Data / Rankings / Households / Counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa by households

Polk County had the highest households of 99 counties in 2023, at 202,404. Adams County had the lowest, at 1,530. The median was 6,317 and the figure for Iowa was 1.3 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest202,404Polk County
Lowest1,530Adams County
Median6,31799 counties
Iowa1,303,763History

Map of counties, 2023

Adair County: 3,260 countAdams County: 1,530 countAllamakee County: 6,024 countAppanoose County: 5,006 countAudubon County: 2,525 countBenton County: 10,111 countBlack Hawk County: 53,740 countBoone County: 10,935 countBremer County: 9,693 countBuchanan County: 8,150 countBuena Vista County: 7,543 countButler County: 5,887 countCalhoun County: 3,886 countCarroll County: 8,750 countCass County: 5,789 countCedar County: 7,539 countCerro Gordo County: 19,421 countCherokee County: 5,082 countChickasaw County: 4,985 countClarke County: 4,001 countClay County: 7,249 countClayton County: 7,406 countClinton County: 19,434 countCrawford County: 6,229 countDallas County: 40,868 countDavis County: 3,169 countDecatur County: 3,049 countDelaware County: 7,176 countDes Moines County: 17,188 countDickinson County: 8,650 countDubuque County: 40,585 countEmmet County: 3,922 countFayette County: 8,203 countFloyd County: 6,620 countFranklin County: 4,084 countFremont County: 2,760 countGreene County: 3,928 countGrundy County: 5,085 countGuthrie County: 4,587 countHamilton County: 6,317 countHancock County: 4,614 countHardin County: 7,010 countHarrison County: 6,004 countHenry County: 7,617 countHoward County: 3,672 countHumboldt County: 4,236 countIda County: 2,994 countIowa County: 6,849 countJackson County: 8,303 countJasper County: 14,748 countJefferson County: 6,878 countJohnson County: 62,214 countJones County: 8,109 countKeokuk County: 4,065 countKossuth County: 6,502 countLee County: 14,305 countLinn County: 95,051 countLouisa County: 4,143 countLucas County: 3,672 countLyon County: 4,444 countMadison County: 6,625 countMahaska County: 8,891 countMarion County: 13,409 countMarshall County: 15,546 countMills County: 5,349 countMitchell County: 4,477 countMonona County: 3,891 countMonroe County: 2,991 countMontgomery County: 4,609 countMuscatine County: 17,170 countO'Brien County: 5,791 countOsceola County: 2,606 countPage County: 6,161 countPalo Alto County: 3,739 countPlymouth County: 10,297 countPocahontas County: 3,084 countPolk County: 202,404 countPottawattamie County: 37,531 countPoweshiek County: 7,791 countRinggold County: 1,869 countSac County: 4,251 countScott County: 72,675 countShelby County: 4,983 countSioux County: 12,576 countStory County: 38,708 countTama County: 6,731 countTaylor County: 2,471 countUnion County: 5,055 countVan Buren County: 2,898 countWapello County: 14,088 countWarren County: 20,219 countWashington County: 9,048 countWayne County: 2,554 countWebster County: 15,641 countWinnebago County: 4,591 countWinneshiek County: 8,197 countWoodbury County: 40,503 countWorth County: 3,195 countWright County: 5,352 count
  • Under 4,000
  • 4,000 to 5,000
  • 5,000 to 6,000
  • 6,000 to 8,000
  • 8,000 to 15K
  • 15K and over
count, 2023. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2023

