These Are The 9 Poorest Counties In Iowa

It always seems people want to know where the rich live in Iowa. The sad truth is that there is a lot of poverty in the state of Iowa. Most residents in Iowa's poorest counties aren't living in poverty, yet they are living on a household income that's below the median.

Recently, Only In Your State created a list of the richest counties in Iowa and now they have created a list of the poorest counties in the state too.

Finding The Poorest Counties in Iowa

We're just 4 years past the 2020 U.S. Census. Since then, we have had a little more updated information about how poor and wealthy states and their counties can be. We can even see how rich and poor cities are, too.

Only In Your State looked at data from the U.S. Census, similar to what they did to find the richest counties, to look at the poorest based on median household income.

The U.S. Justice Department says Iowa's median household income for one earner in 2023 is $60,971. Iowa households with two earners typically bring in $81,351. America's household median income is $74,580, according to the Census.

Iowa's Poorest County

Once they found out which counties in Iowa have the lowest median household income, Only In Your State found that a county in southern Iowa is the poorest.

Decatur County was named the poorest county in Iowa. With a median household income of just $36,326, residents in Decatur County make less than $23,000 than a typical household with just one earner.

Even though Decatur County landed at #1 on this list, there are 8 other really poor counties in Iowa.

There are the 9 poorest counties in Iowa according to Only In Your State: