State crime profile · 2024

Iowa Crime Rates: Safest & Most Dangerous Cities

Crime data for 148 cities and 87 counties in Iowa (IA), ranked safest to most dangerous from 282 reporting agencies.

238.5
Violent / 100K
1,286.3
Property / 100K
148
Cities
87
Counties

The verdict

Iowa's 238.5 violent crimes per 100,000 runs 32% below the U.S. average, making it safer than most states.

238.5
violent crimes per 100K
-32%
vs. the U.S. average
16th
safest of 51 states & DC
1,286.3
property crimes per 100K

How safe is Iowa? FBI UCR data snapshot

Iowa (IA) reported 7,730 violent crimes and 41,694 property crimes in 2024, based on FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program submissions from 282 law enforcement agencies. That translates to a statewide violent crime rate of 238.5 per 100,000 residents and a property crime rate of 1286.3 per 100,000 against a reporting population of 3,241,488. The PlainCrime dataset indexes 148 Iowa cities and 87 counties, each with their own detail pages and local crime figures drawn from FBI UCR Tables 8 and 10.

Within the statewide violent crime total, aggravated assault accounted for 0 incidents, robbery 0, murder and non-negligent manslaughter 0, and rape 0. Property crime splits across larceny-theft (0), burglary (0), motor vehicle theft (0), and arson (0).

Across 11 years of state-level UCR history (2014–2024), the violent crime rate moved from 264.7 to 238.5 per 100,000, a decline of 9.9%. City-level detail pages within Iowa include safety grades (A+ to F), benchmarks against national averages, per-capita risk estimates, and multi-year trend tables for users comparing specific jurisdictions. All figures above are drawn from FBI UCR 2024 submissions; reporting completeness varies by agency, and the FBI periodically restates prior-year figures as late submissions arrive.

State figures roll up the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) submissions from local and county agencies across the state, then express them per 100,000 residents so one state can be compared with another. Statewide averages hide a great deal of variation: a handful of large cities often account for much of a state's reported violent crime, while most of its land area and population live with markedly lower rates. Reporting completeness also differs between states, so a year-over-year change can reflect which agencies filed data as much as any real shift on the ground. Read a state number as the broad backdrop, then drill into the city and county pages for the local detail that actually shapes day-to-day decisions.

Violent Crime Rate
238.5/100K
Property Crime Rate
1286.3/100K
Population
3,241,488
Data Year
2024

How Iowa ranks nationally

Iowa vs. every U.S. state

Violent crime per 100,000 residents, FBI UCR 2024. Lower is safer.

239 Safer than 69% lower than 69% of 51 U.S. states

0–100: 0 U.S. states (0%). Below this entry. 100–200: 6 U.S. states (12%). Below this entry. 200–300: 18 U.S. states (35%). This entry sits in this band. 300–400: 10 U.S. states (20%). Above this entry. 400–500: 12 U.S. states (24%). Above this entry. 500–600: 1 U.S. states (2%). Above this entry. 600–700: 2 U.S. states (4%). Above this entry. 700–800: 1 U.S. states (2%). Above this entry. 800–900: 0 U.S. states (0%). Above this entry. 900–1,000: 0 U.S. states (0%). Above this entry. 1,000–1,100: 1 U.S. states (2%). Above this entry. 1,100+: 0 U.S. states (0%). Above this entry. IA 0 1,100+ every state & DC, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band of values; taller bars hold more U.S. states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program · 2024

Safest Cities

Top 50 by lowest violent crime rate

Most Dangerous Cities

Top 50 by highest violent crime rate

Crime Trends

Multi-year charts & analysis

Crime Trends

Year Population Violent Crime Rate Property Crime Rate
2024 3,241,488 7,730 238.5 41,694 1286.3
2023 3,207,004 8,524 265.8 45,366 1414.6
2022 3,200,517 8,885 277.6 43,637 1363.4
2021 3,193,079 9,024 282.6 46,812 1466
2020 3,163,561 9,621 304.1 53,462 1689.9
2019 3,155,070 8,914 282.5 57,810 1832.3
2018 3,156,145 7,023 222.5 47,944 1519.1
2017 3,145,711 8,950 284.5 65,326 2076.7
2016 3,134,693 9,012 287.5 65,386 2085.9
2015 3,123,899 8,488 271.7 64,126 2052.8
2014 3,107,126 8,226 264.7 63,714 2050.6

Cities in Iowa

Safest cities in Iowa

Cities with 25,000+ residents, lowest violent crime per 100,000, FBI UCR 2024. Hover a bar for the exact rate.

