Iowa Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! === Settlements === [[File:Iowa pop 00 to 09.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Percent population changes by counties in Iowa, 2000–2009. Dark green counties have gains of more than 5%.<ref>Data from U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. Modeled after Iowa Data Center Map, [http://www.iowadatacenter.org/maps/copercent2009 Iowadatacenter.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117082408/http://www.iowadatacenter.org/maps/copercent2009 |date=January 17, 2013 }}</ref>]] {{See also|List of cities in Iowa|List of largest Iowa cities by population}}Iowa's population is more urban than rural, with 61 percent living in urban areas in 2000, a trend that began in the early 20th century.<ref name="data.iowadatacenter.org"/> Urban counties in Iowa grew 8.5% from 2000 to 2008, while rural counties declined by 4.2%.<ref>Iowans still flocking to cities, census stats show. ''Cedar Rapids Gazette'', June 30, 2009, [http://www.gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090701/NEWS/707019956/1001/NEWS Gazetteonline.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330082817/http://www.gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20090701%2FNEWS%2F707019956%2F1001%2FNEWS |date=March 30, 2012 }}</ref> The shift from rural to urban has caused population increases in more urbanized counties such as [[Dallas County, Iowa|Dallas]], [[Johnson County, Iowa|Johnson]], [[Linn County, Iowa|Linn]], [[Polk County, Iowa|Polk]], and [[Scott County, Iowa|Scott]], at the expense of more rural counties.<ref>U.S. Census Bureau State and County Quick Facts, [http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/19000.html Census.gov] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527093102/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/19000.html |date=May 27, 2010 }}</ref> Iowa, in common with other Midwestern states (especially [[Kansas]], [[Nebraska]], [[North Dakota]], and [[South Dakota]]), is feeling the brunt of [[rural flight]], although Iowa has been gaining population since approximately 1990. Some smaller communities, such as [[Denison, Iowa|Denison]] and [[Storm Lake, Iowa|Storm Lake]], have mitigated this population loss through gains in immigrant laborers.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/14/books/14grim.html|work=The New York Times|first=William|last=Grimes|title=In This Small Town in Iowa the Future Speaks Spanish|date=September 14, 2005|access-date=February 19, 2017|archive-date=February 9, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140209162307/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/14/books/14grim.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Another demographic problem for Iowa is the [[brain drain]], in which educated young adults leave the state in search of better prospects in higher education or employment. During the 1990s, Iowa had the second highest exodus rate for single, educated young adults, second only to North Dakota.<ref>''Iowa Brain Drain'', Iowa Civic Analysis Network, University of Iowa, [http://www.uiowa.edu/~ican/Papers%202006/braindrain122806.pdf Uiowa.edu] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412193400/http://www.uiowa.edu/~ican/Papers%202006/braindrain122806.pdf |date=April 12, 2012 }}</ref> {|class="wikitable sortable" |+Iowa's largest cities and their surrounding areas<br /><small>Recorded by the [[United States Census Bureau]]</small> |- ! scope="col" |Rank ! scope="col" class="unsortable" |City ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;" |2020 city population<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2020|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=June 8, 2021|archive-date=December 27, 1996|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961227012639/https://www.census.gov/|url-status=live}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;" |[[2010 United States Census|2010]] city population<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|title=Population 2010—Iowa Cities|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=August 4, 2011|archive-date=December 27, 1996|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961227012639/https://www.census.gov/|url-status=live}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;" |Change ! scope="col" class="unsortable" |[[Metropolitan Statistical Area]] ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;"|2020 metro population<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |title=Estimates of Resident Population Change and Rankings: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2020—United States—Metropolitan Statistical Area; and for Puerto Rico |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=June 8, 2021 |archive-date=December 27, 1996 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961227012639/https://www.census.gov/ |url-status=live }}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;"|2010 metro population ! scope="col" style="width: 5em;"|2020 metro change |- align=right |align=center|1 |align=left|[[Des Moines, Iowa|Des Moines]] | {{change|invert=on| 214133 |203433}} |align=left|[[Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA MSA|Des Moines–West Des Moines]] | {{change|invert=on| 707915 |606475}} |- align=right |align=center|2 |align=left|[[Cedar Rapids, Iowa|Cedar Rapids]] | {{change|invert=on| 137710 |126326}} |align=left|[[Cedar Rapids MSA|Cedar Rapids]] | {{change|invert=on| 273885 |257940}} |- align=right |align=center|3 |align=left|[[Davenport, Iowa|Davenport]] | {{change|invert=on| 101724 |99685}} |align=left|[[Davenport-Moline-Rock Island MSA|Quad Cities]] | {{change|invert=on| 382268 |379690}} |- align=right |align=center|4 |align=left|[[Sioux City, Iowa|Sioux City]] | {{change|invert=on| 85797 |82684}} |align=left|[[Sioux City metropolitan area|Sioux City]] | {{change|invert=on| 144996 |143577}} |- align=right |align=center|5 |align=left|[[Iowa City, Iowa|Iowa City]] | {{change|invert=on| 74828 |67862}} |align=left|[[Iowa City metropolitan area|Iowa City]] | {{change|invert=on| 175732 |152586}} |- align=right |align=center|6 |align=left|[[West Des Moines, Iowa|West Des Moines]] | {{change|invert=on| 68723 |56609}} |align=left|Des Moines–West Des Moines |- align=right |align=center|7 |align=left|[[Ankeny, Iowa|Ankeny]] | {{change|invert=on| 67887 |45582}} |align=left| Des Moines–West Des Moines |- align=right |align=center|8 |align=left|[[Waterloo, Iowa|Waterloo]] | {{change|invert=on| 67314 |68406}} |align=left|[[Waterloo – Cedar Falls metropolitan area|Waterloo–Cedar Falls]] | {{change|invert=on| 168314 |167819}} |- align=right |align=center|9 |align=left|[[Ames, Iowa|Ames]] | {{change|invert=on| 66427 |58965}} |align=left|[[Ames, IA MSA|Ames]] | {{change|invert=on| 124514 |115848}} |- align=right |align=center|10 |align=left|[[Council Bluffs, Iowa|Council Bluffs]] | {{change|invert=on| 62799 |62230}} |align=left|[[Omaha – Council Bluffs metropolitan area|Omaha–Council Bluffs]] | {{change|invert=on| 954270 |865350}} |- align=right |align=center|11 |align=left|[[Dubuque, Iowa|Dubuque]] | {{change|invert=on| 59667 |57637}} |align=left|[[Dubuque Metropolitan Area|Dubuque]] | {{change|invert=on| 97590 |93653}} |- align=right |align=center|12 |align=left|[[Urbandale, Iowa|Urbandale]] | {{change|invert=on| 45580 |39463}} |align=left| Des Moines–West Des Moines |- align=right |align=center|13 |align=left|[[Marion, Iowa|Marion]] | {{change|invert=on| 41535 |34768}} |align=left| Cedar Rapids |- align=right |align=center|14 |align=left|[[Cedar Falls, Iowa|Cedar Falls]] | {{change|invert=on| 40713 |39260}} |align=left| Waterloo–Cedar Falls |- align=right |align=center|15 |align=left|[[Bettendorf, Iowa|Bettendorf]] | {{change|invert=on| 39102 |33217}} |align=left| Quad Cities |} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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