Iowa by the numbers
A decision-oriented profile: what it costs to live here, what the job market looks like, and how it stacks up against where you are now. Every figure identifies its source and vintage.
The bottom line on Iowa
The cost-of-living picture
Overall prices in Iowa run at 87.8 on the BEA index, where 100 is the US average — among the most affordable states in the country. That puts it 12% below the national level, the 4th-cheapest state of 51. The single biggest factor is housing rents, which sits at 65.3 — 35% below the national norm.
Housing
The typical renter pays $972 a month — 31% below the national median of $1,413, the 45th-highest rent in the country. Buying is a bigger gap: the median home is worth $208,000, 37% below the national median. 71.7% of homes are owner-occupied, making it an ownership-heavy state. The statewide median gross-rent-to-income ratio is 27.4%, below the commonly used 30% cost-burden threshold. Owner-occupied homes report median real estate taxes of $2,897 a year; that figure is context for owners, not a household-specific tax quote.
Do paychecks keep up with prices?
Median household income is $75,059, the 32nd-highest of 51 states. But income only matters relative to prices: adjusted for local costs, that is worth $85,489 in national-average terms. Because costs are low, Iowa punches above its paycheck: it climbs from 32nd in raw income to 17th once you adjust for prices.
The tax trade-off
Income is taxed through a single flat rate, topping out at 3.80%. Combined sales tax averages 6.94%. These headline rates do not by themselves measure a household's total tax burden. (Tax figures are hand-verified from the Tax Foundation and dated on the page below.)
The job market
Unemployment stands at 3.2% (July 2026), 0.9 percentage points below the national rate of 4.1%. That is a tighter labor market than the country as a whole. It is also the one figure here that refreshes monthly, rather than annually.
Every figure above is drawn from the published data on this page. Missing values are never modeled or filled in.
What it costs to live here
Price level by component, 100 = US average. Higher means more expensive than the national average.
| Component | Iowa | vs US avg |
|---|---|---|
| All items | 87.8 | −12.2% |
| Housing rents | 65.3 | −34.7% |
| Goods | 93.7 | −6.3% |
| Utilities | 83.3 | −16.7% |
| Other services | 92.9 | −7.1% |
BEA Regional Price Parities · SARPP · 2024 · rel. February 19, 2026 · Official API
Housing & income (ACS)
| Median gross rent | $972/mo ±$6 |
|---|---|
| Median home value | $208,000 ±$1,141 |
| Median household income | $75,059/yr ±$418 |
| Homeownership rate | 71.7% |
| Median rent as % of income | 27.4% ±0.3% |
| Median owner costs as % of income | 16.0% ±0.1% |
| Median real estate taxes paid | $2,897/yr ±$13 |
The ± values are Census 90% margins of error. Property-tax figures cover owner-occupied homes and are not estimates for a particular property.
US Census ACS 5-Year Estimates · ACS5 · 2024 · rel. December 2025 · Official API
The job market
The seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in Iowa is 3.2% as of July 2026 (preliminary). This is the one figure here that updates monthly.
BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics · LAUS · July 2026 · rel. Aug. 21, 2026 · Official API
How much prices vary within Iowa
BEA metro price levels for metropolitan areas that include part of Iowa. Cross-state metros may appear in more than one state.
| Metro area | All items | Housing rents | vs US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | 86.5 | 57.8 | −13.5% |
| Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA | 87.1 | 63.1 | −12.9% |
| Dubuque, IA | 87.3 | 64.0 | −12.7% |
| Ames, IA | 88.8 | 69.2 | −11.2% |
| Cedar Rapids, IA | 89.0 | 71.4 | −11.0% |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 89.1 | 68.3 | −10.9% |
| Iowa City, IA | 91.5 | 84.0 | −8.5% |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | 91.7 | 84.7 | −8.3% |
| Omaha, NE-IA | 91.9 | 86.4 | −8.1% |
BEA Regional Price Parities by metro area · MARPP · 2024 · rel. February 19, 2026 · Official API
How the statewide price level has changed
BEA Regional Price Parity over time. This shows prices relative to the US average in each year; it is not a consumer-price inflation series.
