Creve Coeur vs Kirkwood

Which is the better fit for you?

Creve Coeur, MO
70
Area Score
Top 14% nationally
Kirkwood, MO
73
Area Score
Top 8% nationally

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Kirkwood receives the higher standardized Area Score. That reflects AreaProfile's weighting, not a judgment about which place is better to live in.

If you are moving

What the difference in prices, rent, homes and weather comes to, using the published figures for the two places. Add your income to see what it would take to keep pace.

Moving from Creve Coeur to Kirkwood

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Everyday prices
About the same
Regional price level 95.0 against 95.0 (US = 100). Both places sit in the same price region, so the index cannot tell them apart.
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Enter your household income to see it.
A new two-bedroom lease
−$130 a month
HUD benchmarks it at $1,420 in Kirkwood against $1,550 in Creve Coeur.
The median home
26% less
$451,400 in Kirkwood against $614,000 in Creve Coeur.
The weather you would swap
Similar winters
Normal January lows are 24°F in Kirkwood against 24°F in Creve Coeur; July highs are 90°F against 90°F (summers the same).

These are differences between published figures, not a forecast of your budget. Income and sales taxes, commuting, schools, insurance and the job you would actually get are not in them, and a price index describes a metropolitan area, so two places in one metro read the same. HUD’s rent is a benchmark for a new lease, not a listing.

Signals

Creve Coeur
Kirkwood
Opportunity: Kirkwood is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
74 · Top 17%
vs
81 · Top 6%
Growth: Kirkwood is the more favorable of the two.
Growth
43 · Bottom 33%
vs
45 · Bottom 38%
Climate
68 · Bottom 39%
vs
68 · Bottom 39%
Physical resilience
67 · Top 40%
vs
67 · Top 40%
Housing affordability: Creve Coeur is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
75 · Top 26%
vs
71 · Top 38%
Schools: Kirkwood is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
82 · Top 9%
vs
91 · Top 2%
Access: Creve Coeur is the more favorable of the two.
Access
99 · Top 16%
vs
98 · Top 23%
Economic stability: Creve Coeur is the more favorable of the two.
Economic stability
72 · Top 21%
vs
70 · Top 25%

Measured values

MetricCreve CoeurKirkwoodSource period
Population18,64329,3632024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income — the two are too close to separate$127,188 ±$14,384$121,270 ±$12,4642024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income$82,285 — more favorable$66,2722024 ACS 5-Year
Population density1,814/sq mi3,198/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$614,000$451,4002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent$1,622$1,348 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, two bedroom$1,550$1,420 — more favorableFY2026
Cost of living index95.095.02023
Homeownership rate60.6%77.2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate4.1%3.4% — more favorableJuly 2026
Employment change (year over year)+0.5%+0.5%July 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher — the two are too close to separate70.1% ±5%67.9% ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate — the two are too close to separate4.9% ±3%5.4% ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)144812 months ending July 2026
Permits per 1,000 residents0.81.6 — more favorable12 months ending July 2026
Permit change (year over year)0.0%−9.4%12 months ending July 2026
Average July high90°F90°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low24°F24°F1991-2020 Normals
Annual precipitation41.7"41.7"1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport7 mi — more favorable12 miNASR current cycle
Average commute20.2 min — more favorable22.0 min2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age41.541.82024 ACS 5-Year
Public schools692024-25 school year
Students per teacher13.1 — more favorable14.92024-25 school year
Math proficiency61.5%67.4% — more favorable2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency61.7%74.5% — more favorable2018-19 school year
Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility18.9%8.2%2024-25 school year

A bolded value is the more favorable of the two where the metric has a clear direction. Metrics like population and density have no inherent better or worse and are shown unweighted.

3 rows above show both figures with a ± margin and neither in bold. Those come from the American Community Survey, which samples rather than counts, and the gap between the two is smaller than the uncertainty on the figures themselves — so the survey did not find a difference to report, and calling either one the winner would be reading a result out of noise.

The number of units permitted is not marked because the larger place always permits more; the per-resident rate is the fair comparison. The year-over-year change is not marked either: a percentage on fewer than 300 units swings on a handful of permits.

Physical risk tradeoff

Creve Coeur

Elevated or high exposure: hail.

Kirkwood

Elevated or high exposure: hail.

Your best match

Weight what matters to you. Your preferences stay in this browser and never change either Area Score.

Creve Coeur
—
Creve Coeur: Your Score
70
Area Score
Kirkwood
—
Kirkwood: Your Score
73
Area Score

Select your priorities to see which of the two fits them better.

Full profiles: Creve Coeur, MO · Kirkwood, MO · How this is calculated: methodology