A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

McCool$1,010/mo

Typical home $151K (Zillow) · tax rate est. 1.8% · Housing →

Sturgis$1,130/mo

Typical home $194K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.69% · or rent about $950/mo · Housing →

The difference: $110 a month, about $1,300 a year, between Sturgis and McCool.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Mississippi ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Schools

–McCoolNot graded B−SturgisBetter than 45% of districts in the state

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

McCoolSturgis

Snow a year1″1″

January low33°F —

July high90°F —

Growing season (days)239d —

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)57th 48th

Outdoors & history

McCoolSturgis

Trails—1 mi

Conserved land—38.8%

Archive photos—1

Famous people born here2 2

Community

McCoolSturgis

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

20 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

McCoolSturgis

McCool ↔ Sturgis20 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Mississippi average

McCoolSturgis

People

Population 93Lowest 128Highest

Median age 63.8±19.6Highest 65% above MS 54.7±14.6Lowest 42% above MS

McCool and Sturgis are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 16.1%±24.3Highest MS: 23.3% 7%±26.1Lowest MS: 23.3%

McCool and Sturgis are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 44.1%±36.2Highest MS: 17.2% 25%±19.7Lowest MS: 17.2%

McCool and Sturgis are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 18.9%Highest MS: 25.1% 8.8%Lowest MS: 25.1%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 0%±21.3Lowest MS: 6.1% 2.3%±3.2Highest MS: 6.1%

Sturgis and McCool are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $53,750±$22kLowest 5% below MS $54,375±$23kHighest 4% below MS

Sturgis and McCool are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied — $126,400±$54k 26% below MS

Rentmedian gross, monthly — $950±$363 about the MS average

Property taxmedian, yearly — $873 28% below MS

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 0%±100Lowest MS: 51.3% 50%±100Highest MS: 51.3%

Sturgis and McCool are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 26.9%Highest MS: 18.9% 22.7%Lowest MS: 18.9%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 93.5%Highest MS: 70% 89.3%Lowest MS: 70%

Typical home builtmedian year 1960Lowest 26 yrs older than MS 1978Highest 8 yrs older than MS

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 21 minLowest 17% below MS 22 minHighest 16% below MS

Work from home 26.9%±46.4Highest MS: 5.9% 3.5%±4.8Lowest MS: 5.9%

McCool and Sturgis are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 0% 0%

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 17.3 miHighest 16.8 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.27Highest 0.24Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Kosciusko (23%)Starkville (27%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in SturgisFew work in McCool

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0%Lowest 38.8%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 0.0 miLowest 0.5 miHighest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.4 miHighest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0Lowest 1Highest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 11.7Lowest 19.4Highest

Schools

School district —Starkville Oktibbeha Consolidated School District

High school in town —None in town

Mississippi average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

McCool neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to McCool’s Town Square.

Sturgis neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Sturgis’s Town Square.

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Set another town beside McCool and Sturgis

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Towns like McCool

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Montrose168 people · $229K homes

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Schlater187 people

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Kossuth223 people · $208K homes

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Pace104 people · $76K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

McCool vs Sturgis

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs about the same each month

Grades and rankings, side by side

What daily life feels like in each

20 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside McCool and Sturgis

Towns like McCool

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