Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home

Buena Vista County had the highest population speaking a language other than English at home of 99 counties in 2022, at 34.9%. Audubon County had the lowest, at 1%. The median was 4.4% and the figure for Iowa was 8.7%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Median4.499 counties
Iowa8.7History

Map of counties, 2022

Adair County: 1.9 %Adams County: 2.6 %Allamakee County: 11.5 %Appanoose County: 2.9 %Audubon County: 1 %Benton County: 2.6 %Black Hawk County: 8.9 %Boone County: 2.2 %Bremer County: 2.5 %Buchanan County: 4.8 %Buena Vista County: 34.9 %Butler County: 2.9 %Calhoun County: 1.3 %Carroll County: 2.1 %Cass County: 1.6 %Cedar County: 1.7 %Cerro Gordo County: 3.7 %Cherokee County: 4.4 %Chickasaw County: 5.5 %Clarke County: 12.1 %Clay County: 1.8 %Clayton County: 6.8 %Clinton County: 2.7 %Crawford County: 28.7 %Dallas County: 12.5 %Davis County: 27.2 %Decatur County: 5.8 %Delaware County: 2.7 %Des Moines County: 3.2 %Dickinson County: 3.5 %Dubuque County: 4.5 %Emmet County: 7.1 %Fayette County: 2.8 %Floyd County: 5.9 %Franklin County: 13.3 %Fremont County: 1.4 %Greene County: 3.1 %Grundy County: 2.2 %Guthrie County: 2.2 %Hamilton County: 8.6 %Hancock County: 3.1 %Hardin County: 4.3 %Harrison County: 1.6 %Henry County: 5.8 %Howard County: 7.9 %Humboldt County: 5.8 %Ida County: 3.1 %Iowa County: 2.2 %Jackson County: 2.9 %Jasper County: 4.4 %Jefferson County: 13.5 %Johnson County: 15.9 %Jones County: 1.7 %Keokuk County: 1.8 %Kossuth County: 3.9 %Lee County: 1.7 %Linn County: 6.6 %Louisa County: 16 %Lucas County: 5.8 %Lyon County: 2.7 %Madison County: 1.9 %Mahaska County: 2.2 %Marion County: 3 %Marshall County: 23.9 %Mills County: 2.1 %Mitchell County: 7.1 %Monona County: 1.8 %Monroe County: 2.8 %Montgomery County: 2 %Muscatine County: 15.1 %O'Brien County: 5.7 %Osceola County: 10.6 %Page County: 2.9 %Palo Alto County: 3.1 %Plymouth County: 7.6 %Pocahontas County: 5.3 %Polk County: 14.1 %Pottawattamie County: 6.4 %Poweshiek County: 5 %Ringgold County: 3.8 %Sac County: 4.9 %Scott County: 6 %Shelby County: 2.3 %Sioux County: 8.9 %Story County: 11.6 %Tama County: 12.3 %Taylor County: 7.5 %Union County: 2 %Van Buren County: 9.7 %Wapello County: 12.1 %Warren County: 2.9 %Washington County: 7.5 %Wayne County: 8.3 %Webster County: 4.9 %Winnebago County: 6.7 %Winneshiek County: 3.7 %Woodbury County: 18.5 %Worth County: 1.8 %Wright County: 11.2 %
  • Under 2.1
  • 2.1 to 2.9
  • 2.9 to 4.4
  • 4.4 to 6.4
  • 6.4 to 11
  • 11 and over
%, 2022. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