/100K

What this shows Urbandale is the safest sizeable city in Iowa, at 89.1 violent crimes per 100,000.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024

Highest violent-crime cities in Iowa

Cities with 25,000+ residents, highest violent crime per 100,000, FBI UCR 2024. Hover a bar for the exact rate.

/100K

What this shows Des Moines reports the highest big-city violent-crime rate in Iowa, at 703 per 100,000.

Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024
Iowa's largest cities — violent vs. property crime. X axis violent crime per 100K, Y axis property crime per 100K, split by the national averages. 14 cities; the anchor city is ringed. Iowa's largest cities — violent vs. property crime SAFEST HIGHEST CRIME 80 759 Violent crime per 100K → 448 3,824 Property crime per 100K → Des Moines: 703 violent · 3,127 property per 100K · grade F Des Moines Cedar Rapids: 262 violent · 2,689 property per 100K · grade C Cedar Rapids Davenport: 581 violent · 3,541 property per 100K · grade F Davenport Sioux City: 555 violent · 3,324 property per 100K · grade F Sioux City Ankeny: 166 violent · 1,022 property per 100K · grade A Iowa City: 321 violent · 1,674 property per 100K · grade C West Des Moines: 165 violent · 1,714 property per 100K · grade B Waterloo: 476 violent · 2,445 property per 100K · grade D Ames: 148 violent · 1,506 property per 100K · grade B Council Bluffs: 421 violent · 2,452 property per 100K · grade D Dubuque: 401 violent · 1,435 property per 100K · grade C Urbandale: 89 violent · 635 property per 100K · grade A Marion: 123 violent · 497 property per 100K · grade A Bettendorf: 105 violent · 868 property per 100K · grade A Safety grade A / B C D / F
Source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program · split lines are Iowa's statewide averages · the four largest cities are labeled
City Population Violent / 100K Grade
Des Moines 209,245 703 F
Cedar Rapids 135,363 261.5 C
Davenport 99,926 581.4 F
Sioux City 85,711 555.4 F
Ankeny 76,547 165.9 A
Iowa City 75,934 321.3 C
West Des Moines 73,335 165 B
Waterloo 66,385 476 D
Ames 65,426 148.3 B
Council Bluffs 62,269 420.8 D
Dubuque 58,620 400.9 C
Urbandale 47,119 89.1 A
Marion 42,420 122.6 A
Bettendorf 40,105 104.7 A
Waukee 34,520 141.9 A
Marshalltown 27,576 297.4 C
Mason City 26,786 224 C
Ottumwa 25,185 397.1 D
Johnston 24,819 76.6 A
Fort Dodge 24,502 1,061.1 F
Clinton 24,171 359.9 C
Coralville 24,033 133.2 B
Burlington 23,444 413.8 C
Muscatine 23,208 245.6 B
Altoona 22,422 142.7 B
North Liberty 21,635 69.3 A+
Clive 19,124 209.2 B
Indianola 16,104 273.2 B
Newton 15,611 384.3 C
Norwalk 15,588 109.1 A
Spencer 11,501 52.2 A
Storm Lake 11,494 287.1 C
Oskaloosa 11,419 140.1 A
Pella 10,940 109.7 A
Le Mars 10,624 94.1 A
Waverly 10,611 141.4 A
Carroll 10,118 39.5 A
Fort Madison 9,964 281 C
Grinnell 9,451 169.3 B
Keokuk 9,392 287.5 C
Fairfield 9,251 140.5 A
Sioux Center 8,643 46.3 A+
Mount Pleasant 8,371 47.8 A
Denison 8,037 124.4 A
Perry 8,022 398.9 C
Webster City 7,679 286.5 B
Decorah 7,578 118.8 A
Clear Lake 7,536 252.1 B
Knoxville 7,387 324.9 C
Creston 7,345 272.3 B
Hiawatha 7,230 359.6 C
Washington 7,221 221.6 B
Charles City 7,177 320.5 B
Eldridge 6,886 43.6 A+
Atlantic 6,778 368.8 C
Adel 6,577 76 A
Polk City 6,557 30.5 A+
Orange City 6,438 46.6 A+
Independence 6,221 160.7 A
Maquoketa 6,029 248.8 C
Asbury 6,022 99.6 A
Estherville 5,808 275.5 B
Anamosa 5,791 103.6 A
Oelwein 5,753 208.6 B
Osceola 5,617 160.2 B
DeWitt 5,611 249.5 B
Spirit Lake 5,557 341.9 C
Red Oak 5,417 276.9 B
Sheldon 5,396 370.6 C
Winterset 5,373 186.1 A
Centerville 5,323 263 B
Algona 5,298 94.4 A
Manchester 5,295 132.2 A
Clarinda 5,286 283.8 B
Glenwood 5,218 57.5 A
Cherokee 5,158 213.3 A
Windsor Heights 5,011 219.5 C
Iowa Falls 4,974 201 B
Vinton 4,960 60.5 A+
Shenandoah 4,872 656.8 D
Le Claire 4,755 126.2 A
Huxley 4,746 21.1 A+
Dyersville 4,575 21.9 A+
Mount Vernon-Lisbon 4,555 197.6 A
Camanche 4,546 198 A
Evansdale 4,468 134.3 B
Carlisle 4,381 114.1 A
Hampton 4,253 94.1 A
Jefferson 4,074 98.2 A
Monticello 4,059 0 A+
Rock Valley 4,038 0 A+
Cresco 3,895 102.7 A
Waukon 3,761 26.6 A+
Carter Lake 3,749 560.1 F
West Liberty 3,688 379.6 B
Albia 3,640 576.9 D
Emmetsburg 3,599 305.6 B
Osage 3,505 114.1 A
Story City 3,403 58.8 A
New Hampton 3,399 88.3 A+
Showing the 100 largest of 148 reporting cities. Open a city for its full grade and breakdown, or see the safest and most dangerous rankings.

