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What people ask for

How many people ask Front Door for each kind of help, where, and when. We keep only counts. We never keep what anyone wrote or who they are.

Staff time and money savedOpen dataFor agencies

Demo dataDemo data, modeled from public data on when people look for help. Our own counts replace it as they grow.

Nothing here is a real count of people. The patterns through the year come from published government and 211 data. The size is made up.

How the demo is madeShow our own counts

Demo data. In the last 12 weeks, people in Missouri asked most about Housing (55%), then Food (14%) and Money (13%). Rising fastest from the week before: Housing, up 4%.

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Missouri, Jul 20, 2026 to Oct 11, 2026

QuestionsDemo data
7,655

▲ +2% vs the week before

Needed help this weekDemo data
2,196
Unmet needDemo dataNo program and no listed place nearby fit
1,027

Over time. Questions each week, by kind of help.

Demo data

See the numbers
FoodHousingHealthMoneyCareWorkEducationOther (legal help, safety)Total
Week of Jul 20813413286Under 101510Under 10640
Week of Jul 27813433286Under 101310Under 10642
Week of Aug 3823563287Under 101310Under 10656
Week of Aug 10813553185Under 101210Under 10651
Week of Aug 17853543185Under 1012Under 10Under 10650
Week of Aug 24893513086Under 1011Under 10Under 10642
Week of Aug 31933543084Under 1011Under 10Under 10644
Week of Sep 7993523087Under 1011Under 10Under 10644
Week of Sep 14993453086Under 1011Under 10Under 10630
Week of Sep 21943523185Under 1011Under 10Under 10638
Week of Sep 28923653184Under 1011Under 10Under 10648
Week of Oct 5803252474Under 1011Under 10Under 10570

Ranked. Kinds of help, most asked first, with the change from the week before.

  1. 01Housing4,19355% of all▲ +4%
  2. 02Food1,05614% of all▼ -2%
  3. 03Money1,01513% of all▼ -1%
  1. 04Legal help74210% of all0%
  2. 05Health3645% of all0%
  3. 06Work1422% of all0%
  4. 07Safety681% of allNot enough
  5. 08Education601% of allNot enough
  6. 09Care15<1% of allNot enough

Change compares the week of Sep 28 with the week of Sep 21. It shows only when both weeks have 10 or more.

See the numbers
Kind of helpQuestionsChange from the week beforeUnmet
Housing4,193+4%752
Food1,056-2%25
Money1,015-1%108
Legal help7420%136
Health3640%Under 10
Work1420%Under 10
Safety68Under 10
Education60Under 10
Care15Under 10

Share by week. Each kind of help's share of all questions, week by week.

Demo data

See the numbers
FoodHousingHealthMoneyCareWorkEducationOther (legal help, safety)
Week of Jul 2013%53%5%13%Under 102%2%Under 10
Week of Jul 2713%53%5%13%Under 102%2%Under 10
Week of Aug 313%54%5%13%Under 102%2%Under 10
Week of Aug 1012%55%5%13%Under 102%2%Under 10
Week of Aug 1713%54%5%13%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Aug 2414%55%5%13%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Aug 3114%55%5%13%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Sep 715%55%5%14%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Sep 1416%55%5%14%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Sep 2115%55%5%13%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Sep 2814%56%5%13%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
Week of Oct 514%57%4%13%Under 102%Under 10Under 10
  1. 01Housing4,19354.8%
  2. 02Food1,05613.8%
  3. 03Money1,01513.3%
  4. 04Other (legal help, safety)81010.6%
  5. 05Health3644.8%
  6. 06Work1421.9%
  7. 07Education600.8%
  8. 08Care150.2%

Where. Questions by county in Missouri.

