City · Polk County, Iowa

Grimes, Iowa

Grimes is a city in Polk County, Iowa, part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area. It has 16,366 residents. Grimes, Iowa has a quality-of-life score of 95 out of 100 (very high), ranking #847 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Iowa it ranks #33 of 281 cities and towns. It ranks best on rent-burdened households (low), flu vaccinations (high) and drought exposure (low). It ranks worst on effective property tax rate (high), time spent in the emergency room (high) and property crime rate (high).

95Very high

Quality-of-life score: #847 of 15,651 cities and towns
Iowa: #33 of 281 in IA
Population: 16,366 (2020-2024)
Land area: 14 mi²
Density: 1,182.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 1933060

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.

Safety38#9,729/15,637
Economy99#131/15,631
Housing97#505/14,977
Health73#4,290/15,609
Healthcare86#2,116/15,650
Environment76#3,633/15,453
Education71#4,533/15,649
Infrastructure84#2,576/15,650
Community90#1,565/15,651
Leisure & amenities83#2,577/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Grimes, Iowa ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Polk 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 · low28.0%
99/100Iowa 43.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Flu vaccinations · high60.0%
99/100Iowa 51.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePolk County value
Drought exposure · low0%
98/100Iowa 13%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAPolk County value
Distance to an airport · low8 mi
96/100Iowa 44 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPolk County value
Mammography screening · high57.0%
96/100Iowa 57.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePolk County value
New homes permitted · high15.3 /1k
93/100Iowa 4.1 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data

Weaknesses

Effective property tax rate · high1.74%
13/100Iowa 1.33%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Time spent in the emergency room · high212 min
17/100Iowa 128 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesPolk County value
Property crime rate · high1,760 /100k
20/100Iowa 1,172 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationPolk County value
Comfortable days · low23.8%
20/100Iowa 24.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationPolk County value
Hospital quality rating · low2.8
23/100Iowa 3.2United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesPolk County value
Violent crime rate · high338 /100k
25/100Iowa 234 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationPolk County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
12,839 (2015-2019) → 16,366 (2020-2024)
+27%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
38.6% (2015-2019) → 51.5% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
38.3% (2015-2019) → 27.9% (2020-2024)
−10 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$81,950 (2015-2019) → $120,037 (2020-2024)
+46%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateImproving
6.6% (2015-2019) → 1.9% (2020-2024)
−4.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
7.4% (2015-2019) → 3.4% (2020-2024)
−4 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Grimes, Iowa improved on 2 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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

Bachelor's++13 points38.6% → 51.5%
Household income+46%$81,950 → $120,037

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Grimes, Iowa between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.7 min2015-2019	19.6 min2020-2024	−1.1 min	Within the margin of error	62%
Bachelor's degree or higher	38.6%2015-2019	51.5%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	95%
Broadband subscriptions	91.6%2015-2019	91.3%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Effective property tax rate	1.69%2015-2019	1.74%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	10%
High school diploma or higher	97.0%2015-2019	99.3%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	2.5×2020-2024	−0.2×	Within the margin of error	87%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3352015-2019	0.3552020-2024	+0.020	Within the margin of error	34%
Median household income	$81,9502015-2019	$120,0372020-2024	+46%	Improved	81%
Rent as share of income	25.7%2015-2019	21.9%2020-2024	−3.8 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Rent-burdened households	38.3%2015-2019	27.9%2020-2024	−10 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.4%2015-2019	3.4%2020-2024	−4 points	Within the margin of error	82%

“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 Grimes, Iowa five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Grimes, 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, Grimes, Iowa itself moved +3.3 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

16,366 residents (±26)

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

6,117 households (±536)

Grimes, Iowa
Iowa share

Under $25k4.7%†289
$25k–50k14%†836
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

6,117 households (±536)

Grimes, Iowa
Iowa share

Own71%4,335
Rent29%1,782

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

9,660 workers (±628)

Grimes, Iowa
Iowa share

Drive alone65%6,285
Carpool11%†1,040
Public transit0.0%0

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 Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA

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 Polk County, the county holding most of Grimes's residents.

Polk County has 13,890 employer establishments, 274 for every 10,000 residents (1.10× the US rate of 248; 1.06× Iowa's), with 295,413 paid employees at an average annual pay of $66,459. The Census Bureau also counts 39,571 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 13,890; 39,571 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 274; US 248 · Iowa 259
Paid employees: 295,413
Average annual pay: $66,459; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	1,112	21.9	1.05×About typical	15,980	$78,231	1,490
Restaurants and other eating places	937	18.5	1.01×About typical	19,445	$22,580	177
Specialty trade contractors	907	17.9	1.16×About typical	13,696	$77,342	2,937
Lessors of real estate	751	14.8	1.20×About typical	3,228	$62,703	4,156
Offices of other health practitioners	508	10	1.65×More than typical	2,858	$49,486	654
Full-service restaurants	404	8	1.04×About typical	9,401	$24,909	64
Limited-service restaurants	397	7.8	0.98×About typical	8,321	$20,958	62
Services to buildings and dwellings	386	7.6	1.13×About typical	4,258	$36,287	1,879
Construction of buildings	365	7.2	0.95×About typical	3,720	$87,722	1,106
Personal care services	342	6.7	1.41×More than typical	1,542	$33,057	1,957
Insurance agencies and brokerages	336	6.6	1.51×More than typical	2,468	$79,865	777
Management, scientific and technical consulting	331	6.5	0.97×About typical	5,128	$91,290	1,481

Rank places for an industry Open Polk County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 506,787 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 -$9,473 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Grimes, Iowa: -$0.58 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$9,473; −140% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$0.58; 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

UNITED PARCEL SERVICE CO.-$3230.0%
NEW DIRECTIONS IN SALES, INC-$9,1500.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.1MFY2017
2.1MFY2018
539.7KFY2019
234.2KFY2020
400.9KFY2021
311.5KFY2022
94.3KFY2023
-8.3KFY2024

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Grimes, Iowa

8504859066!LUBRICANT,SOLID FIL$80.91
NEW DIRECTIONS IN SALES, INC· Polk County, IA· Fuel· Oct 19, 2017 – Mar 11, 2026· SPE4A618P1247
ASSETS IN SUPPORT OF THE NAS OTHER FUNCTIONS$0
NEW DIRECTIONS IN SALES, INC· Polk County, IA· Other equipment & supplies· Nov 7, 2019 – Nov 14, 2025· 6973GH20P00364

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 Grimes, Iowa, so they do not add up across cities.

Grimes, Iowa's figures are part of those of Polk County, IA and Dallas County, IA ($93.1M 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: Grimes is mostly in Polk County.

See federal money in Polk 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.

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

House

Zachary NunnR-IA-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 95%Missed 4.6%

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.

Polk County91100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA98

Other cities and towns in Polk 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/1933060

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends