Pottawattamie County, IA

County

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2024 Population

93,424

US Senator

Chuck Grassley

Republican Party

US Senator

Joni Ernst

Republican Party

2024 Poverty Rate

12.1%

11.2% 1-year increase

2024 Median Household Income

$73,602

3.02% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$195,700

6.59% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

45,291

0.51% 1-year decline

About

None of the households in Pottawattamie County, IA reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

97.7% of the residents in Pottawattamie County, IA are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Pottawattamie County, IA are Iowa Western Community College (1,305 degrees awarded in 2023) and SOHO Hair Academy (18 degrees).

In 2024, the median property value in Pottawattamie County, IA was $195,700, and the homeownership rate was 69.9%.

Most people in Pottawattamie County, IA drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 19.8 minutes. The average car ownership in Pottawattamie County, IA was 2 cars per household.

Pottawattamie County, IA borders Cass County, IA, Harrison County, IA, Mills County, IA, Montgomery County, IA, Shelby County, IA, Douglas County, NE, Sarpy County, NE, and Washington County, NE.

United States Iowa Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA

Population & Diversity

Pottawattamie County, IA is home to a population of 93.4k people, from which 97.7% are citizens. As of 2024, 4.01% of Pottawattamie County, IA residents were born outside of the country (3.74k people).

In 2024, there were 22.9 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (79k people) in Pottawattamie County, IA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 3.46k Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) and 2.77k White (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

97.7%

2024 Citizenship

98%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 97.7% of Pottawattamie County, IA residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Pottawattamie County, IA was 98%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Pottawattamie County, IA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Pottawattamie County, IA

White (Non-Hispanic)
79k ± 308
Two Races Including Other (Hispanic)
3.46k ± 558
White (Hispanic)
2.77k ± 487

9.14%

Hispanic Population

8.54k people

9.14% of the people in Pottawattamie County, IA are hispanic (8.54k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Pottawattamie County, IA as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the County level, so we are showing data for Iowa.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
42,808 ± 5,046 people
India
12,283 ± 2,716 people
China
7,889 ± 2,178 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Iowa was Mexico, the natal country of 42,808 Iowa residents, followed by India with 12,283 and China with 7,889.

Foreign-Born Population

4.01%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

3.74k people

3.85%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

3.59k people

As of 2024, 4.01% of Pottawattamie County, IA residents (3.74k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Pottawattamie County, IA was 3.85%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Pottawattamie County, IA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
2,090 ± 249
Gulf War (2001-)
1,205 ± 200
Gulf War (1990s)
828 ± 178

Pottawattamie County, IA has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 1.73 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Pottawattamie County, IA.

Economy

The economy of Pottawattamie County, IA employs 45.3k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Pottawattamie County, IA were Retail Trade (6,279 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (6,001 people), and Manufacturing (5,280 people), and the highest paying industries were Utilities ($99,167), Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services ($73,194), and Finance & Insurance ($64,972).

Employment

Occupations

45.3k

2024 Value

± 1,460

−0.51%

1 Year decline

± 4.47%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Pottawattamie County, IA declined at a rate of −0.51%, from 45.5k employees to 45.3k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Pottawattamie County, IA, are Office & Administrative Support Occupations (5,249 people), Management Occupations (4,884 people), and Sales & Related Occupations (4,249 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Pottawattamie County, IA.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Iowa.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Iowa (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

Industries

Employment by Industries

45.3k

2024 Value

± 1,460

−0.51%

1 Year decline

± 4.47%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Pottawattamie County, IA declined at a rate of −0.51%, from 45.5k employees to 45.3k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Pottawattamie County, IA, are Retail Trade (6,279 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (6,001 people), and Manufacturing (5,280 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Pottawattamie County, IA, though some of these residents may live in Pottawattamie County, IA and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$54,230

Median earning men ± $1,363

$41,710

Median earning women ± $1,143

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Public Administration ($77,130), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($74,464), and Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($62,006).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($57,281), Public Administration ($56,755), and Construction ($55,625).

Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Iowa.

Y-Axis

1.48%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 1.57M people employed in Iowa. This represents a 1.48% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 10.9%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in Iowa.

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

147
Construction
133
Other Services (except Public Administration)
95
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$317k
Manufacturing
$247k
Health Care and Social Assistance
$182k
Retail Trade

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Iowa went to Donald J. Trump with 55.7% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (42.5%), followed by Robert Kennedy (0.789%).

Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst are the senators currently representing the state of Iowa. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Iowa is currently represented by 4 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Presidential Popular Vote Over Time

Voting results are not available for Pottawattamie County, IA. Showing the available data for Iowa.

2024 Election Results

Donald J. Trump (55.7%)
Republican Party
Kamala Harris (42.5%)
Democratic Party
Robert Kennedy (0.789%)
Independent Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Iowa went to Donald J. Trump with 55.7% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (42.5%), followed by Robert Kennedy (0.789%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Iowa for each registered party from 1976 to 2024.

Senator Elections

US Senators from Iowa

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for Iowa.

Chuck Grassley

Senator from Iowa

Assumed office on January 3, 1981

Joni Ernst

Senator from Iowa

Assumed office on January 3, 2015

Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst are the senators currently representing Iowa.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in Iowa over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

Education

In 2023, universities in Pottawattamie County, IA awarded 1,323 degrees. The student population of Pottawattamie County, IA in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 2,475 male students and 3,078 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Pottawattamie County, IA are White (984 and 74.4%), Black or African American (127 and 9.6%), Hispanic or Latino (114 and 8.62%), and Asian (35 and 2.65%).

The largest universities in Pottawattamie County, IA by number of degrees awarded are Iowa Western Community College (1,305 and 98.6%) and SOHO Hair Academy (18 and 1.36%).

The most popular majors in Pottawattamie County, IA are Liberal Arts & Sciences (257 and 19.4%), Registered Nursing (99 and 7.48%), and Licensed Practical & Vocational Nurse Training (83 and 6.27%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2023 there were 5,553 students enrolled in Pottawattamie County, IA, 44.6% men and 55.4% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 3,609 records, of which 58.5% were women and 41.5% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Registered Nursing
99 degrees awarded
General Studies
64 degrees awarded
Liberal Arts & Sciences
257 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Associates Degree recipients in Pottawattamie County, IA was Registered Nursing with 99 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Associates Degree from schools in Pottawattamie County, IA according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

Iowa Western Community College
1,305 degrees awarded
SOHO Hair Academy
18 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Iowa Western Community College with 1,305 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

In 2023, 684 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Pottawattamie County, IA, which is 1.07 times more than the 639 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 984 degrees mean that there were 7.75 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 127 degrees awarded.

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Public, 2-year ($6,270) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($510) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($1,240) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Pottawattamie County, IA was $195,700 in 2024, which is 0.588 times smaller than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $183,600 to $195,700, a 6.59% increase. The homeownership rate in Pottawattamie County, IA is 69.9%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Pottawattamie County, IA have an average commute time of 19.8 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Pottawattamie County, IA is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

In 2025, 11.4% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Pottawattamie County, IA. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.81%.

Housing

Property

$195,700

Median Property Value 2024

±$4,560

$26,311

Median Property Taxes

±$1,026

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Pottawattamie County, IA the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Pottawattamie County, IA compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

69.9%

Homeownership

2024

61.3%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 69.9% of the housing units in Pottawattamie County, IA were occupied by their owner. This percentage declined from the previous year's rate of 70.3%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Pottawattamie County, IA compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$73,602

Median Household Income

± $1,625

37.6k

Number of Households

± 1,268

In 2024, the median household income of the 37.6k households in Pottawattamie County, IA grew to $73,602 from the previous year's value of $71,446.

The following chart displays the households in Pottawattamie County, IA distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the $75k - $100k range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Pottawattamie County, IA is from Iowa.

0.441

2023 Wage GINI in Iowa

0.442

2022 Wage GINI in Iowa

In 2023, the income inequality in Iowa was 0.441 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.304% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for Iowa was lower than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Iowa in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in Iowa across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (79.8%)
Worked At Home (9.78%)
Carpooled (6.67%)

In 2024, 79.8% of workers in Pottawattamie County, IA drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (9.78%) and those who carpooled to work (6.67%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

19.8 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Pottawattamie County, IA have a shorter commute time (19.8 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 0.938% of the workforce in Pottawattamie County, IA have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Pottawattamie County, IA compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Pottawattamie County, IA distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Pottawattamie County, IA have 2 cars.

Poverty

Severe Housing Problems

In 2025, 11.4% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Pottawattamie County, IA. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.81%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the population living with severe housing problems.

Poverty & Diversity

12.1% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Pottawattamie County, IA (11k out of 90.8k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 35 - 44, followed by Females 25 - 34 and then Females 55 - 64.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Pottawattamie County, IA is White, followed by Hispanic and Two Or More.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Children in Poverty

In 2025, 15.4% of the children was living in poverty in Pottawattamie County, IA. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.1%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the children living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals
Florida
4,915 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798. New York has the second highest (5,087), followed by Florida (4,915).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

Security

Crimes & Accidents

Indicator

In 2022, the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population was 373 in Pottawattamie County, IA. From 2014 to 2022, the indicator declined 347 per 100,000 population.

The graph shows the trend in the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population.

Health

95% of the population of Pottawattamie County, IA has health coverage, with 49.7% on employee plans, 19.2% on Medicaid, 13.9% on Medicare, 10.6% on non-group plans, and 1.56% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Pottawattamie County, IA see 2,222 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (2,222 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1694 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 414 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.6% were men and 50.4% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

2,222 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Pottawattamie County, IA

Primary care physicians in Pottawattamie County, IA see an average of 2,222 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (2,222 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Pottawattamie County, IA in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 24.7% under 18 years, 19.2% between 18 and 34 years, 38.1% between 35 and 64 years, and 18% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.6% were men and 50.4% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

Uninsured People

5.04%

Uninsured

49.7%

Employer Coverage

19.2%

Medicaid

13.9%

Medicare

10.6%

Non-Group

1.56%

Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Pottawattamie County, IA grew by 5.07% from 4.79% to 5.04%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Pottawattamie County, IA changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

Health Indicators

Health Outcomes

Indicator

In 2025, the number of deaths among residents under age 18 per 100,000 population was 57.9 in Pottawattamie County, IA.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Pottawattamie County, IA.

Health Behaviors

Indicator

In 2025, the percentage of the adult population (age 18 and older) that reports a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2 (age-adjusted) was 42.6% in Pottawattamie County, IA.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Pottawattamie County, IA.