Demo data

Shading

  • Most questions
  • More
  • Some
  • Fewer
  • Fewer than 10, or none

Most questions

  1. 01St. Louis County1,383▲ +2%
  2. 02Jackson County9660%
  3. 03St. Charles County5770%
  4. 04Greene County4240%
  5. 05St. Louis city388▼ -3%
  6. 06Clay County3540%
  7. 07Jefferson County315▲ +12%
  8. 08Boone County2540%
  9. 09Jasper County166▲ +15%
  10. 10Cass County1480%
  11. 11Platte County1480%
  12. 12Franklin County143▲ +8%
  13. 13Christian County1250%
  14. 14Buchanan County108
  15. 15Cape Girardeau County108
See the numbers: County
CountyQuestionsThis weekUnmet
St. Louis County1,383475236
Jackson County966334161
St. Charles County57719892
Greene County42413570
St. Louis city38812466
Clay County35410964
Jefferson County3159854
Boone County2548632
Jasper County1666127
Cass County1485016
Platte County1485117
Franklin County1434814
Christian County1253912
Buchanan County1082612
Cape Girardeau County1082712
Cole County972312
Lincoln County842312
St. Francois County841912
Newton County751412
Johnson County721212
Pulaski County721212
Taney County721212
Phelps County671211
Camden County6512Under 10
Pettis County651210
Callaway County6412Under 10
Webster County5612Under 10
Butler County5512Under 10
Howell County5312Under 10
Lawrence County5212Under 10
Laclede County4912Under 10
Scott County4812Under 10
Warren County4812Under 10
Barry County4712Under 10
Lafayette County4212Under 10
Stone County3912Under 10
Polk County3712Under 10
Stoddard County2511Under 10
Marion County23Under 10Under 10
Dunklin County18Under 10Under 10
Adair County17Under 10Under 10
Texas County17Under 10Under 10
Miller County15Under 10Under 10
McDonald County13Under 10Under 10
Andrew County12Under 10Under 10
Audrain County12Under 10Under 10
Barton County12Under 10Under 10
Bates County12Under 10Under 10
Benton County12Under 10Under 10
Bollinger County12Under 10Under 10
Cedar County12Under 10Under 10
Clinton County12Under 10Under 10
Cooper County12Under 10Under 10
Crawford County12Under 10Under 10
Dallas County12Under 10Under 10
DeKalb County12Under 10Under 10
Dent County12Under 10Under 10
Douglas County12Under 10Under 10
Gasconade County12Under 10Under 10
Grundy County12Under 10Under 10
Henry County12Under 10Under 10
Howard County12Under 10Under 10
Iron County12Under 10Under 10
Linn County12Under 10Under 10
Livingston County12Under 10Under 10
Macon County12Under 10Under 10
Madison County12Under 10Under 10
Mississippi County12Under 10Under 10
Moniteau County12Under 10Under 10
Montgomery County12Under 10Under 10
Morgan County12Under 10Under 10
New Madrid County12Under 10Under 10
Nodaway County12Under 10Under 10
Osage County12Under 10Under 10
Pemiscot County12Under 10Under 10
Perry County12Under 10Under 10
Pike County12Under 10Under 10
Ralls County12Under 10Under 10
Randolph County12Under 10Under 10
Ray County12Under 10Under 10
Ripley County12Under 10Under 10
St. Clair County12Under 10Under 10
Ste. Genevieve County12Under 10Under 10
Saline County12Under 10Under 10
Vernon County12Under 10Under 10
Washington County12Under 10Under 10
Wayne County12Under 10Under 10
Wright County12Under 10Under 10
Lewis County11Under 10Under 10
Caldwell CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Carroll CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Daviess CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Hickory CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Maries CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Monroe CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Oregon CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10
Ozark CountyUnder 10Under 10Under 10

Rows that say fewer than 10 are hidden on purpose. When only one row would be hidden, a second one is hidden too, so it cannot be worked out from the total.

Urgent and unmet. The share of questions each week that needed help this week, and the share nothing fit.

Demo data

See the numbers
Needed help this weekUnmet need
Week of Jul 2028%14%
Week of Jul 2728%14%
Week of Aug 328%14%
Week of Aug 1029%14%
Week of Aug 1728%13%
Week of Aug 2428%13%
Week of Aug 3129%13%
Week of Sep 730%13%
Week of Sep 1429%13%
Week of Sep 2129%13%
Week of Sep 2829%13%
Week of Oct 529%14%

Each kind of help. Questions each week for each kind of help, on its own scale.

