Cedar Falls ranks #6 in Iowa for kids’ library use
Cedar Falls is ranked on 38 lists against the 143 Iowa towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 1 and the top quarter on 9.
Younger than 97% of Iowa
Not better or worse, just Cedar Falls’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
The lists Cedar Falls does best on
Each list ranks every IA town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Cedar Falls marked.
1 spot from the top 25 for library visits
Lists where Cedar Falls sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Cedar Falls lands in the top half on 17 of 25 lists
Each dot is Cedar Falls’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in IA, the right end is last. Areas where Cedar Falls does best come first.
Cedar Falls out-ranks 1 of its 2 ranked neighbors
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Where Cedar Falls lands in every IA ranking
41 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
People
Most educated#1 Ames · 65.8%
#19
Youngest#1 Postville · 23.2
#5
Oldest#1 Jefferson · 53.6
#139
Most residents 65+#1 Jefferson · 31.5%
#105
Most kids#1 Postville · 39.6%
#134 Health
Healthiest#1 Solon · 95 / 100
#35
Lowest obesity#1 Solon · 29%
#44
Fewest smokers#1 North Liberty · 10%
#31
Most active#1 North Liberty · 15%
#17
Fewest uninsured#1 Robins · 4%
#23
Lowest depression#1 West Liberty · 17%
#111
Closest to a top hospital#1 Spencer · 0.5 mi
#34 Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Storm Lake · 10.1 min
#23 Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Coralville · 12.9 per resident
#26
Most library borrowing#1 Orange City · 18.6 per resident
#14
Best libraries for kids#1 Ames · 53.4 per child
#6 
Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Polk City · 65.8%
#61
Most trails#1 Asbury · 2.5 mi / sq mi
#66
Most walkable#1 Sibley · 100 / sq mi
#71 Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Clear Lake · 18.8%
#65
Most new homes#1 Tiffin · 41.1 per 1,000
#75
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Sibley · +84.5%
#91
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Tama · 11.0 per home
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Chariton · 1.1 yrs
#111
Cheapest rent#1 Emmetsburg · $624/mo
#123
Lowest property tax#1 Fort Madison · $1,420/yr
#111
Rent easiest to afford#1 Grimes · 27.9%
#45 Climate
Snowiest#1 Mason City · 44 in
#15
Least snow#1 Fort Madison · 18 in
#125
Mildest winters#1 Keokuk · 17.6°
#101
Hottest summers#1 Council Bluffs · 86.6°
#104
Coolest summers#1 Waukon · 81.1°
#35
Longest growing season#1 Keokuk · 198 days
#64
Wettest#1 Keokuk · 40 in
#62 Safety
Safest#1 Rock Valley · 2.3
The number on the right is Cedar Falls’s spot. All of Iowa’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every IA list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.