Cost of living in Waterloo, Iowa

Waterloo, Iowa has about 67,008 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.

A typical home is worth about $152,600.

HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Black Hawk County is $1,096 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Waterloo. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.

In the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area, prices sit at 87.1 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 Waterloo'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 Waterloo bill.

In July 2026, a typical Iowa home paid 15.99¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Waterloo's bill.

EIA does not publish a Iowa gasoline price. For the week of October 12, 2026, the Midwest (PADD 2) all-grades price was $4.237 a gallon. At 12,000 miles a year and 25 mpg, the index counts that as $2,033.76 a year. Those miles are our standard, not a Census figure, and every town in Iowa shares this price.

Among 264 places we list in Iowa with a rent figure, 93 have higher typical rent than Waterloo.