Data / Rankings / Area median family income (HUD) / Counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD)

Johnson County had the highest area median family income (HUD) of 99 counties in 2017, at $86,800. Decatur County had the lowest, at $52,500. The median was $64,400. Source: the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research.

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Highest86,800Johnson County
Lowest52,500Decatur County
Median64,40099 counties

Map of counties, 2017

Adair County: 60,700 USDAdams County: 58,700 USDAllamakee County: 59,100 USDAppanoose County: 57,400 USDAudubon County: 64,200 USDBenton County: 75,300 USDBlack Hawk County: 68,000 USDBoone County: 69,400 USDBremer County: 78,700 USDBuchanan County: 72,300 USDBuena Vista County: 62,500 USDButler County: 64,600 USDCalhoun County: 59,300 USDCarroll County: 68,500 USDCass County: 53,400 USDCedar County: 69,000 USDCerro Gordo County: 64,400 USDCherokee County: 68,200 USDChickasaw County: 59,600 USDClarke County: 61,300 USDClay County: 67,300 USDClayton County: 59,800 USDClinton County: 66,400 USDCrawford County: 58,600 USDDallas County: 82,200 USDDavis County: 54,400 USDDecatur County: 52,500 USDDelaware County: 69,400 USDDes Moines County: 53,900 USDDickinson County: 70,500 USDDubuque County: 66,400 USDEmmet County: 66,300 USDFayette County: 61,600 USDFloyd County: 57,500 USDFranklin County: 58,600 USDFremont County: 67,200 USDGreene County: 59,000 USDGrundy County: 68,000 USDGuthrie County: 82,200 USDHamilton County: 59,300 USDHancock County: 66,600 USDHardin County: 70,000 USDHarrison County: 75,000 USDHenry County: 62,700 USDHoward County: 60,300 USDHumboldt County: 61,400 USDIda County: 60,900 USDIowa County: 74,600 USDJackson County: 59,300 USDJasper County: 68,400 USDJefferson County: 61,500 USDJohnson County: 86,800 USDJones County: 67,100 USDKeokuk County: 58,600 USDKossuth County: 68,700 USDLee County: 58,100 USDLinn County: 79,900 USDLouisa County: 62,100 USDLucas County: 58,100 USDLyon County: 66,800 USDMadison County: 82,200 USDMahaska County: 61,200 USDMarion County: 73,200 USDMarshall County: 62,800 USDMills County: 75,000 USDMitchell County: 63,100 USDMonona County: 58,400 USDMonroe County: 59,800 USDMontgomery County: 56,300 USDMuscatine County: 65,200 USDO'Brien County: 66,800 USDOsceola County: 65,500 USDPage County: 61,700 USDPalo Alto County: 62,300 USDPlymouth County: 74,000 USDPocahontas County: 59,600 USDPolk County: 82,200 USDPottawattamie County: 75,000 USDPoweshiek County: 71,300 USDRinggold County: 54,600 USDSac County: 64,500 USDScott County: 67,100 USDShelby County: 65,500 USDSioux County: 70,700 USDStory County: 80,000 USDTama County: 64,400 USDTaylor County: 53,800 USDUnion County: 58,700 USDVan Buren County: 57,900 USDWapello County: 53,000 USDWarren County: 82,200 USDWashington County: 71,600 USDWayne County: 59,600 USDWebster County: 57,500 USDWinnebago County: 64,700 USDWinneshiek County: 68,400 USDWoodbury County: 62,300 USDWorth County: 63,500 USDWright County: 62,400 USD
  • Under 59K
  • 59K to 61K
  • 61K to 64K
  • 64K to 67K
  • 67K to 72K
  • 72K and over
USD, 2017. Source: HUD, HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2017