Demo data

  • Food

  • Housing

  • Health

  • Money

  • Education

  • Work

  • Legal help

See the numbers for every kind of help
FoodHousingHealthMoneyEducationWorkLegal help
Week of Jul 20813413286101568
Week of Jul 27813433286101370
Week of Aug 3823563287101369
Week of Aug 10813553185101269
Week of Aug 17853543185Under 101266
Week of Aug 24893513086Under 101163
Week of Aug 31933543084Under 101161
Week of Sep 7993523087Under 101157
Week of Sep 14993453086Under 101153
Week of Sep 21943523185Under 101158
Week of Sep 28923653184Under 101158
Week of Oct 5803252474Under 101150

How we count. What each number means and what we keep.

A question
When someone asks Front Door their first question, our matching service sorts it: the kind of help, and whether they need it this week. We add one to the count for that kind of help, place and week.
The place
The ZIP code or county the person gave us, if they gave one. We never use an address, a city block or a phone location.
What we keep
The count, and nothing else: not the words, not a name, not an account, not a browser or network address.
Unmet need
No state or federal program fit the question well, and we list no office, nonprofit or food site for that kind of help in the person's county.
Small counts
Any count under 10 shows as fewer than 10, in the charts too. When only one count in a list would be hidden, we hide a second one too.
Not counted
The demo site, questions about Front Door itself, crisis questions and letters.
Weeks
Weeks start on Monday, in UTC. The page reads the counts again at most every 15 minutes.

Read our privacy page

How the demo is made

The demo is a model, not a count. It shows what this page will look like and the kinds of patterns to expect, until our own counts are large enough to replace it.

  • Size: the model assumes 40,000 questions a week across the country. That number is made up so the charts have something to show.
  • Kinds of help: each kind gets a share of all questions and a month by month pattern, read from the published sources below.
  • Places: each state gets its share by population (Census county estimates for 2024), and each county its share of its state.
  • Housing mixes rent help, which is steady through the year, with help paying utility bills, which rises in winter in colder states and in summer in hotter ones.
  • Urgent and unmet shares in the demo are made up, to show how those charts read.
  • A small fixed wobble keeps each week from looking drawn with a ruler. The same choice always draws the same numbers.

Search trends

We looked for Google Trends numbers for searches like food stamps, SNAP, rent help, Medicaid, child care help, utility help, unemployment, food bank and WIC, in English and Spanish. Google does not allow automated reading of its Trends pages, and Google has not published a dataset for these searches, so we did not use Trends. The demo is modeled from published government and 211 data instead, listed below.

Where each pattern comes from

Food
Food help rises in September and again in November and December, and is lowest in February. From the share of 211 requests that were about food, month by month, 2022 to 2024 (Western Pennsylvania's open 211 data, the only month-by-month 211 data we found). In November 2025 many states paid partial SNAP benefits during the federal shutdown; the model does not add that event.
Housing
Rent help peaks in January and again from August to October, with a dip in November, following eviction filings in 43 cities and counties tracked by the Eviction Lab, Tacoma among them. About a third of housing questions are about utility bills (211's national split of housing and utility requests in 2025). In colder states that part follows heating help, highest in January and February; in hotter states it follows help with electric bills, higher from spring to fall; states in between get half of each. The shapes come from 211 requests in Western Pennsylvania, where a winter shutoff ban moves electric requests to spring, so the cooling shape is rough.
Health
Medicaid and CHIP applications are steady through the year, highest in January, from CMS application data for 2018, 2019, 2024 and 2025 (the pandemic years are left out). Marketplace open enrollment, November 1 to January 15, adds to it in Washington.
Money
Money mixes steady cash help with the tax season: a quarter of it follows when people file federal returns (IRS 2025 filing season counts, most from February to April), when Washington's Working Families Tax Credit also opens. The other three quarters are kept flat, because we found no monthly pattern for cash help.
Care
Child care help climbs from May and peaks in August, before school starts, from the share of 211 requests about child care, 2022 to 2024 (Western Pennsylvania; a small sample).
Education
Education help, mostly school supplies, is about three times as high in July and August, from the share of 211 requests about education, 2022 to 2024 (Western Pennsylvania).
Work
Unemployment help peaks in January, rises again in early July and in December, and is lowest in September, from new unemployment claims (not seasonally adjusted) in every state, 2012 to 2019 and 2022 to 2025, Department of Labor.
Legal help
Legal help is close to flat through the year, from the share of 211 requests about legal help, 2022 to 2024 (Western Pennsylvania).
Safety
Safety is close to flat through the year, from 211 requests about domestic violence, 2022 to 2024 (Western Pennsylvania). National hotline research finds calls do not rise over the holidays, so the model adds no holiday spike.

