| ZIP Codes: | 14 ZIP Codes (13 Standard, 1 PO Box, 0 Unique) [See All] |
| Area Code: | 515 |
| Timezone: | Central (GMT -06:00) |
| Local Time: | 11:53:13 PM |
| Population: | 36,787 [See All] |
| FIPS: | 19187 |
| CBSA: | Fort Dodge, IA |
| Land Area: | 694 sq mi |
| Water Area: | 3 sq mi |
| Coordinates: | 42.4260, -94.1862 |
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36,787 residents live across 14 ZIPs covering 694 sq mi, served by 14 distinct USPS-recognized cities.
Population moved from 37,237 to 36,787 from 2014 to 2024 — a -1.2% change. 2 ZIPs gained residents, 12 lost.
The county's wealthiest ZIP 50524 (Clare, $104,375 median) and poorest ZIP 50569 (Otho, $44,375) are 16.8 miles apart — a 2.4× income gap across local geography.
Median home values vary 2.5× across this county — from $96,900 in 50569 (Otho) to $245,300 in 50524 (Clare).
Density varies 22× across the county — from 8 people/sq mi in 50524 (Clare) to 182 in 50501 (Fort Dodge).
Educational attainment ranges from 3.1% bachelor's+ in 50518 (Barnum) to 31.6% in 50543 (Gowrie) — the breadth of educational profiles across the area.
Within Iowa, this is the #17 most populous of 99 counties and ranks #44 for median household income .
Weighted by population, the typical household earns about $68,703 across the county — reflecting what a typical resident sees, not a simple ZIP average.
22.0% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher (5,436 of 24,689 reporting).
13 Standard delivery, 1 PO Box only, 0 single-entity Unique ZIPs serve this county.
A frontier county — vast land area with only a few residents per square mile. Daily life looks very different here than in the country's denser counties.
One ZIP holds the majority of this county's population — a sign of a county built around a single city or town.
| ZIP | City | Type | Population | Median Income | Area (sq mi) | 10-yr Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50501 | Fort Dodge | Standard | 28,823 | $66,888 | 158.8 | 3.1% |
| 50543 | Gowrie | Standard | 1,420 | $91,563 | 77.3 | -2.5% |
| 50530 | Dayton | Standard | 1,090 | $73,250 | 63.6 | -16.0% |
| 50557 | Lehigh | Standard | 804 | $62,750 | 48.4 | -6.0% |
| 50532 | Duncombe | Standard | 804 | $65,000 | 80.6 | -6.3% |
| 50523 | Callender | Standard | 682 | $85,781 | 40.9 | -26.1% |
| 50516 | Badger | Standard | 586 | $69,500 | 22.9 | -10.7% |
| 50544 | Harcourt | Standard | 565 | $59,620 | 33.9 | -6.0% |
| 50569 | Otho | Standard | 551 | $44,375 | 18.9 | -33.3% |
| 50524 | Clare | Standard | 439 | $104,375 | 54.3 | -31.2% |
| 50518 | Barnum | Standard | 365 | $97,857 | 30.7 | -17.4% |
| 50566 | Moorland | Standard | 325 | $78,750 | 35.3 | -17.5% |
| 50594 | Vincent | Standard | 288 | $67,000 | 27.2 | -1.4% |
| 50521 | Burnside | PO Box | 45 | — | 1.2 | 25.0% |