Johnson County: 86,800 USDJohnson County86,800Dallas County: 82,200 USDDallas County82,200Guthrie County: 82,200 USDGuthrie County82,200Madison County: 82,200 USDMadison County82,200Polk County: 82,200 USDPolk County82,200Warren County: 82,200 USDWarren County82,200Story County: 80,000 USDStory County80,000Linn County: 79,900 USDLinn County79,900Bremer County: 78,700 USDBremer County78,700Benton County: 75,300 USDBenton County75,300Harrison County: 75,000 USDHarrison County75,000Mills County: 75,000 USDMills County75,000Pottawattamie County: 75,000 USDPottawattamie County75,000Iowa County: 74,600 USDIowa County74,600Plymouth County: 74,000 USDPlymouth County74,000Marion County: 73,200 USDMarion County73,200Buchanan County: 72,300 USDBuchanan County72,300Washington County: 71,600 USDWashington County71,600Poweshiek County: 71,300 USDPoweshiek County71,300Sioux County: 70,700 USDSioux County70,700Dickinson County: 70,500 USDDickinson County70,500Hardin County: 70,000 USDHardin County70,000Boone County: 69,400 USDBoone County69,400Delaware County: 69,400 USDDelaware County69,400Cedar County: 69,000 USDCedar County69,000Kossuth County: 68,700 USDKossuth County68,700Carroll County: 68,500 USDCarroll County68,500Jasper County: 68,400 USDJasper County68,400Winneshiek County: 68,400 USDWinneshiek County68,400Cherokee County: 68,200 USDCherokee County68,200Black Hawk County: 68,000 USDBlack Hawk County68,000Grundy County: 68,000 USDGrundy County68,000Clay County: 67,300 USDClay County67,300Fremont County: 67,200 USDFremont County67,200Jones County: 67,100 USDJones County67,100Scott County: 67,100 USDScott County67,100Lyon County: 66,800 USDLyon County66,800O'Brien County: 66,800 USDO'Brien County66,800Hancock County: 66,600 USDHancock County66,600Clinton County: 66,400 USDClinton County66,400Johnson County: 86,800 USDJohnson County86,800Dallas County: 82,200 USDDallas County82,200Guthrie County: 82,200 USDGuthrie County82,200Madison County: 82,200 USDMadison County82,200Polk County: 82,200 USDPolk County82,200Warren County: 82,200 USDWarren County82,200Story County: 80,000 USDStory County80,000Linn County: 79,900 USDLinn County79,900Bremer County: 78,700 USDBremer County78,700Benton County: 75,300 USDBenton County75,300Harrison County: 75,000 USDHarrison County75,000Mills County: 75,000 USDMills County75,000Pottawattamie County: 75,000 USDPottawattamie County75,000Iowa County: 74,600 USDIowa County74,600Plymouth County: 74,000 USDPlymouth County74,000Marion County: 73,200 USDMarion County73,200Buchanan County: 72,300 USDBuchanan County72,300Washington County: 71,600 USDWashington County71,600Poweshiek County: 71,300 USDPoweshiek County71,300Sioux County: 70,700 USDSioux County70,700Dickinson County: 70,500 USDDickinson County70,500Hardin County: 70,000 USDHardin County70,000Boone County: 69,400 USDBoone County69,400Delaware County: 69,400 USDDelaware County69,400Cedar County: 69,000 USDCedar County69,000Kossuth County: 68,700 USDKossuth County68,700Carroll County: 68,500 USDCarroll County68,500Jasper County: 68,400 USDJasper County68,400Winneshiek County: 68,400 USDWinneshiek County68,400Cherokee County: 68,200 USDCherokee County68,200Black Hawk County: 68,000 USDBlack Hawk County68,000Grundy County: 68,000 USDGrundy County68,000Clay County: 67,300 USDClay County67,300Fremont County: 67,200 USDFremont County67,200Jones County: 67,100 USDJones County67,100Scott County: 67,100 USDScott County67,100Lyon County: 66,800 USDLyon County66,800O'Brien County: 66,800 USDO'Brien County66,800Hancock County: 66,600 USDHancock County66,600Clinton County: 66,400 USDClinton County66,400
USD. Source: HUD, HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017
USD		Change on 2016
1Johnson County86,800-0.1%
2Dallas County82,200+6.9%
2Guthrie County82,200+6.9%
2Madison County82,200+6.9%
2Polk County82,200+6.9%
2Warren County82,200+6.9%
7Story County80,000+0.6%
8Linn County79,900+4.9%
9Bremer County78,700+1.5%
10Benton County75,300+5.3%
11Harrison County75,000+4%
11Mills County75,000+4%
11Pottawattamie County75,000+4%
14Iowa County74,600-1.1%
15Plymouth County74,000-1.3%
16Marion County73,200+3%
17Buchanan County72,300+2%
18Washington County71,600+4.2%
19Poweshiek County71,300+3.9%
20Sioux County70,700+2.8%
21Dickinson County70,500+6%
22Hardin County70,000+5.9%
23Boone County69,400-0.3%
23Delaware County69,400-0.7%
25Cedar County69,000+1.6%
26Kossuth County68,700+4.1%
27Carroll County68,500+3.5%
28Jasper County68,400+5.1%
28Winneshiek County68,400-0.1%
30Cherokee County68,200+7.7%
31Black Hawk County68,000+4%
31Grundy County68,000+4%
33Clay County67,300+1.4%
34Fremont County67,200+6.7%
35Jones County67,100+0.6%
35Scott County67,100-2.5%
37Lyon County66,800+4.2%
37O'Brien County66,800+1.8%
39Hancock County66,600+6.6%
40Clinton County66,400+2%
40Dubuque County66,400-1.5%
42Emmet County66,300+2%
43Osceola County65,500-0.2%
43Shelby County65,500+2.5%
45Muscatine County65,200+4.8%
46Winnebago County64,700+2.4%
47Butler County64,600-0.3%
48Sac County64,500+1.4%
49Cerro Gordo County64,400+1.6%
49Tama County64,400+3.4%
51Audubon County64,200+1.1%
52Worth County63,500+2.9%
53Mitchell County63,100-8.2%
54Marshall County62,800+1.1%
55Henry County62,700+4.5%
56Buena Vista County62,500+3.3%
57Wright County62,400+3%
58Palo Alto County62,300+0.3%
58Woodbury County62,300+5.8%
60Louisa County62,100+5.1%
61Page County61,700+4%
62Fayette County61,600-0.5%
63Jefferson County61,500-1.8%
64Humboldt County61,400-3.8%
65Clarke County61,300-0.5%
66Mahaska County61,200+0.8%
67Ida County60,900+1.5%
68Adair County60,700-1.8%
69Howard County60,300+5.8%
70Clayton County59,800+1.5%
70Monroe County59,800+2.4%
72Chickasaw County59,600+4.2%
72Pocahontas County59,600+2.6%
72Wayne County59,600+10.8%
75Calhoun County59,300+4.6%
75Hamilton County59,300-0.7%
75Jackson County59,300+2.2%
78Allamakee County59,100+2.2%
79Greene County59,000+0.5%
80Adams County58,700+1.2%
80Union County58,700+3.3%
82Crawford County58,6000%
82Franklin County58,600+4.5%
82Keokuk County58,600+5%
85Monona County58,400-0.7%
86Lee County58,100+2.5%
86Lucas County58,100+1.9%
88Van Buren County57,900+3.4%
89Floyd County57,5000%
89Webster County57,500-1.9%
91Appanoose County57,400+9.3%
92Montgomery County56,300+2.4%
93Ringgold County54,600-0.4%
94Davis County54,400+2.4%
95Des Moines County53,900-1.3%
96Taylor County53,800+1.3%
97Cass County53,400-0.7%
98Wapello County53,000-0.2%
99Decatur County52,500+10.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Median annual family income, in US dollars, that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates for the HUD area that contains the county, for the fiscal year.

