Iowa · 85 places of 5,000+

Largest cities in Iowa by population

Short answer

Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa with 213,096 residents in 2024, followed by Cedar Rapids (137,904) and Davenport (100,938).

Largest: 213,096
Places 5,000+: 85
100,000+: 3

The 20 largest

Des Moines leads with 213,096 residents, 1.5 times the 137,904 of second-place Cedar Rapids. The ten largest places hold 965,082 people, 30% of the state's 3,241,488. 3 places have 100,000 or more.

The median place of 5,000+ is Bondurant at 9,511. Within the top ten, Ankeny grew most since July 2020 (+11.9%) and Davenport least (-0.7%). 8 of the 85 places cross a county line; their totals include every county part.

01Des Moines213,096
02Cedar Rapids137,904
03Davenport100,938
04Sioux City86,875
05Ankeny76,727
06Iowa City76,710
07West Des Moines73,664
08Ames69,026
09Waterloo67,477
10Council Bluffs62,665
11Dubuque58,987
12Urbandale47,759
13Marion42,542
14Cedar Falls41,417
15Bettendorf40,281
16Waukee34,420
17Marshalltown27,886
18Mason City26,948
19Ottumwa25,648
20Johnston25,022

July 1, 2024 population, Census Vintage 2024.

Dots: the 20 places in the chart. Orange pin: Des Moines, ranked first.

All 85 places of 5,000+ ranked

#	Place	2024	Since 2020	County
1	Des Moines	213,096	-0.3%	Polk County +1
2	Cedar Rapids	137,904	+0.0%	Linn County
3	Davenport	100,938	-0.7%	Scott County
4	Sioux City	86,875	+1.1%	Woodbury County +1
5	Ankeny	76,727	+11.9%	Polk County
6	Iowa City	76,710	+2.4%	Johnson County
7	West Des Moines	73,664	+6.9%	Polk County +3
8	Ames	69,026	+3.8%	Story County
9	Waterloo	67,477	+0.3%	Black Hawk County
10	Council Bluffs	62,665	-0.2%	Pottawattamie County
11	Dubuque	58,987	-1.1%	Dubuque County
12	Urbandale	47,759	+4.8%	Polk County +1
13	Marion	42,542	+2.3%	Linn County
14	Cedar Falls	41,417	+1.7%	Black Hawk County
15	Bettendorf	40,281	+2.9%	Scott County
16	Waukee	34,420	+41.3%	Dallas County
17	Marshalltown	27,886	+1.1%	Marshall County
18	Mason City	26,948	-1.2%	Cerro Gordo County
19	Ottumwa	25,648	+0.7%	Wapello County
20	Johnston	25,022	+4.3%	Polk County
21	Fort Dodge	24,886	+0.1%	Webster County
22	Clinton	24,118	-1.3%	Clinton County
23	Coralville	23,959	+7.3%	Johnson County
24	Burlington	23,637	-1.4%	Des Moines County
25	Muscatine	23,298	-1.9%	Muscatine County
26	Altoona	22,598	+14.4%	Polk County
27	North Liberty	21,904	+6.8%	Johnson County
28	Clive	19,508	+4.5%	Polk County +1
29	Grimes	17,266	+9.8%	Polk County +1
30	Indianola	16,297	+2.7%	Warren County
31	Newton	15,709	-0.3%	Jasper County
32	Norwalk	15,396	+19.2%	Warren County
33	Boone	12,461	+0.1%	Boone County
34	Pleasant Hill	11,942	+17.5%	Polk County
35	Storm Lake	11,627	+3.3%	Buena Vista County
36	Oskaloosa	11,575	+0.3%	Mahaska County
37	Spencer	11,418	+1.0%	Clay County
38	Pella	10,965	+4.7%	Marion County +1
39	Le Mars	10,674	+0.7%	Plymouth County
40	Waverly	10,576	+1.5%	Bremer County
41	Carroll	10,125	-1.8%	Carroll County
42	Fort Madison	9,983	-3.2%	Lee County
43	Bondurant	9,511	+27.4%	Polk County
44	Fairfield	9,511	+0.6%	Jefferson County
45	Grinnell	9,495	-0.4%	Poweshiek County
46	Keokuk	9,462	-4.4%	Lee County
47	Sioux Center	8,675	+5.2%	Sioux County
48	Mount Pleasant	8,509	-8.2%	Henry County
49	Denison	8,302	-0.7%	Crawford County
50	Perry	8,046	+2.2%	Dallas County
51	Webster City	7,763	-0.7%	Hamilton County
52	Clear Lake	7,602	-0.8%	Cerro Gordo County
53	Decorah	7,454	-1.7%	Winneshiek County
54	Knoxville	7,440	-1.8%	Marion County
55	Creston	7,421	-1.5%	Union County
56	Hiawatha	7,347	+2.3%	Linn County
57	Washington	7,281	-0.9%	Washington County
58	Nevada	7,082	+2.4%	Story County
59	Charles City	7,081	-4.1%	Floyd County
60	Eldridge	6,967	+3.5%	Scott County
61	Adel	6,763	+9.5%	Dallas County
62	Atlantic	6,717	-1.0%	Cass County
63	Tiffin	6,695	+44.8%	Johnson County
64	Orange City	6,547	+4.3%	Sioux County
65	Polk City	6,430	+14.8%	Polk County
66	Independence	6,266	+3.0%	Buchanan County
67	Maquoketa	6,064	-0.9%	Jackson County
68	Asbury	6,051	+1.6%	Dubuque County
69	Anamosa	5,845	+7.3%	Jones County
70	Estherville	5,796	-1.3%	Emmet County
71	Oelwein	5,788	-2.0%	Fayette County
72	DeWitt	5,620	+1.9%	Clinton County
73	Osceola	5,585	+3.1%	Clarke County
74	Sheldon	5,584	+1.5%	O'Brien County +1
75	Spirit Lake	5,548	+1.5%	Dickinson County
76	Winterset	5,421	+0.6%	Madison County
77	Red Oak	5,420	-3.1%	Montgomery County
78	Centerville	5,345	-1.2%	Appanoose County
79	Algona	5,341	-2.4%	Kossuth County
80	Sergeant Bluff	5,335	+6.5%	Woodbury County
81	Clarinda	5,334	-0.6%	Page County
82	Manchester	5,283	+4.1%	Delaware County
83	Glenwood	5,250	+3.6%	Mills County
84	Cherokee	5,186	-0.2%	Cherokee County
85	Windsor Heights	5,106	-2.5%	Polk County

Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates. Counties from the SUMLEV 157 county parts.

Questions people ask

What is the largest city in Iowa?

Des Moines, with 213,096 residents on July 1, 2024 in the Census Vintage 2024 estimates.

What is the second largest city in Iowa?

Cedar Rapids, with 137,904 residents, 75,192 fewer than Des Moines.

How many cities in Iowa have more than 100,000 people?

3: Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Davenport.

How is city size measured here?

By the Census Bureau's July 1, 2024 population estimate for each incorporated place, inside its legal city limits. Metro areas and census-designated places are not ranked.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.