Data table
| Year | Iowa |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 87.4 |
| 2009 | 89.8 |
| 2010 | 91.1 |
| 2011 | 89.8 |
| 2012 | 90.8 |
| 2013 | 90.9 |
| 2014 | 91.0 |
| 2015 | 89.5 |
| 2016 | 89.4 |
| 2017 | 89.2 |
| 2018 | 91.8 |
| 2019 | 91.8 |
| 2020 | 90.6 |
| 2021 | 89.8 |
| 2022 | 88.4 |
| 2023 | 88.8 |
| 2024 | 87.8 |
BEA Regional Price Parities · SARPP · 2024 · rel. February 19, 2026 · Official API
Housing and jobs over complete calendar years
Home prices (FHFA index)
Home prices in Iowa are up 91% since 2005 (FHFA index). That's roughly in line with the 95% rise nationally over the same period.
Data table
| Year | Iowa | US |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 241 | 362 |
| 2006 | 246 | 379 |
| 2007 | 250 | 375 |
| 2008 | 249 | 348 |
| 2009 | 248 | 330 |
| 2010 | 249 | 324 |
| 2011 | 249 | 313 |
| 2012 | 252 | 315 |
| 2013 | 255 | 328 |
| 2014 | 262 | 345 |
| 2015 | 271 | 362 |
| 2016 | 280 | 382 |
| 2017 | 290 | 403 |
| 2018 | 300 | 422 |
| 2019 | 311 | 443 |
| 2020 | 322 | 471 |
| 2021 | 363 | 556 |
| 2022 | 399 | 616 |
| 2023 | 423 | 648 |
| 2024 | 441 | 683 |
| 2025 | 460 | 707 |
Unemployment rate
The annual unemployment rate peaked at 6.5% in 2009; the latest complete-year average is 3.1% for 2024 — a long recovery from that high.
Data table
| Year | Iowa | US |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 4.3% | 5.1% |
| 2006 | 3.7% | 4.6% |
| 2007 | 3.7% | 4.6% |
| 2008 | 4.2% | 5.8% |
| 2009 | 6.5% | 9.3% |
| 2010 | 6.1% | 9.6% |
| 2011 | 5.6% | 8.9% |
| 2012 | 5% | 8.1% |
| 2013 | 4.7% | 7.4% |
| 2014 | 4.3% | 6.2% |
| 2015 | 3.7% | 5.3% |
| 2016 | 3.6% | 4.9% |
| 2017 | 3.1% | 4.4% |
| 2018 | 2.6% | 3.9% |
| 2019 | 2.7% | 3.7% |
| 2020 | 5.2% | 8.1% |
| 2021 | 3.9% | 5.4% |
| 2022 | 2.9% | 3.7% |
| 2023 | 3% | 3.6% |
| 2024 | 3.1% | 4% |
FRED (FHFA House Price Index & state unemployment) · FRED · through 2024 · rel. continuously updated · Official API
What you'd pay in tax
| Individual income tax | 3.80% top rate (flat) |
|---|---|
| Sales tax (state) | 6.00% |
| Sales tax (combined avg) | 6.94% |
Tax Foundation — 2026 State Individual Income Tax Rates and Brackets · Income · 2026 · rel. tax year 2026 · Manually maintained · verified 2026-07-20
Tax Foundation — State and Local Sales Tax Rates, 2026 · Sales · 2026 · rel. tax year 2026 · Manually maintained · verified 2026-07-20
How it compares to where you are now
See how far your income would go here versus your current state — adjusted for what things actually cost.
Compare your income in Iowa →Where Iowa ranks
Sources for every figure on this page
BEA Regional Price Parities ·
SARPP· 2024 · rel. February 19, 2026 · Official APIBEA Regional Price Parities by metro area ·
MARPP· 2024 · rel. February 19, 2026 · Official APIBLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics ·
LAUS· July 2026 · rel. Aug. 21, 2026 · Official APIUS Census ACS 5-Year Estimates ·
ACS5· 2024 · rel. December 2025 · Official APIFRED (FHFA House Price Index & state unemployment) ·
FRED· through 2024 · rel. continuously updated · Official APITax Foundation — 2026 State Individual Income Tax Rates and Brackets ·
Income· 2026 · rel. tax year 2026 · Manually maintained · verified 2026-07-20Tax Foundation — State and Local Sales Tax Rates, 2026 ·
Sales· 2026 · rel. tax year 2026 · Manually maintained · verified 2026-07-20
Occupation wages are available for selected roles in the salary comparison. See the methodology →