Top 40 counties, 2022

Buena Vista County: 34.9 %Buena Vista County34.9Crawford County: 28.7 %Crawford County28.7Davis County: 27.2 %Davis County27.2Marshall County: 23.9 %Marshall County23.9Woodbury County: 18.5 %Woodbury County18.5Louisa County: 16 %Louisa County16Johnson County: 15.9 %Johnson County15.9Muscatine County: 15.1 %Muscatine County15.1Polk County: 14.1 %Polk County14.1Jefferson County: 13.5 %Jefferson County13.5Franklin County: 13.3 %Franklin County13.3Dallas County: 12.5 %Dallas County12.5Tama County: 12.3 %Tama County12.3Clarke County: 12.1 %Clarke County12.1Wapello County: 12.1 %Wapello County12.1Story County: 11.6 %Story County11.6Allamakee County: 11.5 %Allamakee County11.5Wright County: 11.2 %Wright County11.2Osceola County: 10.6 %Osceola County10.6Van Buren County: 9.7 %Van Buren County9.7Sioux County: 8.9 %Sioux County8.9Black Hawk County: 8.9 %Black Hawk County8.9Hamilton County: 8.6 %Hamilton County8.6Wayne County: 8.3 %Wayne County8.3Howard County: 7.9 %Howard County7.9Plymouth County: 7.6 %Plymouth County7.6Washington County: 7.5 %Washington County7.5Taylor County: 7.5 %Taylor County7.5Emmet County: 7.1 %Emmet County7.1Mitchell County: 7.1 %Mitchell County7.1Clayton County: 6.8 %Clayton County6.8Winnebago County: 6.7 %Winnebago County6.7Linn County: 6.6 %Linn County6.6Pottawattamie County: 6.4 %Pottawattamie County6.4Scott County: 6 %Scott County6Floyd County: 5.9 %Floyd County5.9Lucas County: 5.8 %Lucas County5.8Decatur County: 5.8 %Decatur County5.8Henry County: 5.8 %Henry County5.8Humboldt County: 5.8 %Humboldt County5.8Buena Vista County: 34.9 %Buena Vista County34.9Crawford County: 28.7 %Crawford County28.7Davis County: 27.2 %Davis County27.2Marshall County: 23.9 %Marshall County23.9Woodbury County: 18.5 %Woodbury County18.5Louisa County: 16 %Louisa County16Johnson County: 15.9 %Johnson County15.9Muscatine County: 15.1 %Muscatine County15.1Polk County: 14.1 %Polk County14.1Jefferson County: 13.5 %Jefferson County13.5Franklin County: 13.3 %Franklin County13.3Dallas County: 12.5 %Dallas County12.5Tama County: 12.3 %Tama County12.3Clarke County: 12.1 %Clarke County12.1Wapello County: 12.1 %Wapello County12.1Story County: 11.6 %Story County11.6Allamakee County: 11.5 %Allamakee County11.5Wright County: 11.2 %Wright County11.2Osceola County: 10.6 %Osceola County10.6Van Buren County: 9.7 %Van Buren County9.7Sioux County: 8.9 %Sioux County8.9Black Hawk County: 8.9 %Black Hawk County8.9Hamilton County: 8.6 %Hamilton County8.6Wayne County: 8.3 %Wayne County8.3Howard County: 7.9 %Howard County7.9Plymouth County: 7.6 %Plymouth County7.6Washington County: 7.5 %Washington County7.5Taylor County: 7.5 %Taylor County7.5Emmet County: 7.1 %Emmet County7.1Mitchell County: 7.1 %Mitchell County7.1Clayton County: 6.8 %Clayton County6.8Winnebago County: 6.7 %Winnebago County6.7Linn County: 6.6 %Linn County6.6Pottawattamie County: 6.4 %Pottawattamie County6.4Scott County: 6 %Scott County6Floyd County: 5.9 %Floyd County5.9Lucas County: 5.8 %Lucas County5.8Decatur County: 5.8 %Decatur County5.8Henry County: 5.8 %Henry County5.8Humboldt County: 5.8 %Humboldt County5.8
%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2022 (%)Change on 2021
1Buena Vista County34.9+1.3 pts
2Crawford County28.7-2.9 pts
3Davis County27.2+2 pts
4Marshall County23.9+1 pts
5Woodbury County18.5+0.6 pts
6Louisa County16-1.7 pts
7Johnson County15.9+0.3 pts
8Muscatine County15.1+0.6 pts
9Polk County14.1+0.3 pts
10Jefferson County13.5-0.5 pts
11Franklin County13.3-1.4 pts
12Dallas County12.5+0.5 pts
13Tama County12.3+0.2 pts
14Clarke County12.1-0.5 pts
15Wapello County12.1+0.4 pts
16Story County11.6+0.2 pts
17Allamakee County11.5-1.4 pts
18Wright County11.2+1.6 pts
19Osceola County10.6+2.2 pts
20Van Buren County9.7-0.2 pts
21Sioux County8.9+0.3 pts
22Black Hawk County8.9-0.2 pts
23Hamilton County8.6+0.9 pts
24Wayne County8.3-0.3 pts
25Howard County7.9+1.5 pts
26Plymouth County7.6+0.9 pts
27Washington County7.5+0.2 pts
28Taylor County7.5+0.6 pts
29Emmet County7.1-0.1 pts
29Mitchell County7.1+0.3 pts
31Clayton County6.8+0.5 pts
32Winnebago County6.7+0.9 pts
33Linn County6.6+0.3 pts
34Pottawattamie County6.4-0 pts
35Scott County6+0.1 pts
36Floyd County5.9-0.6 pts
