Rolla, Missouri
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Growing. Up 3.4% since 2020.
20,588
people, the 36th-largest of Missouri's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Missouri's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
75.8%
of 12,494 jobs located in Rolla are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 41% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$789
a month. Missouri's median is $1,033.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent jumps $526.
A $526 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Phelps County.
- $725 Tract 8905
- $1,251 Tract 8901
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.
$857–$1,285
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $789 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
70% of the housing here was built before 2000.
- 1,035 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
- 64% of those were in multifamily buildings
- 70% of all homes were built before 2000
Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 1% to the 9,238 homes here.
52–125
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 19% less than Missouri's.
$187,000
median home value in Rolla.
- $187,000 Rolla
- $230,300 Missouri
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year