| | West Plains, MO | Columbia, MO | United States |
| Expend. per Student | $11,876 | $14,237 | $15,905 |
| Educ. Expend. per Student | $9,798 | $11,303 | $13,142 |
| Instr. Expend. per Student | $5,776 | $6,199 | $7,999 |
| Pupil/Teacher Ratio | 12.83 | 12.79 | 16.23 |
| Students per Librarian | 834 | 452 | 4573 |
| Students per Counselor | 309 | 260 | 530 |
| Grade School Educ. | 2.7% | 2.0% | 4.8% |
| Some High School Educ. | 11.0% | 2.5% | 6.3% |
| High School Educ. | 86.3% | 95.5% | 88.9% |
| Some College Educ. | 18.2% | 17.6% | 20.0% |
| 2 yr College Grad. | 10.7% | 6.6% | 8.7% |
| 4 yr College Grad. | 22.0% | 53.8% | 33.7% |
| Masters Grad. | 5.5% | 15.5% | 9.3% |
| Professional Degree | 1.4% | 4.6% | 2.2% |
| Doctorate Degree | 3.6% | 5.3% | 1.5% |