county

Butler County, IA

Demographic and economic profile of Butler County, IA, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Butler County is a small agricultural and manufacturing-oriented county in north-central Iowa with a population of 14,301, which has declined 2.9% over five years. The workforce of roughly 8,987 labor-force participants carries a 3.4% unemployment rate and median worker earnings of $41,864, though only 20.4% hold a bachelor's degree or higher—well below national norms—while the high school attainment rate stands at 93.6%. Housing costs are low, with a median home value of $156,500 and median gross rent of $780 per month, and an 84.1% homeownership rate reflects the county's established, older resident base (median age 43.7 years).

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

14,301

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$73,715

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

43.7 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-2.9% since 2018

Butler County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone13,549 (95.0%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race220 (1.5%)
  • Asian Alone179 (1.3%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races167 (1.2%)
  • Some Other Race Alone122 (0.9%)
  • Black or African American Alone24 (0.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish178
  2. 2.Other Asian and Pacific Island84
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic71
  4. 4.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)42
  5. 5.Other Indo-European12

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

22.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

54.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

22.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

2.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

767

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$39,335

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$35,364

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

3.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

10.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance2,012
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)1,173
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)660
  4. 4.Construction (Group)631
  5. 5.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining517

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,704
  2. 2.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,363
  3. 3.Service Occupations1,120
  4. 4.Sales & Office Occupations1,081
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations842

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 4.12×)461
  2. 2.Manufacturing (LQ 1.64×)1,145
  3. 3.Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.34×)216
  4. 4.Construction (LQ 1.24×)604
  5. 5.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.19×)1,956

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$156,500

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$780/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

84.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999649 (13.2%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999624 (12.7%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999550 (11.2%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999469 (9.5%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999428 (8.7%)
  • $175,000 to $199,999384 (7.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

20.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

93.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

62.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$41,864

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

24.7 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

3.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone5,674 (81.7%)
  • Carpooled619 (8.9%)
  • Worked At Home454 (6.5%)
  • Walked144 (2.1%)
  • Other37 (0.5%)
  • Bicycle16 (0.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.