Palo Alto County, IA

County

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2023 Population

8,902

0.403% 1-year decline

US Senator

Chuck Grassley

Republican Party

US Senator

Joni Ernst

Republican Party

2023 Median Age

41.5

0.484% 1-year increase

2023 Poverty Rate

11.7%

9.57% 1-year increase

2023 Median Household Income

$68,963

2.46% 1-year growth

2023 Median Property Value

$119,300

1.97% 1-year growth

2023 Employed Population

4,635

3.16% 1-year growth

About

In 2023, Palo Alto County, IA had a population of 8.9k people with a median age of 41.5 and a median household income of $68,963. Between 2022 and 2023 the population of Palo Alto County, IA declined from 8,938 to 8,902, a −0.403% decrease and its median household income grew from $67,306 to $68,963, a 2.46% increase.

The 5 largest ethnic groups in Palo Alto County, IA are White (Non-Hispanic) (91.6%), Two+ (Non-Hispanic) (2.66%), Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) (1.74%), Two+ (Hispanic) (1.45%), and White (Hispanic) (0.966%).

None of the households in Palo Alto 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.

99% of the residents in Palo Alto County, IA are U.S. citizens.

In 2023, the median property value in Palo Alto County, IA was $119,300, and the homeownership rate was 75.7%.

Most people in Palo Alto County, IA drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 17.7 minutes. The average car ownership in Palo Alto County, IA was 2 cars per household.

Palo Alto County, IA borders Buena Vista County, IA, Clay County, IA, Dickinson County, IA, Emmet County, IA, Humboldt County, IA, Kossuth County, IA, and Pocahontas County, IA.

United States Iowa

Population & Diversity

Palo Alto County, IA is home to a population of 8.9k people, from which 99% are citizens. As of 2023, 2.24% of Palo Alto County, IA residents were born outside of the country (199 people).

In 2023, there were 34.4 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (8.15k people) in Palo Alto County, IA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 237 Two+ (Non-Hispanic) and 155 Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

99%

2023 Citizenship

99.2%

2022 Citizenship

As of 2023, 99% of Palo Alto County, IA residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.4%. In 2022, the percentage of US citizens in Palo Alto County, IA was 99.2%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

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

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Palo Alto County, IA

White (Non-Hispanic)
8.15k ± 91
Two+ (Non-Hispanic)
237 ± 103
Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
155 ± 35

3.29%

Hispanic Population

293 people

3.29% of the people in Palo Alto County, IA are hispanic (293 people).

The following chart shows the 7 races represented in Palo Alto 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
42,604 ± 5,034 people
India
12,351 ± 2,723 people
Vietnam
7,795 ± 2,165 people

In 2022, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Iowa was Mexico, the natal country of 42,604 Iowa residents, followed by India with 12,351 and Vietnam with 7,795.

Foreign-Born Population

2.24%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

199 people

2.07%

2022 Foreign-Born Population

185 people

As of 2023, 2.24% of Palo Alto County, IA residents (199 people) were born outside of the United States, which is lower than the national average of 13.8%. In 2022, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Palo Alto County, IA was 2.07%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

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

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
214 ± 69
Korea
77 ± 36
Gulf War (1990s)
54 ± 27

Palo Alto County, IA has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 2.78 times greater than any other conflict.

Economy

The economy of Palo Alto County, IA employs 4.64k people. The largest industries in Palo Alto County, IA are Health Care & Social Assistance (710 people), Manufacturing (619 people), and Retail Trade (570 people), and the highest paying industries are Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($81,250), Finance & Insurance ($70,227), and Transportation & Warehousing ($65,833).

Males in Iowa have an average income that is 1.34 times higher than the average income of females, which is $54,745. The income inequality in Iowa (measured using the Gini index) is 0.442, which is lower than than the national average.

Employment

Occupations

4.64k

2023 Value

± 331

3.16%

1 Year growth

± 9.91%

From 2022 to 2023, employment in Palo Alto County, IA grew at a rate of 3.16%, from 4.49k employees to 4.64k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Palo Alto County, IA, are Management Occupations (699 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (480 people), and Sales & Related Occupations (450 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Palo Alto County, IA.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

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

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.

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Industries

Employment by Industries

4.64k

2023 Value

± 331

3.16%

1 Year growth

± 9.91%

From 2022 to 2023, employment in Palo Alto County, IA grew at a rate of 3.16%, from 4.49k employees to 4.64k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Palo Alto County, IA, are Health Care & Social Assistance (710 people), Manufacturing (619 people), and Retail Trade (570 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Palo Alto County, IA, though some of these residents may live in Palo Alto County, IA and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$47,083

Median earning men ± $6,170

$35,154

Median earning women ± $3,621

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2023 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($81,875), Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($77,946), and Public Administration ($67,045).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2023 are Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($53,523), Public Administration ($53,235), and Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($50,216).

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

22
Other Services (except Public Administration)
21
Transportation and Warehousing
21
Construction

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

Depending on the option selected, the visualization shows the number of employees or number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$38.4k
Manufacturing
$26.7k
Health Care and Social Assistance
$9.89k
Retail Trade

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

Civics

In the 2020 presidential election, the popular vote in Palo Alto County, IA went to Donald J. Trump with 68.1% of the vote. The runner-up was Joseph R Biden Jr. (30.6%), followed by Jo Jorgensen (0.867%).

