Kossuth County, Iowa Demographics

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

Kossuth 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
  • B
    Income Around average
  • D
    Education Well below average
    Less educated than 71% of counties in Iowa

Source: Map AI Methodology

Kossuth County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Kossuth County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Population 14,516 3,204,793 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 14.9 57.0 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.60% 0.41% 0.59%
Median age 43.1 36.8 37.3
Households 6,543 1,308,457 130,235,071

Population in Kossuth County declined by 6.3% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14,516 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Kossuth County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Kossuth County is Boomers, aged 61–79, at 22.6% of residents. That is 5.0 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 49.8% of the people living in Kossuth County and men 50.2%.

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Economy

Kossuth County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.

Metric Kossuth County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $67,165 $75,133 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 2.63% 3.99% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 1.9% 3.6% 5.2%

The median household income in Kossuth County is about 11% lower than in Iowa.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Kossuth County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $39,687 $153,425 $248,835
Median rent $858 $971 $1,407
Homeownership rate 78.6% 71.7% 65.2%

The median home price in Kossuth County is about 3.9 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $858 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Kossuth County spend about 25 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 104 hours, about 4.3 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Kossuth County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 12.4 17.0 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 24.9 33.9 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 104 141 187
Estimated yearly cost $3,212 $4,382 $5,790
Work from home 7.2% 11.3% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) — 4,993 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 261 606 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 Kossuth County is 12 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

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

Metric Kossuth County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 18.4% 27.9% 31.6%
Average household size 2.17 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

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

Metric Kossuth County Iowa Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 79.8 79.2 78.3
Self-rated poor health 14.2% 13.6% 16.3%
Smokers 16.9% 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 Kossuth County, Iowa.

How big is Kossuth County, Iowa by population?

About 14,516 people live in Kossuth County, Iowa, in 6,543 households of 2.2 people on average. The median age is 43.1, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.

Is Kossuth County, Iowa urban or rural?

Averaged over its land area, Kossuth County, Iowa has 15 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 17% of the U.S. average of 86.

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

The median home costs 0.6 times the median household income ($39,687 against $67,165), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $858 a month takes about 15% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

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

Unemployment in Kossuth County, Iowa is only 1.9%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.

How educated are people in Kossuth County, Iowa?

18.4% of adults in Kossuth County, Iowa hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 5), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.

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