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Demographics of Iowa

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Iowa population pyramid
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
184043,112—
1850192,214345.8%
1860674,913251.1%
18701,194,02076.9%
18801,624,61536.1%
18901,912,29717.7%
19002,231,85316.7%
19102,224,771−0.3%
19202,404,0218.1%
19302,470,9392.8%
19402,538,2682.7%
19502,621,0733.3%
19602,757,5375.2%
19702,824,3762.4%
19802,913,8083.2%
19902,776,755−4.7%
20002,926,3245.4%
20103,046,3554.1%
20203,190,3694.7%
2025 (est.)3,238,3871.5%
Source: 1910–2020[1]

The population of Iowa according to the 2020 census was 3,190,369 on April 1, 2020, a 4.73% increase since the 2010 United States census.[2] As of the 2020 census, the center of population of Iowa is near Van Cleve, Marshall County.[3] The population density was 57.1 per square mile.[4] Persons under the age of 5 years are 5.8% of Iowa's population, 22.5% are under 18 and 18.9% are 65 or older. Males make up 50.2% of the population.[4] According to HUD's 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, there were an estimated 2,419 homeless people in Iowa.[5][6]

Early settlement

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The first permanent white settler within the present-day limits of the state of Iowa was fur trader Julien Dubuque, who crossed the Mississippi in 1785 and obtained from the Indians a lease of the lead mines in the vicinity of the present-day city of Dubuque. The mines continued to operate until his death in 1810.[7] The first white settlement was Fort Madison, built in 1808 and abandoned in 1813.[8] In 1829 Isaac Galland established the settlement of Nashville[9] (in what is now Lee County), but it was abandoned before the Black Hawk War.[10] In 1833, after the end of the war, a rush of white settlers into the area began. The initial population in 1833 was estimated as 500 settlers, and a sheriff's census in 1836 showed a population of 10,531.[11] By 1838 it increased to 22,859. The 1840 census showed a population of 43,112 and by 1844 this number increased to 75,152. When Iowa was admitted into the Union, in 1846, the population numbered 102,388[12] and the 1850 United States census counted 192,214.

Largest cities

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The most populous cities in Iowa are as of the 2020 Census:

  1. Des Moines: 214,133
  2. Cedar Rapids: 137,710
  3. Davenport: 101,724
  4. Sioux City: 85,797
  5. Iowa City: 74,828
  6. West Des Moines: 68,723
  7. Ankeny: 67,887
  8. Waterloo: 67,314
  9. Ames: 66,427
  10. Council Bluffs: 62,799
  11. Dubuque: 59,667

Immigration

[edit]
Iowa 2020 Population Density map

Of the residents of Iowa, 70.8% were born in Iowa, 23.6% were born in a different U.S. state, 0.6% were born in Puerto Rico, U.S. Island areas, or born abroad to American parent(s), and 5% were foreign born.[13] In 2018, 175,137 immigrants comprised 6 percent of the state's population. The top countries of origin for Iowa's immigrants in 2018 were Mexico (26 percent of all immigrants), India (6 percent), Vietnam (5 percent), China (4 percent) and Thailand (4 percent). Another 5 percent of the state's population were native-born Americans who had at least one immigrant parent.[14] Immigration from outside the USA resulted in a net increase of 29,386 people, while migration within the country produced a net loss of 41,140 people.

Languages

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As of 2000, 94.2% of residents of Iowa spoke only English and 5.8% spoke a language other than English, including Spanish (2.9%), other Indo-European languages (1.8%), Asian and Pacific Island languages (0.9%) and other languages (0.2%).[15] William Labov and colleagues, in the monumental Atlas of North American English,[16] found the English spoken in Iowa divides into multiple linguistic regions. Natives of northern Iowa—including Sioux City, Fort Dodge, and the Waterloo region—tend to speak the dialect linguists call North Central American English, which is also found in North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Natives of central and southern Iowa—including such cities as Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, and Iowa City—tend to speak the North Midland dialect also found in eastern Nebraska, central Illinois, and central Indiana.[17] Natives of East-Central Iowa—including cities such as Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, and Clinton tend to speak with the Northern Cities Vowel Shift, a dialect that extends from this area and east across the Great Lakes Region.[18]

Native Americans

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Largest Non-Hispanic Native American ancestry by county and numbers of people reporting "Native American Alone"

