Clayton is a medium-sized city located in the state of Missouri. With a population of 17,461 people and four associated neighborhoods, Clayton is the 43rd largest community in Missouri. Clayton has an unusually large stock of pre-World War II architecture, making it one of the older and more historic cities.

Clayton home prices are not only among the most expensive in Missouri, but Clayton real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Also of interest is that Clayton has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

A relatively large number of people in Clayton telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 18.38% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Clayton is a small town where college students really create the town feel and character. So many small towns have lost population over the last 20-30 years that having the local college presence in the Clayton area, with all of the energy of the students filling area dorms and apartments each fall, really helps Clayton maintain a good economy.

Clayton, while not large, also appears to be attractive to some younger, educated professionals, who help shape the character of the city.

Residents of the city have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 18.58 minutes getting to work every day.

If knowledge is power, Clayton is a pretty powerful place. 80.54% of the adults in Clayton have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns.

The per capita income in Clayton in 2022 was $70,772, which is wealthy relative to Missouri and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $283,088 for a family of four.

Clayton is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Clayton home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Clayton residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Clayton include German, Irish, English, Italian, and Eastern European.

The most common language spoken in Clayton is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese and Arabic.