Cost of living in Iowa City, Iowa
Simple answer
Typical rent is $1,094 a month.
Iowa City is a city in Iowa. That rent number includes utilities. A typical household earns $58,546 a year.
- People
- 75,752
- Census average, 2020–2024
- Typical rent
- $1,094
- Median gross rent, includes utilities
- Typical pay
- $58,546
- Median household income, yearly
- Typical home
- $285,900
- Median home value
- 2-bedroom fair rent
- $1,180
- Iowa City, IA HUD Metro FMR Area
Iowa City, Iowa has about 75,752 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.
A typical home is worth about $285,900.
HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Johnson County is $1,180 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Iowa City. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.
In the Iowa City, IA metro area, prices sit at 91.5 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.
Iowa taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 6.9% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Iowa City's exact store tax.
Some places in Iowa add a local wage tax. In 2023 the state average was about 0.08% of income. That is not a Iowa City bill.
In July 2026, a typical Iowa home paid 15.99¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Iowa City's bill.
EIA did not publish a 2025 all-grades gas price for Iowa in the table we use.
Among 264 places we list in Iowa with a rent figure, 31 have higher typical rent than Iowa City.
Nearby places
- University Heights
Typical rent $1,588
Compare with Iowa City - Coralville
Typical rent $1,057
Compare with Iowa City - Tiffin
Typical rent $1,224
Compare with Iowa City - North Liberty
Typical rent $1,246
Compare with Iowa City - West Branch
Typical rent $1,053
Compare with Iowa City - Solon
Typical rent $1,127
Compare with Iowa City - Lone Tree
Typical rent $963
Compare with Iowa City - Kalona
Typical rent $853
Compare with Iowa City
EBT nearby
USDA has a live map of stores that take SNAP. We did not copy that store list here. The downloadable file is a history file for 2005 through 2025, so the live map is the one to use.
Locator page updated 2026-09-11. Last checked 2026-10-16.
Food stamps (SNAP) tools in Iowa
Bigger places in Iowa
Census 2020-2024. HUD rents for October 2026–September 2027. BEA prices for 2024. Taxes as of January 1, 2026. Checked 2026-10-16. 15,000 places are in this guide.