City · Scott County, Iowa

Buffalo, Iowa

Buffalo is a city in Scott County, Iowa, part of the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL metro area. It has 1,097 residents. Buffalo, Iowa has a quality-of-life score of 68 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,068 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Iowa it ranks #221 of 281 cities and towns. It ranks best on rent-burdened households (low), flu vaccinations (high) and mammography screening (high). It ranks worst on property crime rate (high), violent crime rate (high) and new homes permitted (low).

68High

Quality-of-life score: #5,068 of 15,651 cities and towns
Iowa: #221 of 281 in IA
Population: 1,097 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 162.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 1909235

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety17#13,011/15,637
Economy61#6,076/15,631
Housing88#1,741/14,977
Health60#6,172/15,609
Healthcare81#2,914/15,650
Environment35#10,030/15,453
Education53#7,308/15,649
Infrastructure62#6,001/15,650
Community82#2,837/15,651
Leisure & amenities61#6,124/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Buffalo, Iowa ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Scott County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Rent-burdened households · low23.3%
99/100Iowa 43.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Flu vaccinations · high58.0%
98/100Iowa 51.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteScott County value
Mammography screening · high57.0%
96/100Iowa 57.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteScott County value
Home price to income ratio · low1.8×
95/100Iowa 2.8×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Child care cost burden · low21.4%
90/100Iowa 22.9%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteScott County value
Restaurants and bars · high12.3 /10k
88/100Iowa 9.7 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsScott County value

Weaknesses

Property crime rate · high2,135 /100k
12/100Iowa 1,172 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationScott County value
Violent crime rate · high449 /100k
13/100Iowa 234 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationScott County value
New homes permitted · low0.0 /1k
13/100Iowa 4.1 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Bachelor's degree or higher · low14.6%
17/100Iowa 31.4%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Hospital quality rating · low2.5
18/100Iowa 3.2United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesScott County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,547 /100k
19/100Iowa 2,368 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteScott County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,182 (2015-2019) → 1,097 (2020-2024)
−7.2%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateWorsening
0.0% (2015-2019) → 25.3% (2020-2024)
+25 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
71.8% (2015-2019) → 89.8% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
3.1% (2015-2019) → 18.8% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Average commute timeWorsening
20.2 min (2015-2019) → 29.1 min (2020-2024)
+44%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
7.8% (2015-2019) → 14.6% (2020-2024)
+6.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Buffalo, Iowa improved on 1 of 9 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 7 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved1

Broadband+18 points71.8% → 89.8%

Declined1

Child poverty+25 points0.0% → 25.3%

All 9 measures

Change of every measure of Buffalo, Iowa between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.2 min2015-2019	29.1 min2020-2024	+8.9 min	Within the margin of error	3%
Broadband subscriptions	71.8%2015-2019	89.8%2020-2024	+18 points	Improved	87%
Child poverty rate	0.0%2015-2019	25.3%2020-2024	+25 points	Declined	3%
Effective property tax rate	1.34%2015-2019	1.31%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	21%
High school diploma or higher	86.9%2015-2019	87.7%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	43%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	1.8×2020-2024	−0.4×	Within the margin of error	92%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3552015-2019	0.3742020-2024	+0.019	Within the margin of error	35%
Median household income	$56,2502015-2019	$69,7282020-2024	+24%	Within the margin of error	42%
Rent as share of income	21.7%2015-2019	21.4%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	58%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Buffalo, Iowa five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Buffalo, Iowa in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Buffalo, Iowa itself moved −4.7 points in standing on average over the same 8 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,097 residents (±252)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

481 households (±102)

Buffalo, Iowa
Iowa share

Under $25k21%†102
$25k–50k12%†57
$50k–75k20%

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

481 households (±102)

Buffalo, Iowa
Iowa share

Own76%367
Rent24%†114

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

548 workers (±131)

Buffalo, Iowa
Iowa share

Drive alone85%465
Carpool7.5%†41
Public transit0.2%†1

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Scott County, the county holding most of Buffalo's residents.

Scott County has 4,525 employer establishments, 260 for every 10,000 residents (1.05× the US rate of 248; 1.00× Iowa's), with 86,426 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,754. The Census Bureau also counts 11,603 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,525; 11,603 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 260; US 248 · Iowa 259
Paid employees: 86,426
Average annual pay: $52,754; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Scott County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	406	23.3	1.12×About typical	5,938	$66,825	534
Restaurants and other eating places	370	21.2	1.16×About typical	7,529	$19,500	42
Specialty trade contractors	303	17.4	1.12×About typical	4,718	$85,380	687
Lessors of real estate	205	11.8	0.96×About typical	618	$47,371	1,590
Offices of other health practitioners	171	9.8	1.62×More than typical	789	$48,460	284
Full-service restaurants	156	9	1.17×About typical	3,408	$20,793	10
Limited-service restaurants	156	9	1.12×About typical	3,173	$18,782	24
Services to buildings and dwellings	136	7.8	1.16×About typical	2,055	$28,044	585
Construction of buildings	130	7.5	0.99×About typical	977	$84,699	249
Insurance agencies and brokerages	101	5.8	1.32×More than typical	684	$63,871	229
Religious organizations	100	5.7	1.03×About typical	1,026	$27,451	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	98	5.6	1.12×About typical	706	$35,518	94

Rank places for an industry Open Scott County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 174,185 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $1.7M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Buffalo, Iowa: $1,564 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1.7M; −26% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1,564; US $1,994
Sole-source: 83%; US 30%
Single offer: 14%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of the Navy$1M60%
Department of the Air Force$259.9K15%
Defense Logistics Agency$215.3K13%
Department of the Army$133.5K7.8%
U.S. Coast Guard$75K4.4%
National Aeronautics and Space Administration$8,9920.5%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

5.9MFY2017
5.7MFY2018
5.6MFY2019
4.5MFY2020
3.4MFY2021
3.5MFY2022
3.7MFY2023
3.5M

Top industries (NAICS)

Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$1.2M72%
Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$262.4K15%
Ventilation, heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration equipment manufacturing · 3334$68.8K4.0%
Electrical equipment manufacturing · 3353$50.4K2.9%
Basic chemical manufacturing · 3251$31.9K1.9%
Petroleum and coal products manufacturing · 3241$14.8K

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Buffalo, Iowa

MARINE #2 DIESEL FUEL DELIVERED MID-STREAM TO DREDGE GOETZ FLEET FUEL BARGE AT RIVER MILE 473 (BUFFALO, IOWA) BETWEEN 20 AND 23 JULY, 2025$74.8K
CUSTOM FUEL SERVICES LLC· Scott County, IA· Fuel· Jul 17, 2025 – Mar 3, 2026· W912ES25PA023
#2 DIESEL FOR OFF-ROAD USE - MIDSTREAM$68.8K
CUSTOM FUEL SERVICES LLC· Scott County, IA· Fuel· Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 31, 2025· W912ES26P0002

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Buffalo, Iowa, so they do not add up across cities.

Buffalo, Iowa's figures are part of those of Scott County, IA ($38.9M in FY2026), never added to them: 4.4% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Buffalo is mostly in Scott County.

See federal money in Scott County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Buffalo, Iowa is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Mariannette Miller-MeeksR-IA-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 96%Missed 3.9%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Scott County82100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL77

Other cities and towns in Scott County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/1909235

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends