Are you sick of being a city slicker?
Do you long for life in suburban Iowa? Where you can drive an overly-large vehicle to the store for groceries and schlep the kids around to practices and appointments without worrying about a parking space.
We do, too.
If you wanted to move out to the suburbs in Iowa, where would you go? And how would you decide on the ranking factors to help you pick which Iowa suburb was best?
No worries. We got it all figured out here using Saturday Night Science.
$102,722 median income · $332,836 median home price
Located in
Warren County, Iowa
Norwalk is a city in Warren County, with some small portions extending into Polk County, in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 8,945 at the 2010 census. The city is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area and is located just south of the Des Moines International Airport.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$112,094 median income · $341,229 median home price
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$108,198 median income · $338,168 median home price
Located in
Polk County, Iowa
Ankeny is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States and home to Des Moines Area Community College. The population was 45,562 in the 2010 census, an increase of 68% from the 27,117 population in the 2000 census. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is one of the most affluent cities in all of Iowa.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$112,795 median income · $349,851 median home price
Located in
Polk County, Iowa
Urbandale is a city in Polk and Dallas counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 39,463. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$91,707 median income · $282,953 median home price
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$106,551 median income · $394,441 median home price
Located in
Polk County, Iowa
Johnston is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 17,278 in the 2010 census, an increase of almost 100% from the 8,649 population in the 2000 census. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$120,037 median income · $348,193 median home price
Located in
Polk County, Iowa
Grimes is a city in Dallas and Polk counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 8,246 at the 2010 census. Grimes is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$95,250 median income · $390,598 median home price
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$71,790 median income · $310,533 median home price
Glenwood is a city in and the county seat of Mills County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,269 in the 2010 census, a decline from 5,358 in the 2000 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$135,674 median income · $330,602 median home price
Bondurant is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States. The population was 3,860 in the 2010 census, an increase of 109% from the 1,846 population in the 2000 census. It is part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Iowa’s statewide median.
Iowa statewide median: $75,059
On the map
Where Iowa’s best suburbs are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we crunched the suburb numbers for the Hawkeye State
We have to use Saturday Night Science and look at several metrics to give you the best suburbs in Iowa. We want to measure the type of place around major cities that people arguing at a bar would say makes it the “best suburb.”
First, we had to define a suburb. Using U.S. Census data produced for the state of Iowa, we looked at every town with at least 2,000 residents, and within 30 miles of a city that’s over 200,000 people.
In other words, suburbs.
We paid particular attention to the following criteria:
- Median Home Values
- Median Income
- Population Density (Higher is Better)
- Unemployment Rates
- Commute Time
- Education Levels
- Health Insurance Coverage
- Poverty Rates
We ranked each suburb in Iowa across these criteria from one to 28, with one being the best.
We then took the average rank across all criteria, with the town posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title “Best Suburb To Live In Iowa.”
The result is some of the safest, quietest, and ideal places to live in Iowa.
Read on to see why Norwalk is the ‘burb with the most, while Carter Lake is probably not the best place to live in Iowa.
The full plate
The Best Suburbs In Iowa
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Median Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norwalk | 14,183 | $102,722 | $332,836 |
| 2 | Huxley | 4,544 | $112,094 | $341,229 |
| 3 | Ankeny | 72,615 | $108,198 | $338,168 |
| 4 | Urbandale | 46,595 | $112,795 | $349,851 |
| 5 | Windsor Heights | 5,143 | $91,707 | $282,953 |
| 6 | Johnston | 24,384 | $106,551 | $394,441 |
| 7 | Grimes | 16,366 | $120,037 | $348,193 |
| 8 | Adel | 6,430 | $95,250 | $390,598 |
| 9 | Glenwood | 5,144 | $71,790 | $310,533 |
| 10 | Bondurant | 8,560 | $135,674 | $330,602 |
| 11 | Clive | 19,012 | $132,121 | $425,730 |
| 12 | Waukee | 29,236 | $101,029 | $338,881 |
| 13 | West Des Moines | 71,083 | $86,594 | $320,156 |
| 14 | Carlisle | 4,255 | $109,191 | $286,847 |
| 15 | Indianola | 16,044 | $75,453 | $309,171 |
| 16 | Altoona | 21,495 | $86,114 | $317,902 |
| 17 | Madrid | 2,808 | $89,844 | $282,389 |
| 18 | Colfax | 2,210 | $79,318 | $191,271 |
| 19 | Winterset | 5,416 | $67,708 | $289,608 |
| 20 | Monroe | 2,120 | $80,375 | $256,161 |
| 21 | Mitchellville | 2,579 | $81,172 | $270,079 |
| 22 | Pleasant Hill | 11,136 | $90,508 | $299,730 |
| 23 | Dallas Center | 2,161 | $95,854 | $308,530 |
| 24 | Missouri Valley | 2,666 | $71,818 | $229,884 |
| 25 | Rock Rapids | 2,661 | $63,942 | $253,800 |
| 26 | Council Bluffs | 62,586 | $64,578 | $223,906 |
| 27 | Newton | 15,700 | $57,771 | $200,884 |
| 28 | Carter Lake | 3,767 | $85,349 | $205,604 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS via Saturday Night Science. 28 Iowa suburbs within 30 miles of a city over 200,000.
Summary
Summary: There You Have It – The Best Suburbs In Iowa
If you’re measuring the locations in Iowa where there are lots to do, and everyone wants to live, this is an accurate list.
The best suburbs in Iowa are Norwalk, Huxley, Ankeny, Urbandale, Windsor Heights, Johnston, Grimes, Adel, Glenwood, and Bondurant.
