Salary in Iowa: -8% Below National

Iowa leads the country in corn, soybeans, and pork production while hosting major insurance employers in Des Moines (Principal, Wellmark). Wind energy and food processing round out the economy.

Quick Answer

As of April 2026, salaries in Iowa run -8% below the US national median. Cost of living index: 90 (vs 100 nationally). State income tax applies. Unemployment rate 3%. Iowa leads the country in corn, soybeans, and pork production while hosting major insurance employers in Des Moines (Principal, Wellmark). Wind energy and food processing round out the economy.

Salary Multiplier

0.92×

Cost of Living

Unemployment

Income Tax

Yes

Top Industries in Iowa

AgricultureInsuranceManufacturingRenewable Energy (Wind)Finance

Salaries by Job in Iowa

50 jobs sorted by Iowa median salary.

Job	Category	Median	Top 10%
Physician	Healthcare	$210,956	$368,000
AI Engineer	Technology	$170,200	$294,400
Dentist	Healthcare	$157,237	$262,200
Machine Learning Engineer	Technology	$149,040	$271,400
Marketing Manager	Marketing	$145,618	$202,400
Site Reliability Engineer	Technology	$142,600	$235,290
Lawyer	Legal	$134,099	$230,000
Security Engineer	Technology	$130,640	$215,556
Product Manager	Technology	$127,291	$197,800
Pharmacist	Healthcare	$126,482	$151,800
Sales Manager	Sales	$124,347	$202,400
Cloud Engineer	Technology	$124,200	$204,930
Software Engineer	Technology	$121,688	$191,930
DevOps Engineer	Technology	$119,600	$179,400
HR Manager	Human Resources	$119,600	$184,000
Mobile Developer	Technology	$119,600	$197,340
Nurse Practitioner	Healthcare	$118,211	$161,000
Backend Developer	Technology	$117,760	$194,304
Full Stack Developer	Technology	$110,400	$182,160
Cybersecurity Analyst	Technology	$110,271	$161,000
Frontend Developer	Technology	$108,560	$179,124
Electrical Engineer	Engineering	$101,697	$161,000
Scrum Master	Technology	$101,200	$166,980
Data Scientist	Technology	$99,378	$169,363
Supply Chain Manager	Operations	$96,600	$159,390
Operations Manager	Operations	$94,254	$161,000
Financial Analyst	Finance	$91,899	$161,000
Physical Therapist	Healthcare	$91,733	$119,600
Mechanical Engineer	Engineering	$91,549	$140,760
UX Designer	Design	$90,160	$151,800
Occupational Therapist	Healthcare	$88,660	$115,000
Project Manager	Operations	$88,320	$151,800
Financial Planner	Finance	$88,320	$145,728
Civil Engineer	Engineering	$88,219	$133,041
Customer Success Manager	Operations	$87,400	$144,210
Web Developer	Technology	$85,330	$133,400
QA Engineer	Technology	$84,640	$139,656
Business Analyst	Operations	$81,567	$133,400
Content Marketing Manager	Marketing	$80,960	$133,584
Registered Nurse	Healthcare	$79,184	$122,066
Data Analyst	Technology	$77,280	$127,512
Accountant	Finance	$73,490	$122,075
Recruiter	Human Resources	$69,000	$113,850
Executive Assistant	Operations	$66,240	$109,296
Social Media Manager	Marketing	$66,240	$109,296
Copywriter	Marketing	$66,240	$109,296
Teacher	Education	$59,929	$94,042
Paralegal	Legal	$57,040	$94,116
Graphic Designer	Design	$55,412	$87,400
Real Estate Agent	Sales	$52,090	$151,800

Methodology

Iowa salary figures are computed by adjusting the BLS national median for each job by Iowa's state-level multiplier of 0.92× — a composite of state-level OEWS data and BEA Regional Price Parities. Last reviewed April 29, 2026.

Data Sources

Other States

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana

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