More on how it is measured
  • HUD bases it on American Community Survey family incomes, brought forward to the fiscal year, and uses it to set income limits for its programs: the very low income limit is 50 percent and the low income limit 80 percent of the area median for a family of four, with adjustments.
  • Often called AMI.

A program parameter, not a survey estimate for the county itself: it differs from the Census Bureau median household income and from the American Community Survey median family income of the county. HUD sets one value per HUD area, a metropolitan area (sometimes split into HUD Metro FMR Areas) or a non-metropolitan county, so every county of a metropolitan area shows the same figure. Counties in the six New England states have no value, because HUD defines their areas by town and a county can span several areas. Where HUD splits off part of a county, the county value is the rest of the county: Howard County, Maryland, without Columbia until FY2015, and Crawford County, Missouri, without its part of Sullivan. The year is HUD's federal fiscal year: FY2027 runs from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027.

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. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD USER. HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx. 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. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research. (2017). HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars (Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD), 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx

MLA 9

HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars, Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD), 2017. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research, 7 Apr. 2017, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hud-area-median-family-income/iowa-counties?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research. 2017. HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD), 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hud-area-median-family-income/iowa-counties?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research (2017) HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars, Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD), 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/hud-area-median-family-income/iowa-counties?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{department_counties_in_iowa_by_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research}},
  title = {{HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars: Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD), 2017}},
  year = {2017},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hud-area-median-family-income/iowa-counties?period=2017. Publisher attribution: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD USER. HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
TI  - HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars: Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD), 2017
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2017/04/07
PB  - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/hud-area-median-family-income/iowa-counties?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/hud-area-median-family-income/iowa-counties?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD USER. HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il17/Section8-FY17.xlsx. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Counties in Iowa by area median family income (HUD) using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest area median family income (HUD)?

Johnson County, with $86,800 in 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research.

Which county has the lowest area median family income (HUD)?

Decatur County, with $52,500 in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research, HUD Section 8 income limits by county: area median family income, dollars. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Area median family income (HUD): other rankings

Counties in Iowa: more rankings