Gayest places in Iowa research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to research the cities in Iowa with the highest percent of same-sex households for 2026. The data comes from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year vintage, which counts same-sex married spouses and same-sex unmarried partners at the city level.
The city with the highest rate of same-sex houesholds in Iowa is Le Claire. 7.76% of households in Le Claire are gay.
The city in Iowa with the most same-sex houesholds is Des Moines with 957 gay households.
Iowa is the 47th most gay in the United States.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
An estimated 0.58% of Iowa residents are gay.
That means there are a total of 7,621 gay households in The Hawkeye State.
Our goal with this post is to use Saturday Night Science and data to determine the gayest cities in Iowa.
After analyzing 137 cities with over 1,000 households, we’ve determined these are The Gayest Cities in Iowa for 2026.
The 10 Gayest Places In Iowa For 2026
What’s the gayest place in Iowa? According to the facts, Le Claire is the gayest place in Iowa for 2026.
For more on how we calculated the top ten, and for more information about these places, read on.
For more Iowa reading, check out:
- Gayest cities in the United States
- Best Places To Live In Iowa
- Cheapest Places To Live In Iowa
- Most Dangerous Cities In Iowa
The 10 Gayest Cities In Iowa For 2026
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Households: 2,063
Gay Households: 74 (21st highest)
% Gay Households: 3.59% (2nd highest)
More on Glenwood: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Households: 2,226
Gay Households: 73 (22nd highest)
% Gay Households: 3.28% (3rd highest)
More on Iowa Falls: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Households: 1,561
Gay Households: 45 (31st highest)
% Gay Households: 2.88% (4th highest)
More on Milford: Data | Movers
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Households: 3,163
Gay Households: 86 (19th highest)
% Gay Households: 2.72% (5th highest)
More on Perry: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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7. Shenandoah
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Households: 2,226
Gay Households: 52 (27th highest)
% Gay Households: 2.34% (7th highest)
More on Shenandoah: Crime | Movers
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Households: 3,173
Gay Households: 73 (22nd highest)
% Gay Households: 2.3% (8th highest)
More on Knoxville: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Households: 2,023
Gay Households: 35 (39th highest)
% Gay Households: 1.73% (9th highest)
More on Clarinda: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
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Households: 10,754
Gay Households: 182 (10th highest)
% Gay Households: 1.69% (10th highest)
More on Clinton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
How do you determine the best cities for same-sex households in Iowa for 2026
In order to rank the gayest cities in Iowa, we used Saturday Night Science and the 2020-2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the U.S. Census. We looked at:
- Percentage of all households that are unmarried, same sex partners
We limited the analysis to non-CDPs that have over 1,000 households.
We ranked each place from 1 to 137 with the city containing the highest percentage of unmarried, same sex partners households being the most gay.
In the end, ended up being the the most gay place with 7.76% gay households.
Skip to the end to see the list of all the places in the state from gayest to straighest.
We updated this report for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the gayest places in Iowa.
There You Have It – The Most LGBT Friendly Cities In Iowa For 2026
If you’re looking at the number of gay households in Iowa, this is an accurate list.