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

2020 Election Results

Donald J. Trump (68.1%)
Republican Party
Joseph R Biden Jr. (30.6%)
Democratic Party
Jo Jorgensen (0.867%)
Libertarian Party

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Palo Alto County, IA for each registered party from 1976 to 2020.

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.

US Representative Elections

US Representatives from Iowa

Iowa is currently represented by 4 members in the U.S. house.

Members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms, and the following chart shows the how the members for Iowa have changed over time starting in 2008.

Education

Completions

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.

Working Population

Educational Pyramid

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

Measure

In 2022, 0.66% of men over 25 years of age had not completed any academic degree (no schooling), while 0.685% of women were in the same situation.

This visualization shows the gender distribution of the population according to the academic level reached.

Educational Attainment

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

Race

The most common educational levels obtained by the working population in 2022 were High School or Equivalent (751k), Some college (564k), and Bachelors Degree (469k).

This visualization illustrates the percentage distribution of the population according to the highest educational level reached. You can filter the data by race by using the selector above.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Palo Alto County, IA was $119,300 in 2023, which is 0.393 times smaller than the national average of $303,400. Between 2022 and 2023 the median property value increased from $117,000 to $119,300, a 1.97% increase. The homeownership rate in Palo Alto County, IA is 75.7%, which is approximately the same as the national average of 65%.

People in Palo Alto County, IA have an average commute time of 17.7 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Palo Alto County, IA is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Median household income in Palo Alto County, IA is $68,963. In 2023, the tract with the highest Median Household Income in Palo Alto County, IA was Census Tract 9601 with a value of $88,152, followed by Census Tract 9604 and Census Tract 9602, with respective values of $73,750 and $72,008.

In 2023, 6.89% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Palo Alto County, IA. From 2014 to 2023, the indicator declined 3.91%.

Housing

Property

$119,300

Median Property Value 2023

±$7,532

$2,831

Median Property Taxes

±$247

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 Palo Alto County, IA the largest share of households pay taxes in the $800 - $1,499 range.

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

Rent vs Own

75.7%

Homeownership

2023

63.4%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2023

In 2023, 75.7% of the housing units in Palo Alto County, IA were occupied by their owner. This percentage declined from the previous year's rate of 76.1%.

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

Equity

Income by Location

Use the dropdown to filter by race/ethnicity.

Race/Ethnicity

Highest Median Household Income (Total)

Census Tract 9601
Census Tract 9604
Census Tract 9602

In 2023, the tract with the highest Median Household Income (Total) in Palo Alto County, IA was Census Tract 9601 with a value of $88,152, followed by Census Tract 9604 and Census Tract 9602, with respective values of $73,750 and $72,008.

The following map shows all of the tracts in Palo Alto County, IA colored by their Median Household Income (Total).

Household Income

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

$68,963

Median Household Income

± $5,798

3.74k

Number of Households

± 291

In 2023, the median household income of the 3.74k households in Palo Alto County, IA grew to $68,963 from the previous year's value of $67,306.

The following chart displays the households in Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto County, IA is from Iowa.

0.442

2022 Wage GINI in Iowa

0.439

2021 Wage GINI in Iowa

In 2022, the income inequality in Iowa was 0.442 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.723% growth from 2021 to 2022, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat less even. The GINI for Iowa was lower than than the national average of 0.478. 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 2023

Drove Alone (77.1%)
Carpooled (10%)
Worked At Home (6.18%)

In 2023, 77.1% of workers in Palo Alto County, IA drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (10%) and those who worked at home (6.18%).

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

17.7 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Palo Alto County, IA have a shorter commute time (17.7 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.6 minutes). Additionally, 1.94% of the workforce in Palo Alto County, IA have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto County, IA distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Palo Alto County, IA have 2 cars.

Poverty

Severe Housing Problems

In 2023, 6.89% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Palo Alto County, IA. From 2014 to 2023, the indicator declined 3.91%.

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

Poverty & Diversity

11.7% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Palo Alto County, IA (1k out of 8.55k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.4%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Males 6 - 11, followed by Females 45 - 54 and then Females 75+.

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

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 2023, 13.7% of the children was living in poverty in Palo Alto County, IA. From 2014 to 2023, the indicator declined 1.3%.

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.

Health

95% of the population of Palo Alto County, IA has health coverage, with 44.5% on employee plans, 18.3% on Medicaid, 15.5% on Medicare, 15.4% on non-group plans, and 1.39% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Palo Alto County, IA see 2211 patients per year on average, which represents a 0.495% decrease from the previous year (2222 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 4453 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 990 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.8% were men and 51.2% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

2,211 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Palo Alto County, IA

Primary care physicians in Palo Alto County, IA see an average of 2,211 patients per year. This represents a 0.495% decrease 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 Palo Alto County, IA in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In 2023, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 25% under 18 years, 18.3% between 18 and 34 years, 36.3% between 35 and 64 years, and 20.4% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.8% were men and 51.2% were women.

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

Uninsured People

Uninsured

44.5%

Employer Coverage

18.3%

Medicaid

15.5%

Medicare

15.4%

Non-Group

1.39%

Military or VA

Between 2022 and 2023, the percent of uninsured citizens in Palo Alto County, IA grew by 18.1% from 4.23% to 5%.

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