How questions split between kinds of help: housing (with utilities) 48% and food 13%, from United Way's national 211 numbers for 2025 (19 million referrals). The rest is split the way 211 requests split in Western Pennsylvania in 2024, the only full breakdown we found. 211 is a phone line for local help, so Front Door's own mix will differ; our counts will show how.

Sources

  1. 1. 2-1-1 Requests/Referrals (2023-2025) and 2-1-1 Requests (2020-2023). United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania, hosted by Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center (WPRDC); license CC BY, historical, coverage 2020-01-01 to 2025-08-27. calendar 2024 rows, level_1/level_2 classification counts Read it
  2. 2. States scramble to send full SNAP food benefits to millions of people after government shutdown ends. Associated Press (Geoff Mulvihill, David A. Lieb), via WHYY, 2025-11-13. 42 million people on SNAP; 'about two-thirds of states had issued only partial benefits or none at all'; USDA guidance Thursday Nov 13 to issue full November allotments Read it
  3. 3. Using 211 Data to Gauge Eighth District Economic Conditions. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, On the Economy (Summers-Gabr, Rodgers), 2026-02-09. Figure 3 text: food assistance requests rose in October 2025, more-substantial increases in November; data from 211 Counts dashboards for AR, IL, KY, MO, TN Read it
  4. 4. Eviction Tracking System: Version 3.0, all sites monthly data. The Eviction Lab, Princeton University (Hepburn, Haas, et al.), 2026 (file downloaded 2026-10-10). columns city, month, filings_2020, filings_avg, filings_avg_prepandemic_baseline. Download page: https://dev.evictionlab.org/eviction-tracking/get-the-data/ (no license stated; footer 'All rights reserved'; cite as Hepburn, Haas, et al., Eviction Tracking System: Version 3.0, Princeton University, 2026). Read it
  5. 5. A New Baseline: Changes to Our Eviction Metrics. The Eviction Lab, 2025-05-08. baseline moved to average of same months across 2023 and 2024 Read it
  6. 6. Preliminary Analysis: Eviction Filing Patterns in 2022. The Eviction Lab (Vallejo, Haas, Hepburn), 2023-03-09. text: Q4 decline 'follows a predictable seasonal pattern'; Jan 2022 ~78,000 filings, Aug 2022 >114,000 Read it
  7. 7. State Medicaid and CHIP Applications, Eligibility Determinations, and Enrollment Data (Performance Indicator dataset), September 2026 release. CMS (data.medicaid.gov), catalog record on data.gov, modified 2026-09-25. columns 'New Applications Submitted to Medicaid and CHIP Agencies' and 'Applications for Financial Assistance Submitted to the State Based Marketplace'; license U.S. Government Works (https://www.usa.gov/government-works); dataset id 6165f45b-ca93-5bb5-9d06-db29c692a360 Read it
  8. 8. Dates and deadlines for 2027 health insurance. HealthCare.gov (CMS), accessed 2026-10-10. 'Starting November 1, you can apply for 2027 coverage'; January 15 last day; enroll by December 15 for January 1 start Read it
  9. 9. Washington health insurance marketplace. healthinsurance.org, 2026-10-05. 'open enrollment period for 2027 coverage runs from November 1, 2026 through January 15, 2027 in Washington' Read it
  10. 10. 2025 Filing season statistics, weeks ending Jan 31, Feb 28, Mar 28, May 2, Oct 17 2025. IRS Newsroom, 2025. 'Total returns received' row. Other pages: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/filing-season-statistics-for-week-ending-jan-31-2025 , https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/filing-season-statistics-for-week-ending-feb-28-2025 , https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/filing-season-statistics-for-week-ending-march-28-2025 , https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/filing-season-statistics-for-week-ending-may-2-2025 Read it
  11. 11. Working Families Tax Credit application window opens Feb. 1. Washington State Department of Revenue, 2026-01-29. window begins Feb 1, 2026 for tax year 2025; accepted through Dec 31, 2029; up to $1,330; over 675,000 refunds totaling more than $491.4 million since 2023 Read it
  12. 12. Working Families Tax Credit Program, 2025 Report to the Legislature. Washington State Department of Revenue, 2025-12-29. page 2: program begins accepting applications each year on February 1; page 3 Table 2: TY2024 approvals 284,416 (MeF 253,210, MyDOR 28,949, paper 2,257) Read it
  13. 13. IR-2016-143 (archival): refunds claiming EITC or ACTC held until at least Feb. 15. IRS, 2016-10-28. PATH Act refund hold statement Read it
  14. 14. You can begin filing your taxes on Jan. 26 this year. PBS NewsHour, 2026-01-08. 2026 filing season start Jan 26; deadline April 15 Read it
  15. 15. ETA 539 weekly claims data, ar539.csv (state-level, NSA, 1971 to present). U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Office of Unemployment Insurance, downloaded 2026-10-10, latest week ending 2026-10-03. columns st, rptdate, c3 (initial claims). Example values: US sum week ending 2025-01-11 = 351,735 (2025 high), 2025-09-27 = 178,555 (2025 low); 2025-12-06 = 313,815; 2025-07-12 = 260,103. WA c3 week ending 2026-09-26 = 4,365. Read it
  16. 16. Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims news release. U.S. Department of Labor, 2026-10-08. page 2 Unadjusted Data: 170,333 NSA initial claims week ending Oct 3; seasonal factors expected +8.7% from prior week. State table: Washington advance 4,814, prior week 4,534. Used to validate the CSV. Read it
  17. 17. Education Department opens 2027-28 FAFSA early, marking program's earliest launch. The National News Desk (Emma Koppelman), via KATU, 2026-09-24. form already open at StudentAid.gov; traditional opening Oct 1; previous earliest Sept 24, 2025; FAFSA Simplification Act requires availability by Oct 1 Read it
  18. 18. The Effect of Holidays on Calls to the National Domestic Violence Hotline: Comparing Average Call Volume. National Resource Center on Domestic Violence (VAWnet), 2020-11-20. description: 'the number of calls actually decreases during the holidays, including on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day' (2004-2019 data in linked PDFs, not opened) Read it
  19. 19. #CallUtilitiesNow: PUC urges consumers to contact utilities as winter termination moratorium ends March 31, 2023. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, 2023-03-28. 'Between December 1st and March 31st' no shutoffs to income-eligible households; electric, gas, heat-related water Read it
  20. 20. WAC 480-100-143 Winter low-income payment program. Washington State Legislature, current code, accessed 2026-10-10. 'between November 15th and March 15th' utility may not disconnect residential space heating if customer meets conditions (notify, self-certify income, apply for energy assistance, pay plan) Read it
  21. 21. LIHEAP. Washington State Department of Commerce, accessed 2026-10-10. program year Oct 1 to Sep 30; apply once per program year through local agency; income up to 150% FPL Read it
  22. 22. Nearly 1 million assistance calls made to 211 in August. The Source, Washington University in St. Louis (Neil Schoenherr), 2023-09-20. ~150,000 utility payment requests Aug 2023 (+22% vs July); Kreuter: utility payments a particular challenge in late summer Read it
  23. 23. 211 helpline data reveals most pressing U.S. community needs (2025 data). United Way Worldwide, 2026-03-31. 19 million referrals; housing 6 million, 31%; utilities 3.1 million; food 2.5 million; 27 states where housing+utilities > half Read it
  24. 24. The Facts About 211: 2025 Impact Snapshot. United Way Worldwide, 2026. housing 6M (30%), utilities 3.1M, food 2.5M; ranks #4-#7 without counts Read it
  25. 25. 211 helpline data reveals most pressing U.S. community needs (2024 data). United Way Worldwide, 2025-03-26. 16.8M requests, >18M referrals; housing 5.6M, utilities 2.9M, food 2.5M; housing+utilities 47% Read it
  26. 26. Calls to 211 helpline rise in August to the highest level of 2023. Health Communication Research Lab, Washington University in St. Louis (Garg, Golla, Kreuter), 2023-09-09. 872,079 calls Aug vs 785,654 Jul; ~150,000 utility payment requests (+22%); >280,000 housing (+8%) Read it