Fruit Peddlers, 1938
Steele’s story
130 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1938.
- 1896Steele is settled
SteeleMO
A town of 1,692, settled in 1896.
Photo: Thomas R Machnitzki (thomasmachnitzki.com) · CC BY 3.0
Population
1,692
2025 Census estimate · −8.5% since 2020
Typical home
$116K
−8.2% in a year
Household income
$55K
median
Median age
38.4
years
Jobs based here
339
A commuter town
Is Steele a good place to live?
Steele’s best subject grade is a B+ for walkability; its weakest is a D− for hazard risk. Only 3 of Missouri’s 390 towns score lower on civic life. Steele has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
A shrinking town
Steele has shrunk 22% since 2010
2,172 counted in 2010 and 1,853 in 2020; an estimated 1,692 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How Steele grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Missouri), ordered by how far Steele is from typical.
Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 89% of U.S. communities; earthquakes tops the listD−Open →Jobs & income$55K median household incomeD−Open →HealthGreat River Medical Center 11 miles awayD−Open →SchoolsDOpen →SafetyDOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 8.3 of 20; 7.4% of households have no car; 2.5% of workers walk, bike or ride transitB+Open →Cost of livingB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
OutdoorsConserved land, trails and parksCOpen →History1 notable person born hereC−Open →Civic life0.8 library visits per resident; 2 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsD−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 38.4; 18% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Steele: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Steele, and how to reach them.
PowerUnion Electric13.3¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterSteele PWS1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet4 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Steele’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 herePemiscotPemiscot County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2019
ZIP code6387763877 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 Steele.
HealthD−
Health in Steele trails 96% of U.S. towns
18% of adults report frequent physical distress in Steele, against 15% in Missouri’s towns and 14% across U.S. towns. Among adults locally, 22% smoke cigarettes.
5%healthier than U.S. townsD−Health Grade
| Steele | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 30% | 25% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 17% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 22% | 19% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 15% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Missouri
0 better14 too close to call18 worse
| What stands out | Steele | MO |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 26.9% | 15.8% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 22% | 13.7% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 13.6% | 9% |
Great River Medical Center
11 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
SchoolsD
Steele’s schools rank behind 92% of Missouri districts
Public schools: the South Pemiscot Co. R-V school district. Of its 3 schools, two are listed below, each with the reason.
8%of MO districts it outscoresDSchool Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades 1–5 | Grades 1–5 | 235 | D |
| South Pemiscot HighLargest public high schoolGrades 6–12 | Grades 6–12 | 263 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MO on state tests and graduation
HousingCost of living grade B−
A typical Steele home is worth about $116K
Steele’s rent at the middle of the market stands at $707 a month. Typical home values fell 8.2% in the year to September 2026. Nearly half of households own their home locally, below both the Missouri town median (64%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%).
$116KZillow home value
| Steele | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $707 a month | $971 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Steele$116K
Missouri$265K
−8.2%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
SafetyD
Steele reports more crime per resident than 89% of U.S. towns
The rate of thefts and burglaries in Steele is 17.5 per 1,000 residents. The violent offense rate locally is 1.2 per 1,000 residents.
11%of U.S. towns report more crimeDSafety Grade
| Steele | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 17.5 per 1,000 residents | 12.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.2 per 1,000 residents | 2.2 | 1.6 |
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
Steele1.2
Missouri4.3
U.S.3.3
Property crime per 1,000 residents
Steele17.5
Missouri16.9
U.S.15.5
11th
percentile among U.S. towns we grade
2
violent crimes reported in 2025
29
property crimes reported in 2025
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D−
Steele stands out in Missouri and nationally: the FEMA risk score there is higher
Of the losses FEMA expects in Steele, 40% come from earthquakes and 17% from drought. 4 flood insurance claims have been paid locally since 1981. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Steele after 2 declared disasters, most recently in 2009.
89risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
EarthquakesDroughtTornadoes
4
paid flood claims since 1981
2
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D−
Steele has 0.5 jobs per working resident, so most workers leave town for work
For Steele, the average commute is 19 minutes. Jobs based locally fell to 339 in 2023, 133 fewer than in 2013. Also worth knowing: in Steele, nearly a quarter of residents live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Blytheville (10%), Gosnell (5%) and Hayti (5%).
12%work in town
| Steele | Missouri towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 24% | 14% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $55,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 12% | 13% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Steele12%
Blytheville10%
Gosnell5%
Hayti5%
Caruthersville5%
12 mi
median commute distance
339
jobs based in Steele
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
B+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 67% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
3″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter32–49°
Spring50–70°
Summer69–89°
Fall51–72°
Nov 14
typical first frost
Mar 18
typical last frost
+0.7°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Steele
18pages on Steele
The big questions
SchoolsDBehind 92% of MO districts · 3 schoolsSafetyD1.2 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (2025)HealthD−Better than MO on 0 of 32 CDC measuresCost of livingB−$116K typical home · down 8.2% in a yearWork & commuteD−$55K median household income · 339 jobs hereNatural hazardsD−FEMA risk higher than 89% of U.S. communities · earthquakes
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Steele
About 3 of every 100 Steele residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Missouri.
A commuter town
88% of working residents leave Steele for work
Where Steele’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
339jobs based in Steele
12%of working residents work in town
12 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Steele
City in Missouri, United States
Steele is a city in southern Pemiscot County in the Missouri Bootheel of southeastern Missouri, United States. The population was 1,853 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.9 sq mi
- Elevation
- 262 ft
- ZIP code
- 63877
- Area code
- 573
Questions about Steele
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Steele, MO expensive?
That is 2.9 years of the area's median household income ($40,089 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.