37Lucas County5.8+0.7 pts
38Decatur County5.8+0.5 pts
38Henry County5.8-0.2 pts
40Humboldt County5.8+0.3 pts
41O'Brien County5.7+0.5 pts
42Chickasaw County5.5-0.7 pts
43Pocahontas County5.3+0.3 pts
44Poweshiek County5+0.3 pts
45Webster County4.9+0.1 pts
46Sac County4.9+0.1 pts
47Buchanan County4.8+0.7 pts
48Dubuque County4.5+0.3 pts
49Cherokee County4.4-0.3 pts
49Jasper County4.4+0.1 pts
51Hardin County4.3-0.4 pts
52Kossuth County3.9+1.3 pts
53Ringgold County3.8-0 pts
54Cerro Gordo County3.7+0.5 pts
54Winneshiek County3.7-0.3 pts
56Dickinson County3.5-0 pts
57Des Moines County3.2-0.4 pts
58Greene County3.1-0.4 pts
59Palo Alto County3.1+0.1 pts
60Hancock County3.1-0.2 pts
60Ida County3.1+0.2 pts
62Marion County3-0.3 pts
63Butler County2.9+0.7 pts
64Jackson County2.9+0.3 pts
64Page County2.9+0.7 pts
66Appanoose County2.9-0.7 pts
66Warren County2.9+0.2 pts
68Monroe County2.8-0 pts
69Fayette County2.8-0.2 pts
70Clinton County2.7+0.8 pts
71Delaware County2.7+0.4 pts
71Lyon County2.7+0.2 pts
73Benton County2.6+0.1 pts
74Adams County2.6+0.4 pts
75Bremer County2.5+0.2 pts
76Shelby County2.3-0.3 pts
77Mahaska County2.2-0.1 pts
78Grundy County2.2-0.3 pts
79Iowa County2.2+0.3 pts
80Guthrie County2.2+0.1 pts
81Boone County2.2-0.3 pts
82Mills County2.1-0.5 pts
83Carroll County2.10 pts
84Montgomery County2+0.2 pts
85Union County2-0.6 pts
86Madison County1.9-1.9 pts
87Adair County1.9-0.3 pts
88Monona County1.8-0.1 pts
89Worth County1.8-0.4 pts
90Clay County1.8-0.7 pts
90Keokuk County1.8+0.4 pts
92Cedar County1.7+0.1 pts
93Lee County1.7-0.4 pts
94Jones County1.7-0.2 pts
95Cass County1.6-1 pts
96Harrison County1.6+0.1 pts
97Fremont County1.4-0.2 pts
98Calhoun County1.3-0.5 pts
99Audubon County1-0.1 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

People aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of all people aged 5 and over. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.

Measures the language used at home, not English ability: most people in this group also speak English. Spanish speakers are shown separately in spanish_at_home_share.

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 C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.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 C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs (Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2022) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat

MLA 9

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs, Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2022. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/iowa-counties?period=2022. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2022. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/iowa-counties?period=2022.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs, Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2022 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/iowa-counties?period=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_iowa_by_2022,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs: Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2022}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/iowa-counties?period=2022. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs: Counties in Iowa by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2022
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/01/29
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/iowa-counties?period=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/iowa-counties?period=2022.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2022/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2022-c16001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which county has the highest population speaking a language other than English at home?

Buena Vista County, with 34.9% in 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest population speaking a language other than English at home?

Audubon County, with 1% in 2022.

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 C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Population speaking a language other than English at home: other rankings

Counties in Iowa: more rankings