Scores by category

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

Safety48#8,118/15,637
Economy47#8,250/15,631
Housing89#1,576/14,977
Health38#9,678/15,609
Healthcare61#6,087/15,650
Environment78#3,331/15,453
Education28#11,202/15,649
Infrastructure53#7,399/15,650
Community43#8,918/15,651
Leisure & amenities53#7,337/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Distance to an airport · low7 mi
99/100Iowa 44 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPottawattamie County value
Home price to income ratio · low1.9×
94/100Iowa 2.8×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Iowa 2.6 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataPottawattamie County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low6.1 µg/m³
88/100Iowa 7.1 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPottawattamie County value
Average commute time · low27.4 min
88/100Iowa 19.8 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Rent-burdened households · low41.2%
87/100Iowa 43.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070

Weaknesses

Broadband subscriptions · low81.9%
10/100Iowa 88.8%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Violent crime rate · high414 /100k
16/100Iowa 234 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationPottawattamie County value
Bachelor's degree or higher · low14.1%
17/100Iowa 31.4%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Effective property tax rate · high1.63%
17/100Iowa 1.33%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Median Air Quality Index · high49
17/1002023U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPottawattamie County value
Property crime rate · high1,741 /100k
20/100Iowa 1,172 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationPottawattamie County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
764 (2015-2019) → 1,342 (2020-2024)
+76%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
51.0% (2015-2019) → 41.2% (2020-2024)
−9.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Child poverty rateWorsening
5.7% (2015-2019) → 14.1% (2020-2024)
+8.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
31.7% (2015-2019) → 23.8% (2020-2024)
−7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,625 (2015-2019) → $62,500 (2020-2024)
+34%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateWorsening
6.3% (2015-2019) → 12.4% (2020-2024)
+6.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Walnut, Iowa improved on 0 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 11 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Walnut, Iowa between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.3 min2015-2019	27.4 min2020-2024	+5.1 min	Within the margin of error	10%
Bachelor's degree or higher	15.0%2015-2019	14.1%2020-2024	−0.9 points	Within the margin of error	22%
Broadband subscriptions	76.9%2015-2019	81.9%2020-2024	+5.1 points	Within the margin of error	32%
Effective property tax rate	1.49%2015-2019	1.63%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	4%
High school diploma or higher	93.5%2015-2019	88.7%2020-2024	−4.8 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	1.9×2020-2024	−0.4×	Within the margin of error	91%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4112015-2019	0.4472020-2024	+0.036	Within the margin of error	23%
Median household income	$46,6252015-2019	$62,5002020-2024	+34%	Within the margin of error	64%
Poverty rate	6.3%2015-2019	12.4%2020-2024	+6.1 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	51.0%2015-2019	41.2%2020-2024	−9.8 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 Walnut, Iowa five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Walnut, 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, Walnut, Iowa itself moved −9 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

1,342 residents (±150)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 80 and over women (+13.2 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,342 residents (±150)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

White96%1,282
Black0.7%†9
Hispanic or Latino3.4%†45

Education

1,155 residents (±122)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

No high school diploma11%†131
High school or GED41%474
Some college21%†240

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

332 households (±70)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Under $25k23%†76
$25k–50k22%†73
$50k–75k16%†52
$75k–100k14%†47
$100k–150k17%†58
$150k–200k4.2%†14
$200k or more3.6%†12

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $200k or more (+3.0 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

332 households (±70)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Own72%240
Rent28%†92

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

86 households (±36)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Under $75030%†26
$750–1,00059%†51
$1,000–1,5005.8%†5

Home values

240 homes (±63)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Under $150k69%†165
$150k–250k28%†67
$250k–400k3.3%†8

Age of homes

386 homes (±68)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

2010 or later0.5%†2
2000–20093.1%†12
1980–19994.9%†19

Size of homes

386 homes (±68)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Studio1.0%†4
1 bedroom15%†57
2 bedrooms18%†68

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

343 workers (±95)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Drive alone83%286
Carpool2.6%†9
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home13%†46
Other0.6%†2

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+11.3 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

297 workers (±85)

Walnut, Iowa
Iowa share

Under 15 min28%†84
15–29 min45%†135
30–44 min10%†30

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Omaha, NE-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 Pottawattamie County, the county holding most of Walnut's residents.

Pottawattamie County has 1,920 employer establishments, 206 for every 10,000 residents (0.83× the US rate of 248; 0.79× Iowa's), with 32,384 paid employees at an average annual pay of $50,319. The Census Bureau also counts 5,603 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,920; 5,603 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 206; US 248 · Iowa 259
Paid employees: 32,384
Average annual pay: $50,319; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	148	15.9	1.02×About typical	1,006	$60,324	499
Restaurants and other eating places	140	15	0.82×About typical	3,026	$18,618	21
Ambulatory health care services	121	13	0.62×Fewer than typical	1,372	$63,256	183
Truck transportation	100	10.7	2.12×More than typical	816	$58,733	176
Lessors of real estate	80	8.6	0.70×Fewer than typical	290	$40,590	676
Services to buildings and dwellings	70	7.5	1.11×About typical	391	$45,675	345
Limited-service restaurants	69	7.4	0.92×About typical	1,544	$16,252	6
Religious organizations	58	6.2	1.12×About typical	263	$22,806	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	57	6.1	1.21×About typical	346	$43,084	89
Full-service restaurants	56	6	0.78×Fewer than typical	1,256	$21,365	9
Construction of buildings	53	5.7	0.75×Fewer than typical	327	$61,361	186
Building equipment contractors	48	5.1	0.85×About typical	548	$63,274	53

Rank places for an industry Open Pottawattamie County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 93,351 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 Walnut, 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

-4.7KFY2025

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

Walnut, Iowa's figures are part of those of Pottawattamie County, IA ($2.8M 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: Walnut is mostly in Pottawattamie County.

See federal money in Pottawattamie 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.

Walnut, 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.

Pottawattamie County74100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Omaha, NE-IA96

Other cities and towns in Pottawattamie 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/1982065