Cities in Iowa by population

Des Moines, IA had the highest population of 41 cities in 2023, at 210,633. Carroll, IA had the lowest, at 10,176. The median was 24,534 and the figure for Iowa was 3.21 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest210,633Des Moines, IA

Lowest10,176Carroll, IA

Median24,53441 cities

Iowa3,214,739History

All cities, 2023

persons. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	Cities	2023 persons	Change on 2022
1	Des Moines, IA	210,633	0%
2	Cedar Rapids, IA	136,243	-0.4%
3	Davenport, IA	100,296	-0.1%
4	Sioux City, IA	86,257	+0.8%
5	Iowa City, IA	75,903	+0.1%
6	Ankeny, IA	75,379	+3%
7	West Des Moines, IA	72,862	+2.6%
8	Ames, IA	68,136	+1.3%
9	Waterloo, IA	66,696	+0.3%
10	Council Bluffs, IA	62,538	+0.2%
11	Dubuque, IA	58,885	-0%
12	Urbandale, IA	47,073	+0.6%
13	Marion, IA	42,025	+1%
14	Cedar Falls, IA	40,958	+1.1%
15	Bettendorf, IA	39,842	+0.7%
16	Waukee, IA	29,986	+7.6%
17	Marshalltown, IA	27,622	+0.7%
18	Mason City, IA	26,925	+0.1%
19	Ottumwa, IA	25,412	+0.8%
20	Fort Dodge, IA	24,724	0%
21	Johnston, IA	24,534	+1.5%
22	Clinton, IA	24,217	-0.6%
23	Coralville, IA	23,640	+2.1%
24	Burlington, IA	23,599	0%
25	Muscatine, IA	23,403	-0.5%
26	Altoona, IA	22,102	+1.3%
27	North Liberty, IA	21,190	+0.3%
28	Clive, IA	19,236	+1%
29	Grimes, IA	16,510	+0.8%
30	Indianola, IA	16,382	+1%
31	Newton, IA	15,650	-0.5%
32	Norwalk, IA	14,194	+3.3%
33	Boone, IA	12,388	+0.2%
34	Storm Lake, IA	11,551	+1.1%
35	Oskaloosa, IA	11,522	+0.4%
36	Spencer, IA	11,462	+0.2%
37	Pleasant Hill, IA	11,101	+2.1%
38	Pella, IA	10,740	-0.1%
39	Le Mars, IA	10,610	-0%
40	Waverly, IA	10,570	+0.5%
41	Carroll, IA	10,176	-0.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Resident population. Spain and the EU: 1 January, with Spanish figures from the official municipal register (Padrón). Norway: Statistics Norway, 1 January. Iceland and its municipalities: Statistics Iceland, 1 January. United States: Census Bureau population estimates for 1 July. United Kingdom regions and local authorities: Office for National Statistics estimates for 30 June. Other countries and the World: World Bank mid-year estimates, which count all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. UN World Population Prospects estimates for 1 July cover the years before 1960 and the areas the World Bank does not publish, such as Taiwan.

The World Bank series exists for every country, so use it (through compare) to rank countries on one basis.

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

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. 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). Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals) (Cities in Iowa by population, 2023) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/

MLA 9

Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals), Cities in Iowa by population, 2023. U.S. Census Bureau, 14 May 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/iowa-cities?period=2023. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Cities in Iowa by population, 2023. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/iowa-cities?period=2023.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals), Cities in Iowa by population, 2023 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/iowa-cities?period=2023 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{census_cities_in_iowa_by_2023,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals): Cities in Iowa by population, 2023}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/iowa-cities?period=2023. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals): Cities in Iowa by population, 2023
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/14
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/iowa-cities?period=2023
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/iowa-cities?period=2023.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Questions

Which city has the highest population?

Des Moines, IA, with 210,633 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which city has the lowest population?

Carroll, IA, with 10,176 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, Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Retrieved 2026-10-12.