Home Business in St. Louis County, MO (2026)
4 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 1 city in St. Louis County, Missouri.
Verified from official government sources
Zoning & Home Occupation Permits
The St. Louis County Zoning Ordinance defines home occupation at §1003.020.59, and the definition is a list of conditions a home business must satisfy in unincorporated St. Louis County: it is run by members of the family residing on the premises, nothing on the exterior indicates a business is operating, no stock in trade or commodity is sold on the premises, and no customers, clients, or employees come to the residence except one student at a time for tutoring or music instruction.
Home Occupation Rules
Heavy RestrictionsSt. Louis County Code §1003.020.59
Sec. 1003.020.59. — Definitions, Home Occupation. The business is run by members of the family residing on the premises; There are no signs or displays indicating from the exterior of the residence that a business activity is taking place; There is no stock in trade or commodity sold on the premises; … There are no customers, clients, or employees coming to the residence, except one (1) student...
Signage Rules
Unincorporated St. Louis County lets residents run a home-based business as a permitted use, but only if it carries zero exterior advertising. Section 1003.111.2(10) of the zoning code bars any freestanding or wall sign for a home occupation, bans outdoor storage, requires every employee to live on-site, and excludes e-commerce or delivery-only retail operations from qualifying at all.
St. Louis County Home Occupation Sign Ban
Heavy RestrictionsSt. Louis County Code § 1003.111.2(10)
(10)Home occupations, where the following criteria are met:(a)There shall be no outdoor storage.(b)There shall be no freestanding or wall signage.(c)All employees shall reside on the premises.(d)Any use meeting the definition of "e-commerce or delivery-only retail facility" shall not constitute a home occupation.
Customer Traffic Restrictions
St. Louis County bars home occupations from offering services to the general public on the premises, so client and customer visits to a home-based business are not allowed.
No Client Visits for Home Occupations
Significant RestrictionsSt. Louis County Code of Ordinances § 1003.020 (definition of "Home occupation")
Home occupation: A business, commercial, or professional endeavor operated as a domestic activity carried on solely by members of a family, as defined herein, who reside on the premises. These endeavors shall not offer any services to the general public on the premises...
Home Daycare
A St. Louis County license is required for any person using their home to care for more than 4 children other than the children living on the premises. A licensed day care home may care for no more than 10 children, and that count includes children related to the provider. The provider must live in the home the day care operates in, and the home must be 500 feet or more from another day care home, measured between lot lines. A Missouri state license applies as well.
Home Daycare License Requirements
Some RestrictionsSt. Louis County Code Chapter 819
A license is required for any person using his/her home to care for more than four (4) children, other than the children living on the premises. The day care provider must live in the home in which the day care is operated, have adequate play space outside, and care for no more than ten (10) children, including children related to the provider. A day care home must be located five hundred (500)...
Home Business by City in St. Louis County
1 cities in St. Louis County have their own home business rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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