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Data on this report is based on areas within the legal city boundary, outlined in black on the map. Any additional neighborhoods shown on the map are associated with the city by name and are included for reference only.

Iowa City, IA
Real Estate & Demographic Data






Iowa City profile


Living in Iowa City



Iowa City is a larger medium-sized city located in the state of Iowa. With a population of 75,233 people and 19 associated neighborhoods, Iowa City is the fifth largest community in Iowa.

Iowa City real estate is some of the most expensive in Iowa, although Iowa City house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.

Also of interest is that Iowa City has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

A relatively large number of people in Iowa City telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 9.77% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Iowa City is also a major college town with a large number of people who are 18 years or older and attending college. As is often the case in college towns, the many students that live in Iowa City have a strong influence on the local culture and entertainment scene, which may seem dormant by comparison in the summer months when much of the student population is away. In the fall, the return of students has a reinvigorating effect on the community. Because colleges are lasting institutions, they have a stabilizing effect on the economy by providing direct local benefits such as jobs for faculty and staff and spending by students. Iowa City’s economy is one such example of this.

Not only is Iowa City a city with many college students, but it also retains many recent graduates who are looking to start new careers, creating a very large population of people who are young, single, educated, and upwardly-mobile. That’s because Iowa City is full of single people in their 20s and 30s and who have undergraduate or graduate degrees and are starting careers in professional occupations. This makes Iowa City a pretty good place for young, educated career starters looking to find many people like themselves, with good opportunities for friendships, socializing, romance, and fun.

One of the benefits of Iowa City is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 18.93 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result.

Iowa City has a lot of people who ride the bus to and from work. In fact, for its size, Iowa City has quite a high level of public transit users. Iowa City’s need for inexpensive transportation options for its citizens is quite high.

If knowledge is power, Iowa City is a pretty powerful place. 59.78% of the adults in Iowa City have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns.

The per capita income in Iowa City in 2018 was $34,820, which is middle income relative to Iowa and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $139,280 for a family of four. However, Iowa City contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Iowa City is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Iowa City home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Iowa City residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Iowa City include German, Irish, English, Italian, and Norwegian.

The most common language spoken in Iowa City is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Arabic.