Missouri vs South Carolina

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

Missouri

Rank #10

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.6

Category Wins

4/10

South Carolina

Rank #20

Overall Score

66.5

Category Wins

4/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

0.88%

Property Tax

0.57%

87.1

Cost of Living

$4,200

Farm Land $/Acre

$3,100

200 days

Growing Season

250 days

50"

Annual Rainfall

56"

6/10

Soil Quality

6/10

8/10

Safety (Rural)

6/10

9/10

Gun Friendly

8/10

4.5 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4.5 hrs

80%

Broadband

79%

Missouri Edges Out South Carolina Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.6 vs 66.5, Missouri comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 4 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: South Carolina offers cheaper farmland at $3,100/acre vs $4,200/acre. South Carolina has a longer growing season (250 vs 200 days). South Carolina has lower property taxes (0.57% vs 0.88%).

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	Missouri MO	South Carolina SC
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	Yes
	4.7%	5.21%
	8.33%	7.5%
	0.88%	0.57%
	87.1	96
Land & Building
	$4,200	$3,100
	No Statewide Code	Yes (Statewide)
	Yes (Statewide)	Permitted with local zoning approval; increasingly common
Climate & Growing
	5b-7a	7b-9a
	200	250
	50"	56"
	6	6
	3	4
	6	4
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Permitted
	4.5	4.5
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	None	Minimal
	9	8
	Strong	Strong
	Yes (Farm Sales Only)	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	540	506
	40%	50%
Demographics & Community
	89.5	165
	30%	35%
	80%	79%
Business
	#13	#24
	$50/yr	$110/yr
	3.2%	3.6%

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