Polk County: 202,404 countPolk County202,404Linn County: 95,051 countLinn County95,051Scott County: 72,675 countScott County72,675Johnson County: 62,214 countJohnson County62,214Black Hawk County: 53,740 countBlack Hawk County53,740Dallas County: 40,868 countDallas County40,868Dubuque County: 40,585 countDubuque County40,585Woodbury County: 40,503 countWoodbury County40,503Story County: 38,708 countStory County38,708Pottawattamie County: 37,531 countPottawattamie County37,531Warren County: 20,219 countWarren County20,219Clinton County: 19,434 countClinton County19,434Cerro Gordo County: 19,421 countCerro Gordo County19,421Des Moines County: 17,188 countDes Moines County17,188Muscatine County: 17,170 countMuscatine County17,170Webster County: 15,641 countWebster County15,641Marshall County: 15,546 countMarshall County15,546Jasper County: 14,748 countJasper County14,748Lee County: 14,305 countLee County14,305Wapello County: 14,088 countWapello County14,088Marion County: 13,409 countMarion County13,409Sioux County: 12,576 countSioux County12,576Boone County: 10,935 countBoone County10,935Plymouth County: 10,297 countPlymouth County10,297Benton County: 10,111 countBenton County10,111Bremer County: 9,693 countBremer County9,693Washington County: 9,048 countWashington County9,048Mahaska County: 8,891 countMahaska County8,891Carroll County: 8,750 countCarroll County8,750Dickinson County: 8,650 countDickinson County8,650Jackson County: 8,303 countJackson County8,303Fayette County: 8,203 countFayette County8,203Winneshiek County: 8,197 countWinneshiek County8,197Buchanan County: 8,150 countBuchanan County8,150Jones County: 8,109 countJones County8,109Poweshiek County: 7,791 countPoweshiek County7,791Henry County: 7,617 countHenry County7,617Buena Vista County: 7,543 countBuena Vista County7,543Cedar County: 7,539 countCedar County7,539Clayton County: 7,406 countClayton County7,406Polk County: 202,404 countPolk County202,404Linn County: 95,051 countLinn County95,051Scott County: 72,675 countScott County72,675Johnson County: 62,214 countJohnson County62,214Black Hawk County: 53,740 countBlack Hawk County53,740Dallas County: 40,868 countDallas County40,868Dubuque County: 40,585 countDubuque County40,585Woodbury County: 40,503 countWoodbury County40,503Story County: 38,708 countStory County38,708Pottawattamie County: 37,531 countPottawattamie County37,531Warren County: 20,219 countWarren County20,219Clinton County: 19,434 countClinton County19,434Cerro Gordo County: 19,421 countCerro Gordo County19,421Des Moines County: 17,188 countDes Moines County17,188Muscatine County: 17,170 countMuscatine County17,170Webster County: 15,641 countWebster County15,641Marshall County: 15,546 countMarshall County15,546Jasper County: 14,748 countJasper County14,748Lee County: 14,305 countLee County14,305Wapello County: 14,088 countWapello County14,088Marion County: 13,409 countMarion County13,409Sioux County: 12,576 countSioux County12,576Boone County: 10,935 countBoone County10,935Plymouth County: 10,297 countPlymouth County10,297Benton County: 10,111 countBenton County10,111Bremer County: 9,693 countBremer County9,693Washington County: 9,048 countWashington County9,048Mahaska County: 8,891 countMahaska County8,891Carroll County: 8,750 countCarroll County8,750Dickinson County: 8,650 countDickinson County8,650Jackson County: 8,303 countJackson County8,303Fayette County: 8,203 countFayette County8,203Winneshiek County: 8,197 countWinneshiek County8,197Buchanan County: 8,150 countBuchanan County8,150Jones County: 8,109 countJones County8,109Poweshiek County: 7,791 countPoweshiek County7,791Henry County: 7,617 countHenry County7,617Buena Vista County: 7,543 countBuena Vista County7,543Cedar County: 7,539 countCedar County7,539Clayton County: 7,406 countClayton County7,406
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2023
count		Change on 2022
1Polk County202,404+1.7%
2Linn County95,051+0.8%
3Scott County72,675+1.7%
4Johnson County62,214+1.3%
5Black Hawk County53,740+0.1%
6Dallas County40,868+3.8%
7Dubuque County40,585+1.5%
8Woodbury County40,503+0.5%
9Story County38,708+0.8%
10Pottawattamie County37,531+1%
11Warren County20,219+1.6%
12Clinton County19,434+1.4%
13Cerro Gordo County19,421-0.1%
14Des Moines County17,188-0.4%
15Muscatine County17,170+0.6%
16Webster County15,641+0.4%