The main tribe which inhabited most of what is now Iowa at the time of early European exploration of North America, were the Iowa people. Several other tribes have historically inhabited parts of Iowa at various times, namely the Foxes and the Sauk, the Dakota, the Chippewa, the Illinois (in eastern borderlands of Iowa), the Otoe and Missouria (in southern borderlands of Iowa), the Omaha and Ponca (in western borderlands of Iowa), the Odawa, the Potawatomi and the Ho-Chunk. Today the only federally recognized tribe in Iowa is the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa (also commonly known as the Meskwaki Nation). The Foxes first moved into Iowa after 1804, and by the time of the Black Hawk War all were gathered there. In 1842 they left their Iowa lands and moved to Kansas together with the Sauk. But between 1850 and 1859 some Foxes and Sauk returned from Kansas to Iowa and bought a tract of land near Tama, where they established a settlement and have lived ever since.[19] Apart from the Sac and Fox, there are also many Native American people living in Iowa who identify as Sioux, Ho-Chunk, Omaha, Chippewa, and few more tribes.[20]

In the 2020 United States census, in total 14,486 people in Iowa identified as being Native American alone (including Hispanic Natives), and 41,472 did in combination with one or more other races.[21]

Race and ethnicity

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As of the 2020 census White Americans were 84.46% of the population in Iowa (including 82.69% Non-Hispanic Whites). Non-Hispanic Blacks were 4.05% of the population, Asians 2.35%, Native Americans 0.28%, Pacific Islanders 0.18% and people of other races 0.27%. Non-Hispanic people with two or more races were 3.41% (including 1.11% people with partially Native American ancestry) and Hispanics, of any race, were 6.77%.[21]

The largest White American ethnic group in Iowa is German (17.1% of all Whites), followed by English as the second most numerous ethnicity (10.3% of all Whites). Another very common White ethnicity in Iowa is Irish. The largest Hispanic ethnicity is Mexican, followed by Guatemalan. The largest Black ethnicity is African-American, followed by Congolese. And the largest Asian ethnicity is Indian, followed by Vietnamese.[22]

Iowa – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 2000[23] Pop 2010[24] Pop 2020[25] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 2,710,344 2,701,123 2,638,201 92.62% 88.67% 82.69%
Black or African American alone (NH) 60,744 86,906 129,321 2.08% 2.85% 4.05%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 7,955 8,581 9,079 0.27% 0.28% 0.28%
Asian alone (NH) 36,345 52,597 75,017 1.24% 1.73% 2.35%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 888 1,797 5,605 0.03% 0.06% 0.18%
Other race alone (NH) 2,103 2,132 8,487 0.07% 0.07% 0.27%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) 25,472 41,675 108,673 0.87% 1.37% 3.41%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 82,473 151,544 215,986 2.82% 4.97% 6.77%
Total 2,926,324 3,046,355 3,190,369 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

Ancestry

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The top fifteen largest European ancestries in Iowa according to 2024 American Community Survey were:[26]

Religion

[edit]
Population age comparison between rural Pocahontas County and urban Polk County, illustrating the flight of young adults (red) to urban centers in Iowa

As of 2024 religious denominations in Iowa included: Protestants (52%), Catholics (23%), Latter-day Saints (1%), Muslims (1%), other religions (3%), religiously unaffiliated (18%), people who did not answer (2%).[27] A survey from the Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) in 2010 found that the largest Protestant denominations were the United Methodist Church with 235,190 adherents and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America with 229,557. The largest non-Protestant religion was Catholicism with 503,080 adherents. The state has a great number of Calvinist denominations. The Presbyterian Church (USA) had almost 290 congregations and 51,380 members followed by the Reformed Church in America with 80 churches and 40,000 members, and the United Church of Christ had 180 churches and 39,000 members.[28] According to the 2020 Public Religion Research Institute's study, 26% of the population were irreligious.[29]

The study Religious Congregations & Membership: 2000[30] found that in the southernmost two tiers of Iowa counties and in other counties in the center of the state, the largest religious group was the United Methodist Church; in the northeast part of the state, including Dubuque and Linn counties (where Cedar Rapids is located), the Catholic Church was the largest; and in ten counties, including three in the northern tier, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was the largest. The study also found rapid growth in Evangelical Christian denominations. Dubuque is home to the Archdiocese of Dubuque, which serves as the ecclesiastical province for all three other dioceses in the state and for all the Catholics in Iowa.

Historically, religious sects and orders who desired to live apart from the rest of society established themselves in Iowa; for example, the Amish and Mennonites have communities near Kalona and in other parts of eastern Iowa such as Davis County and Buchanan County.[31] Other religious sects and orders living apart include Quakers around West Branch and Le Grand, German Pietists who founded the Amana Colonies, followers of Transcendental Meditation who founded Maharishi Vedic City, and Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance monks and nuns at the New Melleray and Our Lady of the Mississippi Abbeys near Dubuque.

