Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,309, settled in 1854.
Algona gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $186K, 2.7 years of the county’s $68K median household income. It grades A− overall, ranked 51st of 140 in Iowa. On the plus side, it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 86% of U.S. towns. 55% of working residents work locally in Algona, above both Iowa’s towns (31%) and U.S. towns (8%). Algona has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Land and Loan Office Building and William C. and Hertha Dau House. Only 4 of the 140 Iowa towns we compare have a lower average trip to work than Algona.
Where Algona beats most towns.
Where Algona’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Algona is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 860 in 1870, 5,487 in 2020. The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1972 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Algona, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Algona.
Algona pairs an A− overall with homes cheaper than the Iowa norm, draws workers from Whittemore and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
3,890 jobs are based in Algona, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 11.2 minutes, against 19.8 across Iowa.
3.9% of Algona workers work from home. The top destinations are West Bend (2%), Mason City (2%) and Fort Dodge (2%). