ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Pottawattamie County, Iowa

FIPS 19155 · Omaha, NE-IA · Population 93,424
9 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
$73,602
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.8%
Unemployment
4% national
$6.3B
GDP
23.6%
Bachelor's+
35.7% national

Demographics & Population

Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 · 5-Year Estimates

Household Income

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
Median Household
$73,602
Per Capita
$37,477
Mean Household
$91,780
Poverty Rate
12.1%
Median Income Comparison
Pottawattamie County$73,602
Iowa$75,059
National$80,734

Population Profile

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
65+: 18.7% (17,508 residents) 55-64: 13.6% (12,727 residents) 35-54: 24.1% (22,556 residents) 18-34: 20.6% (19,226 residents) Under 18: 22.9% (21,407 residents) 40 Median Age
Cohorts
Under 18 · 22.9%
18-34 · 20.6%
35-54 · 24.1%
55-64 · 13.6%
65+ · 18.7%
Race & Ethnicity
White87.5%
Black or African American1.9%
Asian0.9%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)9.1%
Hispanic or Latino is an ethnic category and overlaps with the race categories above.

Educational Attainment

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · Population 25+
90.7%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +1.1 pts
23.6%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 12.1 pts
7.9%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 6.2 pts

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
93,424
Population
47,186
Labor Force
Employed
45,291
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.8% ▲ +0.6 pts YoY
Mean Commute 7 min below national avg
19.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.8%
Key Takeaways
  • Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 12.1 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.

Economy & Industry

Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis

$6.3B
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis · CAGDP1 Regional GDP

Top Industries by Employment

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics · Quarterly Census of Employment & Wages 2025 Annual
Top industries by employment in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Manufacturing
5,627 18.0%
$65,734
2Health Care and Social Assistance
5,599 17.9%
$64,002
3Retail Trade
5,393 17.3%
$35,597
4Accommodation and Food Services
5,184 16.6%
$29,345
5Transportation and Warehousing
2,307 7.4%
$52,600
6Construction
2,267 7.3%
$74,809
7Administrative and Support and Waste Management
2,076 6.7%
$62,661
8Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
1,090 3.5%
$88,716
9Finance and Insurance
869 2.8%
$79,780
10Other Services (except Public Administration)
802 2.6%
$51,495
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Manufacturing employs 5,627 workers (18% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $65,734.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $6.3B (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $88,716 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $29,345, a 3.0x spread in the same local economy, with implications for workforce development and talent strategy.
Source: BLS QCEW + BEA Regional GDP.
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Industry Concentration

Location Quotient measures regional specialization vs. national average. LQ > 1.0 = concentrated.

Location Quotient Analysis

Concentrated Industries
Source: BLS QCEW · 3-digit NAICS sub-sector · Location Quotient vs. national employment share
Same source as the Top Industries table above, sub-sector view surfaces the specialization the supersector view masks (e.g., Plastics & Rubber Manufacturing inside the Manufacturing supersector).
Food Manufacturing
8.25x
3,931
Accommodation
3.81x
1,961
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
3.41x
100
Support Activities for Transportation
2.99x
656
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.75x
774
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
2.27x
427
Truck Transportation
1.73x
685
General Merchandise Retailers
1.64x
1,426
Nursing and Residential Care Facilities
1.52x
1,399

Cluster Depth

Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Dominant Cluster
Manufacturing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
4,458
Cluster Employment
8.25x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Food Manufacturing
8.25x 3,931
Accommodation
3.81x 1,961
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
3.41x 100
Support Activities for Transportation
2.99x 656
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.75x 774
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
2.27x 427
Truck Transportation
1.73x 685
General Merchandise Retailers
1.64x 1,426
Nursing and Residential Care Facilities
1.52x 1,399

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.18x
Securities, Commodity Contracts, Investments
52 employed
0.38x
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
1,090 employed
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Food Manufacturing concentrates at 8.25x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
  • Cluster depth: 9 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base rather than reliance on a single employer or sector.
  • Attraction whitespace: 7 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5, candidates for diversification or recruitment depending on labor-market fit.
Source: BLS QCEW sub-sector Location Quotients.
Pottawattamie County's Top Sectors by Workforce Share
Each rectangle's area is proportional to that sector's share of total private-sector employment across all NAICS supersectors. Hover for exact employment.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW 2025 Annual · Private sector, NAICS supersectors

Housing & Affordability

Census ACS · HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026

Housing Overview

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates · Tables B25001, B25077, B25064
$195,700
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,018
Rent/Mo
69.9%
Owner-Occ
6.1%
Vacancy
2.7x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Affordable
vs. ~4.1x national average

HUD Fair Market Rents

Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,090/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,148/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,368/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,813/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,046/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,840/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
  • Affordable market: Home value to income ratio of 2.7x is well below the ~4.1x national average; supports talent attraction and family settlement narratives.
  • Affordable rent tiers: 4 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,840/mo).
Source: Census ACS housing tables + HUD Fair Market Rents.

Workforce Pipeline

Labor force readiness, commuting, and workforce composition

Labor Market Overview

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B23025, B08303, B08301
54,509
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 7 min below national avg
19.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.8%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
82.9%
of prime-age population
Labor force participation rate: 65.5% of working-age population (18-64) 66% Participation
▼ vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
23.6%
HS Diploma+
90.7%
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
28,295/yr
University of Iowa 9,271/yr
Iowa State University 8,469/yr
Des Moines Area Community College 4,028/yr
University of Northern Iowa 2,755/yr
Kirkwood Community College 2,365/yr
Iowa Western Community College 1,407/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
23.3%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Elevated retirement risk, above the 20% threshold. Succession planning recommended.

Workforce by Occupation

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
34.3%
Service
16.4%
Sales & Office
21%
Construction / Maint.
10.2%
Production / Transport
18.1%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 45,291 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Succession risk is real: 23.3% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.
  • Short commutes: 19.8-minute mean commute is a quality-of-life and labor-access advantage worth surfacing for site selectors.
  • Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 21,768 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.

AI Insights

AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources

Sample AI Insight

Pottawattamie County shows strong potential for food manufacturing attraction, with a 8.25x concentration and 3,931 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 23.3% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.

The interconnected base across food manufacturing, accommodation, and petroleum and coal products manufacturing creates supply-chain attraction leverage rather than single-employer risk, a structural advantage for industrial recruitment.

Industry Shift Analysis

Manufacturing Automation Risk
High
Healthcare Growth Forecast
+4.2% CAGR
Remote Work Migration
67/100

Prospect Match Scores

Advanced Manufacturing
92/100
Life Sciences
84/100
Data Centers
71/100
Illustrative example

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Data Sources

Updated from official federal government data.

Census ACS 5-Year2024
BLS QCEW2025 annual
BLS LAUS (via FRED)2025 annual
BEA Regional GDP2024
Census CBP2023
HUD Fair Market RentsFY2026
FCC Broadband Map2024
USAspending.govFY2026
College ScorecardAY 2022-23

Frequently Asked Questions

Key economic and demographic figures for Pottawattamie County, Iowa, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Pottawattamie County, Iowa?

93,424 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Pottawattamie County, Iowa?

$73,602 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Pottawattamie County, Iowa?

3.8% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Pottawattamie County, Iowa?

$6.3B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).