By 1878, approximately 1000 Jews, many of whom were immigrants from Poland and Germany, lived in Iowa.[32][33] As of 2016, about 6,000 Jews lived in Iowa, with about 3,000 in Des Moines alone.[34]

LGBTQ population

[edit]

The United States Census Bureau does not measure sexual orientation but plans are in place to start measuring it starting in 2027 with the American Community Survey.[35] According to analysis of Gallup data by The Williams Institute, around 3.6% of adults (age 18+) in Iowa are LGBTQ, and around 27% of Iowa's LGBTQ adults over the age of 25 are raising children.[36]

Vital statistics

[edit]

Note: Births in table don't add up, because Hispanics are counted both by their ethnicity and by their race, giving a higher overall number.

Live births by single race/ethnicity of mother
Race 2014[37] 2015[38] 2016[39] 2017[40] 2018[41] 2019[42] 2020[43] 2021[44] 2022[45] 2023[46] 2024[47]
White 32,423 (81.7%) 32,028 (81.1%) 31,376 (79.6%) 30,010 (78.1%) 29,327 (77.6%) 29,050 (77.2%) 27,542 (76.3%) 28,167 (76.5%) 27,527 (75.4%) 26,961 (74.8%) 26,771 (73.5%)
Black 2,467 (6.2%) 2,597 (6.6%) 2,467 (6.3%) 2,657 (6.9%) 2,615 (6.9%) 2,827 (7.5%) 2,685 (7.4%) 2,567 (7.0%) 2,562 (7.0%) 2,613 (7.2%) 2,707 (7.4%)
Asian 1,408 (3.5%) 1,364 (3.4%) 1,270 (3.2%) 1,321 (3.4%) 1,176 (3.1%) 1,106 (2.9%) 1,067 (2.9%) 1,055 (2.9%) 1,032 (2.8%) 956 (2.7%) 986 (2.7%)
Pacific Islander ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 323 (0.9%) 420 (1.2%) 386 (1.0%)
Native American 284 (0.7%) 242 (0.6%) 147 (0.4%) 311 (0.8%) 152 (0.4%) 308 (0.8%) 143 (0.4%) 129 (0.3%) 136 (0.4%) 142 (0.4%) 135 (0.4%)
Hispanic (any race) 3,315 (8.3%) 3,418 (8.6%) 3,473 (8.8%) 3,527 (9.2%) 3,694 (9.8%) 3,695 (9.8%) 3,725 (10.3%) 3,903 (10.6%) 4,172 (11.4%) 4,211 (11.7%) 4,667 (12.8%)
Total 39,687 (100%) 39,482 (100%) 39,403 (100%) 38,430 (100%) 37,785 (100%) 37,649 (100%) 36,114 (100%) 36,835 (100%) 36,506 (100%) 36,052 (100%) 36,436 (%)
  • Since 2016, data for births of White Hispanic origin are not collected, but included in one Hispanic group; persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.

Economics

[edit]

In 2020-2024 the median household income in Iowa was $75,059 (in 2024 dollars) and the per capita income was $40,877.[48] The unemployment rate as of January 2026 was 3.4%.[49]

