7″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter27–47°
Spring45–67°
Summer65–86°
Fall46–69°
Oct 26
typical first frost
Apr 9
typical last frost
+0.8°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HousingCost of living grade A+
A typical Purdy home is worth about $214K
The typical Purdy home is worth about $214,000, up 3.9% in a year, 19% below the Missouri typical home. 61% of households own their home in Purdy.
$214KZillow home value
Typical home value
Purdy$214K
Missouri$265K
+3.9%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C
High risk in Purdy, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 65% of U.S. communities.
65risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingTornadoesCold waves
4
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D−
Purdy has 0.8 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Purdy for work: only 5% work in town. The median household income in Purdy is $37,000. Jobs based in Purdy fell to 262 in 2023, 31 fewer than in 2013.
5%work in town
| Purdy | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $37,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.9% | 13% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Purdy5%
Monett18%
Cassville7%
Springfield4%
Joplin4%
11 mi
median commute distance
262
jobs based in Purdy
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 32% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Purdy
17pages on Purdy
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Purdy; the nearest are
Crowder CollegeCommunity college · Public · Neosho24.8 mi$6,180 in-state tuitionMissouri Southern State UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Joplin35.5 mi$8,960 in-state tuition
About 0 of every 100 Purdy residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Missouri.
About Purdy
City in Purdy County, Missouri, United States
Purdy is a city in Purdy Township, Barry County, Missouri, United States, on the foothills of the Ozarks, eight miles (13 km) south of Monett and twelve miles (19 km) north of Cassville along Highway 37. The population was 1,028 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 0.7 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,483 ft
- ZIP code
- 65734
- Area code
- 417
Questions about Purdy
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Purdy, MO expensive?
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+.