county

Palo Alto County, IA

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

AI Overview

Palo Alto County is a small rural Iowa county of 8,902 residents with an economy rooted in agriculture, reflected in a GDP per capita of $61,206 that exceeds median worker earnings of $39,046, suggesting capital-intensive production rather than high-wage employment. The labor force is modest in size with 67.1% participation, a low unemployment rate of 2.7%, and limited college attainment at 20.5% with a bachelor's degree or higher. Housing costs are low—median home value of $119,300 and median gross rent of $599/month—though the county's population has contracted 1.7% over five years.

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

Population

8,902

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$72,781

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

41.9 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-1.7% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone8,117 (91.6%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race245 (2.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races154 (1.7%)
  • Black or African American Alone145 (1.6%)
  • Some Other Race Alone124 (1.4%)
  • Asian Alone57 (0.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish152
  2. 2.German or other West Germanic33
  3. 3.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)8
  4. 4.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic7
  5. 5.Vietnamese5

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

23.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

54.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

21.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

2.5%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

507

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$61,206

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$35,518

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

2.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

11.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,044
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)612
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)607
  4. 4.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining579
  5. 5.Construction (Group)535

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations1,426
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations959
  3. 3.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations924
  4. 4.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations675
  5. 5.Service Occupations674

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 7.75×)573
  2. 2.Wholesale Trade (LQ 1.62×)173
  3. 3.Construction (LQ 1.47×)470
  4. 4.Manufacturing (LQ 1.34×)619
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 1.13×)570

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$119,300

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$599/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

77.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,999338 (11.6%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999301 (10.3%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999227 (7.8%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999208 (7.1%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999203 (7.0%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999173 (5.9%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

20.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

93.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

67.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$39,046

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

17.2 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

3.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone3,539 (77.4%)
  • Carpooled472 (10.3%)
  • Walked231 (5.1%)
  • Worked At Home226 (4.9%)
  • Other33 (0.7%)
  • Bicycle32 (0.7%)

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.