17Marshall County15,546+1.7%
18Jasper County14,748+0.8%
19Lee County14,305+0.4%
20Wapello County14,088-0.7%
21Marion County13,409+0.7%
22Sioux County12,576+0.9%
23Boone County10,935+0.4%
24Plymouth County10,297+0.8%
25Benton County10,111-0%
26Bremer County9,693+0.1%
27Washington County9,048+1.4%
28Mahaska County8,891+0.2%
29Carroll County8,750+0.6%
30Dickinson County8,650+4.5%
31Jackson County8,303+2.4%
32Fayette County8,203-0.3%
33Winneshiek County8,197-0.3%
34Buchanan County8,150+1.6%
35Jones County8,109+0.6%
36Poweshiek County7,791+0.4%
37Henry County7,617-0.3%
38Buena Vista County7,543+0.1%
39Cedar County7,539+0.4%
40Clayton County7,406+1.6%
41Clay County7,249+0.3%
42Delaware County7,176+1.5%
43Hardin County7,010-0.3%
44Jefferson County6,878+0.8%
45Iowa County6,849+0.8%
46Tama County6,731+0.4%
47Madison County6,625+2.3%
48Floyd County6,620+0.3%
49Kossuth County6,502+1.3%
50Hamilton County6,317+1.8%
51Crawford County6,229+0.2%
52Page County6,161+0.4%
53Allamakee County6,024+0.9%
54Harrison County6,004+0.7%
55Butler County5,887+0.8%
56O'Brien County5,791+1.6%
57Cass County5,789+0.3%
58Wright County5,352-0.4%
59Mills County5,349+1.7%
60Grundy County5,085+0.5%
61Cherokee County5,082-1.2%
62Union County5,055+1.5%
63Appanoose County5,006-0.4%
64Chickasaw County4,985+1.3%
65Shelby County4,983+1%
66Hancock County4,614+0.7%
67Montgomery County4,609+2.6%
68Winnebago County4,591+1.8%
69Guthrie County4,587+1.5%
70Mitchell County4,477-0.6%
71Lyon County4,444+0.7%
72Sac County4,251+1%
73Humboldt County4,236+0.5%
74Louisa County4,143+0.8%
75Franklin County4,084-0.4%
76Keokuk County4,065-0.5%
77Clarke County4,001+3.1%
78Greene County3,928+2.4%
79Emmet County3,922+1.1%
80Monona County3,891+1%
81Calhoun County3,886+0.9%
82Palo Alto County3,739+2.9%
83Howard County3,672+1%
83Lucas County3,672+1.4%
85Adair County3,260+1.1%
86Worth County3,195+0.2%
87Davis County3,169-0.1%
88Pocahontas County3,0840%
89Decatur County3,049-0.3%
90Ida County2,994-0.7%
91Monroe County2,991-1.4%
92Van Buren County2,898+2%
93Fremont County2,760+0.9%
94Osceola County2,606-1%
95Wayne County2,554+0.9%
96Audubon County2,525-0.4%
97Taylor County2,471+1.2%
98Ringgold County1,869+1.4%
99Adams County1,530+0.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of households, which equals the number of occupied housing units. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

People living in group quarters, such as college dormitories, nursing homes and prisons, are not in households.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2026). American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households) (Counties in Iowa by households, 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat

MLA 9

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households), Counties in Iowa by households, 2023. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/iowa-counties?period=2023. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Counties in Iowa by households, 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/iowa-counties?period=2023.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households), Counties in Iowa by households, 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/iowa-counties?period=2023 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_iowa_by_2023,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households): Counties in Iowa by households, 2023}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/iowa-counties?period=2023. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households): Counties in Iowa by households, 2023
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/01/29
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/iowa-counties?period=2023
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/households/iowa-counties?period=2023.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2023/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2023-b25003.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest households?

Polk County, with 202,404 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest households?

Adams County, with 1,530 in 2023.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table B25003: occupied housing units (households). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Households: other rankings

Counties in Iowa: more rankings