MISSOURI INVENTIONINDEX | AUGUST 2025
August 2025: 1.19% (A grade)
Missouri inventionINDEX August 2025: 1.19% (A grade)
The inventionINDEX measures innovation output by comparing GDP growth with patent production growth.
Anything over C grade is positive sentiment; anything under C is negative outlook/sentiment. Using that sentiment, it is possible to observe trends over time, and also compare states/countries. In doing so, we can predict which states have the best chance to recover economically from the pandemic (or any other economic incident that may occur).
Missouri inventionINDEX Scores – Last 12 months
| Month | inventionINDEX Score |
| August 2025 | 1.19% |
| Jul 25 | 1.30% |
| Jun 25 | 1.25% |
| May 25 | 1.16% |
| Apr 25 | 1.24% |
| Mar 25 | 1.07% |
| Feb 25 | 1.07% |
| Jan 25 | 1.18% |
| Dec 24 | 1.14% |
| Nov 24 | 1.04% |
| Oct 24 | 1.27% |
| Sep 24 | 1.07% |
| Aug 24 | 1.04% |
The Missouri inventionINDEX for August 2025 stands at 1.19%, earning an A grade. This score indicates a generally positive sentiment regarding innovation output in the state. Comparing this to the preceding months, August’s score is slightly lower than July’s 1.30% (A+) and June’s 1.25% (A+), suggesting a modest dip from the immediate prior performance. However, it represents an improvement over several earlier months in 2025, such as March and February, both at 1.07% (B-), demonstrating some fluctuation within the current year.
Examining the past year, the August 2025 score of 1.19% (A) is notably higher than August 2024’s 1.04% (C+), indicating an upward trajectory in sentiment over the annual cycle. While the score is not the highest recorded in the last 12 months—October 2024 and July 2024 both reached 1.27% (A+)—it consistently remains above the C grade threshold, which is deemed positive sentiment according to the inventionINDEX methodology. This sustained positive performance suggests a resilient innovation environment in Missouri despite economic uncertainties.
A higher inventionINDEX score, particularly one consistently above a C grade, signals robust innovation output, correlating GDP growth with patent production. This positive outlook can attract investment, foster economic recovery, and promote job creation within the state. A strong innovation index suggests that businesses are actively engaged in research and development, leading to new technologies and processes that can drive long-term economic prosperity and competitiveness.
Conversely, a lower inventionINDEX score, especially one falling below the C grade, indicates a negative outlook and potential challenges for the state’s economic landscape. A decline suggests that innovation output is not keeping pace with economic growth, which could lead to stagnation or even contraction. Such a trend may deter investors, impact the growth of R\&D sectors, and potentially hinder a state’s ability to recover from economic downturns, as innovation is a key driver for resilience and future prosperity.
Discussion:
In August, the Missouri inventionINDEX scored a positive sentiment which was higher than the previous year’s average but underperformed the upward trend for the year. This is similar to the prior 12 months, which experienced a slight upward trend.
As the economy continues to stabilize in the post-pandemic era, it remains uncertain whether any backlog of applications still exists or if the department has returned to normal processing timelines. The inventionINDEX could also be affected by lingering consequences from the pandemic, such as company closures, reduced workforces, and limited R&D capabilities, which may still be impacting current operations.
Learn More:
Are you thinking of patenting any of your bright ideas? Did you know your research work could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and you can receive up to 14% back on your expenses? To find out more, please check out our free online eligibility test.
Swanson Reed’s Missouri office provides R&D tax credit consulting and advisory services to Kansas City, St Louis, Springfield, Columbia, Independence, Lees Summit, Ofallon, St Joseph, St Charles, and Blue Springs.
Feel free to book a quick teleconference with one of R&D tax specialists if you would like to learn more about R&D tax credit opportunities.
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Swanson Reed is the largest Specialist R&D tax credit advisory firm in the United States. With offices nationwide, we are one of the only firms globally to exclusively provide R&D tax credit consulting services to our clients. We have been exclusively providing R&D tax credit claim preparation and audit compliance solutions for over 30 years.
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What is the R&D Tax Credit?
The Research & Experimentation Tax Credit (or R&D Tax Credit), is a general business tax credit under Internal Revenue Code section 41 for companies that incur research and development (R&D) costs in the United States. The credits are a tax incentive for performing qualified research in the United States, resulting in a credit to a tax return. For the first three years of R&D claims, 6% of the total qualified research expenses (QRE) form the gross credit. In the 4th year of claims and beyond, a base amount is calculated, and an adjusted expense line is multiplied times 14%. Click here to learn more.
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