Counties in Iowa

Largest counties in Iowa, violent crime per 100K

Top 8 counties by population, violent crime per 100,000 residents. Hover a bar for the exact rate.

/100K
Source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program As of 2024
Adair
Adams
Allamakee
Appanoose
Benton
Black Hawk
Boone
Bremer
Buchanan
Buena Vista
Butler
Cass
Cedar
Cerro Gordo
Cherokee
Chickasaw
Clarke
Clay
Clayton
Clinton
Crawford
Dallas
Davis
Delaware
Des Moines
Dubuque
Emmet
Fayette
Floyd
Franklin
Fremont
Greene
Grundy
Guthrie
Hamilton
Hancock
Hardin
Henry
Humboldt
Ida
Iowa
Jackson
Jasper
Jefferson
Johnson
Jones
Keokuk
Kossuth
Lee
Linn
Louisa
Lucas
Lyon
Madison
Mahaska
Marion
Mills
Mitchell
Monona
Muscatine
O'Brien
Osceola
Page
Palo Alto
Plymouth
Pocahontas
Polk
Pottawattamie
Poweshiek
Sac
Scott
Shelby
Sioux
Story
Tama
Taylor
Union
Van Buren
Wapello
Warren
Washington
Wayne
Webster
Winneshiek
Woodbury
Worth
Wright

Nearby States

Compare Iowa with neighboring states, or use the compare tool for side-by-side jurisdiction benchmarking.

Illinois
IL
Indiana
IN
Kansas
KS
Kentucky
KY
Louisiana
LA

Explore Iowa crime data

Safest cities → Most dangerous cities → Crime trends → National rankings → Crime grades → Methodology →

Primary source: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, Crime in the United States annual release. State-level trends cross-check against the FBI Crime Data Explorer (CDE) API.

Population figures for rate calculations reference U.S. Census Bureau estimates where FBI-reported populations are unavailable. Verify with Census.gov QuickFacts.

Read our methodology , how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Using PlainCrime rankings responsibly

Crime rankings are most useful when they sit alongside other community-quality signals, school performance, housing affordability, employment, and access to healthcare. A safer-than-average violent-crime rate in a small commuter suburb does not by itself make a city a better place to live; it is one data point among many. Likewise, a higher-than-average rate in a dense urban center may reflect that residents and visitors interact with police more often, not that the city is necessarily unsafe for its residents. We provide cross-links from each city profile to neighboring jurisdictions, state averages, and national benchmarks so you can read each number in context rather than in isolation.

For news outlets, researchers, and concerned residents who cite our rankings, the most defensible approach is to quote the per-100,000 rate, the reporting year, and the source agency in the same sentence. Avoid framing crime statistics as predictive, UCR data describes what was reported in a past year, not what will happen tomorrow. Where possible, pair our rankings with longitudinal trend data on the relevant city's profile page to show whether the rate is moving up, holding steady, or falling year over year.