The gayest cities in Iowa are .
If you’re curious enough, here are the least gay places in Iowa:
- Carlisle
- Belmond
- Waukon
For more Iowa reading, check out:
- Richest Cities In Iowa
- Safest Places In Iowa
- Worst Places To Live In Iowa
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Iowa
Table: Gayest Places To Live In Iowa
| Rank | City | Households | % Gay Households |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Le Claire | 1,662 | 7.76% |
| 2 | Glenwood | 2,063 | 3.59% |
| 3 | Iowa Falls | 2,226 | 3.28% |
| 4 | Milford | 1,561 | 2.88% |
| 5 | Perry | 3,163 | 2.72% |
| 6 | Albia | 1,558 | 2.5% |
| 7 | Shenandoah | 2,226 | 2.34% |
| 8 | Knoxville | 3,173 | 2.3% |
| 9 | Clarinda | 2,023 | 1.73% |
| 10 | Clinton | 10,754 | 1.69% |
| 11 | Marengo | 1,148 | 1.66% |
| 12 | Maquoketa | 2,669 | 1.61% |
| 13 | Camanche | 1,845 | 1.52% |
| 14 | Altoona | 8,489 | 1.47% |
| 15 | Waukee | 11,830 | 1.37% |
| 16 | Orange City | 2,215 | 1.26% |
| 17 | Storm Lake | 3,975 | 1.23% |
| 18 | Eldridge | 2,826 | 1.2% |
| 19 | Winterset | 2,389 | 1.13% |
| 20 | Decorah | 3,038 | 1.09% |
| 21 | Des Moines | 90,105 | 1.06% |
| 22 | Story City | 1,419 | 1.06% |
| 23 | Ames | 25,785 | 0.98% |
| 24 | Newton | 6,772 | 0.9% |
| 25 | Urbandale | 17,547 | 0.9% |
| 26 | Fairfield | 4,115 | 0.9% |
| 27 | Sioux City | 32,926 | 0.88% |
| 28 | Waterloo | 29,283 | 0.87% |
| 29 | Iowa City | 30,816 | 0.85% |
| 30 | Council Bluffs | 26,023 | 0.85% |
| 31 | Denison | 3,091 | 0.81% |
| 32 | Oelwein | 2,610 | 0.8% |
| 33 | Onawa | 1,256 | 0.8% |
| 34 | Fort Madison | 4,548 | 0.79% |
| 35 | Centerville | 2,474 | 0.77% |
| 36 | Cedar Falls | 15,908 | 0.75% |
| 37 | Cedar Rapids | 59,351 | 0.75% |
| 38 | Missouri Valley | 1,222 | 0.74% |
| 39 | North Liberty | 8,159 | 0.74% |
| 40 | Indianola | 6,152 | 0.73% |
| 41 | Keokuk | 4,350 | 0.71% |
| 42 | Davenport | 43,237 | 0.7% |
| 43 | West Des Moines | 32,233 | 0.68% |
| 44 | Clive | 7,053 | 0.65% |
| 45 | Dubuque | 26,131 | 0.64% |
| 46 | Mason City | 12,698 | 0.61% |
| 47 | Bettendorf | 16,384 | 0.6% |
| 48 | Ankeny | 28,361 | 0.51% |
| 49 | Kalona | 1,189 | 0.5% |
| 50 | Osceola | 2,581 | 0.5% |
| 51 | Burlington | 11,070 | 0.49% |
| 52 | Forest City | 1,653 | 0.48% |
| 53 | Bondurant | 2,952 | 0.47% |
| 54 | Polk City | 2,184 | 0.46% |
| 55 | Coralville | 9,985 | 0.45% |
| 56 | Hampton | 1,816 | 0.44% |
| 57 | Solon | 1,144 | 0.44% |
| 58 | Algona | 2,552 | 0.43% |
| 59 | Boone | 5,259 | 0.42% |
| 60 | Grinnell | 3,635 | 0.41% |
| 61 | Washington | 3,163 | 0.41% |
| 62 | Mount Vernon | 1,260 | 0.4% |
| 63 | Charles City | 3,223 | 0.37% |
| 64 | Ottumwa | 9,980 | 0.37% |
| 65 | Carroll | 4,696 | 0.34% |
| 66 | Nevada | 2,980 | 0.34% |
| 67 | Norwalk | 5,610 | 0.32% |
| 68 | Clarion | 1,319 | 0.3% |
| 69 | Muscatine | 9,640 | 0.3% |
| 70 | Pella | 3,995 | 0.3% |
| 71 | West Branch | 1,040 | 0.29% |
| 72 | Waverly | 3,856 | 0.26% |
| 73 | Hiawatha | 2,936 | 0.24% |
| 74 | Clear Lake | 3,519 | 0.23% |
| 75 | Marion | 16,915 | 0.22% |
| 76 | Atlantic | 3,261 | 0.21% |
| 77 | Belle Plaine | 1,011 | 0.2% |
| 78 | Johnston | 9,259 | 0.16% |
| 79 | Fort Dodge | 10,272 | 0.12% |
| 80 | Marshalltown | 10,135 | 0.11% |
| 81 | Creston | 3,358 | 0.06% |
| 82 | Le Mars | 4,342 | 0.0% |
| 83 | Emmetsburg | 1,646 | 0.0% |
| 84 | Eagle Grove | 1,372 | 0.0% |
| 85 | Garner | 1,381 | 0.0% |
| 86 | Adel | 2,372 | 0.0% |
| 87 | Cherokee | 2,289 | 0.0% |
| 88 | Sergeant Bluff | 1,808 | 0.0% |
| 89 | Wilton | 1,365 | 0.0% |
| 90 | Evansdale | 2,164 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Huxley | 1,527 | 0.0% |
| 92 | Carter Lake | 1,390 | 0.0% |
| 93 | Spirit Lake | 2,716 | 0.0% |
| 94 | Robins | 1,154 | 0.0% |
| 95 | Mount Pleasant | 3,317 | 0.0% |
| 96 | Chariton | 1,821 | 0.0% |
| 97 | Pleasant Hill | 4,343 | 0.0% |
| 98 | Center Point | 1,028 | 0.0% |
| 99 | Tipton | 1,339 | 0.0% |
| 100 | West Union | 1,106 | 0.0% |