References

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  1. ^ "Historical Population Change Data (1910–2020)". Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 29, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  2. ^ "Numeric and Percent Change in Resident Population" (PDF). 2020 Census Apportionment Results. United States Census Bureau, Population Division. April 26, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 9, 2026.
  3. ^ US Census Bureau. "Centers of Population for the 2020 Census". Census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  4. ^ a b "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Iowa". www.census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  5. ^ "2007-2022 PIT Counts by State".
  6. ^ "The 2022 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress" (PDF).
  7. ^ "History | Dubuque, IA - Official Website". www.cityofdubuque.org. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  8. ^ "History of Fort Madison | Fort Madison, IA - Official Website". www.fortmadison-ia.com. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  9. ^ Isaac Galland, 1840, Galland's Iowa Emigrant: Containing a Map, and General Descriptions of Iowa Wm. Jones, Chillicothe
  10. ^ Bonney, Margaret Atherton (2009). "Galland, Isaac". The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa. University of Iowa Press. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
  11. ^ Coulson, David P.; Joyce, Linda (2003). United States State-Level Population Estimates: Colonization to 1999. p. 37.
  12. ^ Horack, Frank E. (1911). The Government of Iowa. pp. 10–11.
  13. ^ "U.S. Census website". Archived from the original on December 27, 1996. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  14. ^ "Immigrants in Iowa" (PDF). American Immigration Council.
  15. ^ "Language Spoken at Home for Iowa and its Counties: 2000" (PDF). iowadatacenter.org.
  16. ^ Labov, W., S. Ash, and C. Boberg, Atlas of North American English. Berlin, Germany: Mouton de Gruyter, 2006. Mouton-online.com Archived December 26, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ "Atlas of North American English". The University of Pennsylvania. Archived from the original on January 17, 2008. Retrieved January 5, 2008.
  18. ^ Labov, W., Ash, S., & Boberg, C. (2006). The atlas of North American English: Phonetics, phonology, and sound change: a multimedia reference tool. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
  19. ^ Swanton, John Reed. The Indian Tribes of North America. pp. 265–269.
  20. ^ US Census Bureau. "American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes in the United States and Puerto Rico: 2010 (CPH-T-6)". Census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  21. ^ a b US Census Bureau. "Race and Ethnicity in the United States: 2010 Census and 2020 Census". Census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  22. ^ US Census Bureau. "Detailed Races and Ethnicities in the United States and Puerto Rico: 2020 Census". Census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  23. ^ "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Iowa". United States Census Bureau.
  24. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Iowa". United States Census Bureau.
  25. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Iowa". United States Census Bureau.
  26. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  27. ^ Staff (February 24, 2023). "American Values Atlas: Religious Tradition in Iowa". Public Religion Research Institute. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
  28. ^ "The Association of Religion Data Archives | State Membership Report". thearda.com. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved November 12, 2013.
  29. ^ "PRRI – American Values Atlas". ava.prri.org. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
  30. ^ "Religious Congregations & Membership: 2000". Glenmary Research Center. Archived from the original (jpg) on December 14, 2006. Retrieved April 24, 2009.
  31. ^ Elmer Schwieder and Dorothy Schwieder (2009) A Peculiar People: Iowa's Old Order Amish University of Iowa Press
  32. ^ "Iowa Jewish History". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  33. ^ "Jewish Settlers in Iowa | Iowa PBS". www.iowapbs.org. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  34. ^ Tapper, Josh (February 3, 2016). "Postville, Iowa's Jewish Community Bounces Back After Immigration Raid". Haaretz. Archived from the original on October 24, 2017. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
  35. ^ Schneider, Mike (2024-11-07). "Questions about sexual orientation and gender ID on track to be on US Census Bureau survey by 2027". AP News. Retrieved 2025-09-18.
  36. ^ "Movement Advancement Project | State Profiles". www.lgbtmap.org. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  37. ^ Hamilton BE, Martin JA, Osterman MJ, Curtin SC, Mathews TJ (December 23, 2015). National Vital Statistics Reports—Births: Final Data for 2014 (PDF) (Report). Vol. 64. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. pp. 35–6. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 14, 2017. Retrieved February 3, 2019.
  38. ^ Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJ, Driscoll AK (January 5, 2017). National Vital Statistics Reports—Births: Final Data for 2015 (PDF) (Report). Vol. 66. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. pp. 38, 40. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 31, 2017. Retrieved February 3, 2019.
  39. ^ Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJ, Driscoll AK, Drake P (January 31, 2018). National Vital Statistics Reports—Births: Final Data 2016 (PDF) (Report). Vol. 67. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. p. 26. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 3, 2018. Retrieved February 3, 2019.
  40. ^ Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJ, Driscoll AK, Drake P (November 7, 2018). National Vital Statistics Reports—Births, by race and origin of mother: United States, each state and territory, 2017 (PDF) (Report). Vol. 67. p. 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 1, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
  41. ^ Martin, Joyce A.; Hamilton, Brady E.; Osterman, Michelle J.K.; Driscoll, Anne K. (November 27, 2019). Births: Final Data for 2018 (PDF) (Report). Archived (PDF) from the original on November 28, 2019. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  42. ^ "Data" (PDF). Cdc.gov. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  43. ^ "Data" (PDF). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 10, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  44. ^ "Data" (PDF). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  45. ^ "Data" (PDF). www.cdc.gov. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  46. ^ "Data" (PDF). www.cdc.gov. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
  47. ^ "Data" (PDF). www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 2026-06-12.
  48. ^ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Iowa". www.census.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
  49. ^ "Iowa's Labor Force Participation Grows to 67.9 Percent; Unemployment Steady at 3.4 Percent | Iowa Workforce Development". workforce.iowa.gov. 2026-04-08. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
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