City · Winnebago County, Iowa

Forest City, Iowa

Forest City is a city in Winnebago County, Iowa. It has 4,290 residents. Forest City, Iowa has a quality-of-life score of 84 out of 100 (very high), ranking #2,537 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Iowa it ranks #114 of 281 cities and towns. It ranks best on average commute time (low), public libraries (high) and drug overdose deaths (low). It ranks worst on mental health providers (low), distance to an emergency room (high) and distance to an airport (high).

84Very high

Quality-of-life score: #2,537 of 15,651 cities and towns
Iowa: #114 of 281 in IA
Population: 4,290 (2020-2024)
Land area: 5 mi²
Density: 935.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 1928380

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 70 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.

Safety85#2,415/15,637
Economy51#7,659/15,631
Housing83#2,515/14,977
Health65#5,396/15,609
Healthcare48#8,080/15,650
Environment90#1,551/15,453
Education74#4,047/15,649
Infrastructure40#9,377/15,650
Community96#568/15,651
Leisure & amenities69#4,927/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Forest City, Iowa ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Winnebago 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

Average commute time · low12.1 min
99/100Iowa 19.8 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Public libraries · high4.8 /10k
99/100Iowa 1.8 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesWinnebago County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Iowa 9.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataWinnebago County value
Grocery stores · high3.9 /10k
98/100Iowa 1.9 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWinnebago County value
Mammography screening · high57.0%
96/100Iowa 57.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWinnebago County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,565 /100k
96/100Iowa 2,368 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWinnebago County value

Weaknesses

Mental health providers · low19 /100k
1/100Iowa 226 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWinnebago County value
Distance to an emergency room · high17.9 mi
4/100Iowa 5.8 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesWinnebago County value
Distance to an airport · high109 mi
8/100Iowa 44 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauWinnebago County value
Average weekly wage · low$932
9/100Iowa $1,221United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWinnebago County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high102 mi
9/100Iowa 60 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauWinnebago County value
Primary care physicians · low28 /100k
11/100Iowa 74 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWinnebago County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
3,928 (2015-2019) → 4,290 (2020-2024)
+9.2%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedWorsening
0.5 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
45.4% (2015-2019) → 33.9% (2020-2024)
−12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$49,022 (2015-2019) → $69,205 (2020-2024)
+41%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
78.5% (2015-2019) → 85.9% (2020-2024)
+7.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
15.5% (2015-2019) → 10.5% (2020-2024)
−5.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%

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, Forest City, Iowa improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 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.

Improved2

Household income+41%$49,022 → $69,205
Broadband+7.4 points78.5% → 85.9%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Forest City, Iowa between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.0 min2015-2019	12.1 min2020-2024	−2.9 min	Within the margin of error	78%
Bachelor's degree or higher	25.7%2015-2019	29.2%2020-2024	+3.5 points	Within the margin of error	56%
Broadband subscriptions	78.5%2015-2019	85.9%2020-2024	+7.4 points	Improved	46%
Child poverty rate	15.5%2015-2019	10.5%2020-2024	−5.1 points	Within the margin of error	69%
Effective property tax rate	1.72%2015-2019	1.43%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	72%
High school diploma or higher	92.3%2015-2019	95.5%2020-2024	+3.2 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Home price to income ratio	1.9×2015-2019	2.1×2020-2024	+0.1×	Within the margin of error	73%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4092015-2019	0.4742020-2024	+0.065	Within the margin of error	11%
Median household income	$49,0222015-2019	$69,2052020-2024	+41%	Improved	75%
Poverty rate	11.4%2015-2019	12.4%2020-2024	+1 points	Within the margin of error	34%
Rent-burdened households	45.4%2015-2019	33.9%2020-2024	−12 points	Within the margin of error	85%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	3.1%2015-2019	6.0%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	20%

“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 Forest City, Iowa five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Forest City, 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, Forest City, Iowa itself moved +0.2 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

4,290 residents (±217)

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

1,653 households (±127)

Forest City, Iowa
Iowa share

Under $25k17%†278
$25k–50k18%†301
$50k–75k20%

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,653 households (±127)

Forest City, Iowa
Iowa share

Own67%1,102
Rent33%551

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,142 workers (±214)

Forest City, Iowa
Iowa share

Drive alone75%1,609
Carpool7.1%†153
Public transit0.2%†5

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 Winnebago County, the county holding most of Forest City's residents.

Winnebago County has 300 employer establishments, 285 for every 10,000 residents (1.15× the US rate of 248; 1.10× Iowa's), with 6,043 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,011. The Census Bureau also counts 778 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 300; 778 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 285; US 248 · Iowa 259
Paid employees: 6,043
Average annual pay: $52,011; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	24	22.8	1.47×More than typical	95	$61,916	47
Restaurants and other eating places	20	19	1.03×About typical	176	$15,063	—
Truck transportation	17	16.1	3.19×More than typical	139	$57,101	38
Ambulatory health care services	15	14.2	0.68×Fewer than typical	105	$33,238	12
Religious organizations	14	13.3	2.39×More than typical	93	$15,538	—
Building equipment contractors	11	10.4	1.73×More than typical	52	$60,673	5
Gasoline stations	10	9.5	2.93×More than typical	170	$20,453	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	10	9.5	1.41×More than typical	25	$43,720	50
Full-service restaurants	9	8.5	1.11×Too few to compare	78	$16,872	—
Insurance agencies and brokerages	9	8.5	1.94×Too few to compare	44	$62,227	16
Landscaping services	9	8.5	2.44×Too few to compare	18	$49,556	24
Construction of buildings	8	7.6	1.00×Too few to compare	76	$46,855	44

Rank places for an industry Open Winnebago County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 10,539 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Forest City, Iowa: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

0FY2017
1.1KFY2020
0FY2021

What was bought

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 Forest City, Iowa, so they do not add up across cities.

Forest City, Iowa's figures are part of those of Winnebago County, IA and Hancock County, IA ($24.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Winnebago 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.

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

House

Randy FeenstraR-IA-4 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 1.6%

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.

Other cities and towns in Winnebago 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/1928380

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends