Emmet County, Iowa Demographics

Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.

Emmet County, IA Population Density Map and Area Scores

Area Score

Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.

  • B
    Health Around average
    Less healthy than 78% of counties in Iowa
  • C
    Income Below average
    Less wealthy than 72% of counties in Iowa
  • D
    Education Well below average

Source: Map AI Methodology

Emmet County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Emmet County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Population 9,262 3,204,793 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 23.0 57.0 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.73% 0.41% 0.59%
Median age 41.9 36.8 37.3
Households 4,063 1,308,457 130,235,071

Population in Emmet County declined by 10.8% from 2010 to 2024, reaching 9,262 in 2024.

Population Growth 2010–2024

Year Emmet County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Emmet County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 21.4% of residents. That is 3.7 points above Iowa as a whole.

Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Iowa, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.

Male and female share

Women are 49.5% of the people living in Emmet County and men 50.5%.

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Economy

Emmet County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.

Metric Emmet County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $62,786 $75,133 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 4.17% 3.99% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 1.7% 3.6% 5.2%

The median household income in Emmet County is about 16% lower than in Iowa.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Emmet County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $93,695 $153,425 $248,835
Median rent $732 $971 $1,407
Homeownership rate 79.4% 71.7% 65.2%

The median home price in Emmet County is about 10.7 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $732 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Emmet County spend about 26 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 110 hours, about 4.6 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Emmet County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 13.2 17.0 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 26.4 33.9 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 110 141 187
Estimated yearly cost $3,409 $4,382 $5,790
Work from home 6.8% 11.3% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) 1,631 4,993 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 227 606 1,355

Fastest commutes among counties in Iowa: Sioux County (10.1 min), Union County (10.4 min), Cass County (10.6 min).
Slowest: Monroe County (30.4 min), Madison County (30.1 min), Mills County (26.7 min).

The average commute time in Emmet County is 13 minutes, shorter than the 17 minutes in Iowa.

Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.

Commute and transport details →

Education & Households

Emmet County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.

Metric Emmet County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 14.3% 27.9% 31.6%
Average household size 2.14 2.37 2.53

Highest education index among counties in Iowa: Johnson County (0.4), Dallas County (0.4), Story County (0.4).
Lowest: Crawford County (0.2), Wayne County (0.2), Louisa County (0.2).

Health

Emmet County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.

Metric Emmet County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 77.8 79.2 78.3
Self-rated poor health 14.1% 13.6% 16.3%
Smokers 17.2% 17.6% 19.0%

Highest health index among counties in Iowa: Johnson County (0.8), Story County (0.8), Winneshiek County (0.8).
Lowest: Davis County (0.8), Wayne County (0.8), Appanoose County (0.8).

Full health data →

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Emmet County, Iowa.

What is the population of Emmet County, Iowa?

About 9,262 people live in Emmet County, Iowa, in 4,063 households of 2.1 people on average. The median age is 41.9, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 5 years.

Is Emmet County, Iowa mostly urban or rural?

Averaged over its land area, Emmet County, Iowa has 23 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 27% of the U.S. average of 86.

Can a typical household afford a home in Emmet County, Iowa?

The median home costs 1.5 times the median household income ($93,695 against $62,786), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $732 a month takes about 14% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

How strong is the job market in Emmet County, Iowa?

Unemployment in Emmet County, Iowa is only 1.7%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.

How common is a college degree in Emmet County, Iowa?

14.3% of adults in Emmet County, Iowa hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 7), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.

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