Prairie City

Surrounded by Iowa’s tallgrass prairie and located near the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge, Prairie City is a peaceful community filled with people who are warm, welcoming, and proud to call this place home. Within Prairie City’s 1.2 square miles, the city’s Public Works and Parks and Recreation Department operate and maintain four public parks plus numerous ball diamonds and courts, including two regulation tennis courts that are lighted for nighttime use. Conveniently located on Iowa Highway 163 and positioned closely to Interstate 80, Prairie City is just 20 miles from the bustle of larger communities including Des Moines, Newton, Knoxville, and Pella.

Economic Development

Prairie City offers a variety of financial tools to support local businesses such as a Downtown Revitalization Incentive Program, Voluntary Demolition Program, Tax Abatement and Exemption, and Tax Increment Financing. Click here to learn more about these programs.

Learn more about Prairie City here.

Population

Population	2000	2010	2026	2031
Prairie City	1,383	1,680	1,800	1,827

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Population by Age

Population	2026
0-4	101
5-9	107
10-14	115
15-19	176
20-24	141
25-29	76
30-34	96
35-39	115
40-44	122
45-49	123
50-54	134
55-59	97
60-64	92
65-69	92
70-74	89
75-79	58
80-84	38
85+	28
18+	1,370
Median Age	39

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Population by Race

Prairie City	2026
Total	1,800.00
White Alone	94.44%
Black Alone	0.5%
American Indian Alone	0%
Asian Alone	0.78%
Pacific Islander Alone	0%
Some Other Race	0.5%
Two or More Races	3.78%
Hispanic Origin	3.78%
Diversity Index	17.10

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Growth Rate

Prairie City	2026 - 2031
Population	0.30%
Households	0.23%
Families	0.08%
Median Household Income	2%
Per Capita Income	2%

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Housing

Households

Population	2000	2010	2026	2031
Households	560	631	690	698
Housing Units	574	678	714	714
Owner Occupied Units			522	530
Renter Occupied Units			168	168
Vacant Units			24	16

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Home Value

Prairie City	2026	2031
Median Home Value	$193,873	$235,764
Average Home Value	$217,313	$285,708
<$50,000	3	3
$50,000 - $99,999	19	3
$100,000 - $149,999	88	25
$150,000 - $199,999	176	131
$200,000 - $249,999	117	144
$250,000 - $299,999	46	65
$300,000 - $399,999	60	113
$400,000 - $499,999	4	13
$500,000 - $749,999	2	6
$1,000,000 +	1	4

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Housing Year Built

Year Range	Houses Built
2010 or Later	29
2000-2009	91
1990-1999	49
1980-1989	51
1970-1979	146
1960-1969	67
1950-1959	68
1940-1949	19
1939 or Before	172

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Income

Prairie City	2026	2031
Median Household	$84,202	$94,534
Average Household	$99,673	$112,156
Per Capita	$38,208	$42,849

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Household Income

Prairie City	2026
<$15,000	9
$15,000 - $24,999	37
$25,000 - $34,999	29
$35,000 - $49,999	67
$50,000 - $74,999	150
$75,000 - $99,999	119
$100,000 - $149,999	171
$150,000 - $199,999	56
$200,000+	52

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Employees

Commute

Category	Commuters
Workers 16+	835
In-County Residents	287
Out-of-County Residents	548
Drive Alone	635
Carpooled	40
Public Transport	0
Work at Home	132
Motorcycle	0
Bicycle	0
Walked	25
Other	3
Less than 5 minutes	61
5-9 minutes	49
10-14 minutes	31
15-19 minutes	40
20-24 minutes	50
25-29 minutes	98
30-34 minutes	189
35-39 minutes	34
40-44 minutes	85
45-59 minutes	61
60-89 minutes	3
90+ minutes	2
Average Travel Time	0

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Employees by NAICS

Category	Number
Total Employees	401
Agr/Forestry/Fish/Hunt	0
Mining	0
Utilities	0
Construction	41
Manufacturing	6
Wholesale Trade	0

Retail Trade	38
Motor Veh/Parts Dealers	0
Furn & Home Furnish Str	0
Electronics & Appl Store	1
Bldg Matl/Garden Equip	0
Food & Beverage Stores	17
Health/Pers Care Stores	20
Gasoline Stations	0
Clothing/Accessory Store	0
Sports/Hobby/Book/Music	0
General Merchandise Str	0

Transportation/Warehouse	29
Information	1

Finance & Insurance	10
Cntrl Bank/Crdt Intrmdtn	5
Sec/Cmdty Cntrct/Oth Inv	2
Insur/Funds/Trusts/Other	3

Real Estate/Rent/Leasing	3
Prof/Scientific/Tech Srv	10
Legal Services	3
Mgmt of Comp/Enterprises	0
Admin/Support/Waste Mgmt	0
Educational Services	175
HealthCare/Social Assist	16
Arts/Entertainment/Rec	0

Accommodation/Food Srvcs	25
Accommodation	0
Food Srv/Drinking Places	25

Other Srv excl Pub Admin	42
Auto Repair/Maintenance	6
Public Administration Emp	5

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Educational Attainment (25+)

Prairie City	2026
<9th Grade	11
Some High School	24
GED	36
Graduated High School	285
Some College/No Degree	260
Associates Degree	199
Bachelor's Degree	293
Graduate Degree	52

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31

Businesses

Businesses by NAICS

Category	Number
Total Businesses	48
Agr/Forestry/Fish/Hunt Bus	0
Mining Bus	0
Utilities Bus	0
Construction Bus	4
Manufacturing Bus	2
Wholesale Trade Bus	0

Retail Trade Bus	4
Motor Veh/Parts Dealers Bus	0
Furn & Home Furnish Str Bus	0
Electronics & Appl Store Bus	1
Bldg Matl/Garden Equip Bus	0
Food & Beverage Stores Bus	2
Health/Pers Care Stores Bus	1
Gasoline Stations Bus	0
Clothing/Accessory Store Bus	0
Sports/Hobby/Book/Music Bus	0
General Merchandise Str Bus	0

Transportation/Warehouse Bus	3
Information Bus	1

Finance & Insurance Bus	4
Cntrl Bank/Crdt Intrmdtn Bus	1
Sec/Cmdty Cntrct/Oth Inv Bus	1
Insur/Funds/Trusts/Other Bus	2

Real Estate/Rent/Leasing Bus	1
Prof/Scientific/Tech Srv Bus	3
Legal Services Bus	1
Mgmt of Comp/Enterprises Bus	0
Admin/Support/Waste Mgmt Bus	0
Educational Services Bus	4
HealthCare/Social Assist Bus	3
Arts/Entertainment/Rec Bus	0

Accommodation/Food Srvcs Bus	1
Accommodation Bus	0
Food Srv/Drinking Places Bus	1

Other Srv excl Pub Admin Bus	15
Auto Repair/Maintenance Bus	3
Public Administration Bus	2

Source: ESRI, 2026-08-31