Clayton, MO population, income and ZIP codes

Clayton city is a mid-size town in Missouri, with 17,282 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #50 of 1,082 ranked by population — larger than 95% of them. The median age here is 28.7 years against 39.1 nationally, a distinctly younger profile, typical of places with students, military posts or a fast-growing family population. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.

Households in Clayton city earn a median of $128,898 a year, 64.1% above the national figure of $78,538 and 132% above the $55,543 median for the 374 Missouri cities we cover. Household income here is measured before tax and pooled across everyone at the address, which is why it reads higher than typical individual earnings in the same area. Poverty reaches 8.1% of residents here, below the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Clayton city is valued at $799,200, 163.4% above the national figure and 424% above the $152,400 peer median, while median gross rent runs $1,648 a month, 17.2% above the national figure, or roughly $19,776 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 15.3% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is cheap relative to what people here earn. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 6.2×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is out of reach on local earnings alone and the ownership market leans on outside income, equity or dual high earners. 54.7% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans more heavily on renters. Rent is reported gross — contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities — which is why it runs above the advertised price on a listing for the same unit.

Home values sit at 6.2× median household income, far past the 3.9× national mark, so ownership costs here are set by something other than local wages — second homes, retirees with equity, or commuters earning elsewhere. A median age of 28.7 means a large student or early-career population; income medians in places like this understate household resources, since many residents are supported from outside the address.

Every value on this page is published directly by the Census for this area — nothing is modelled or interpolated. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.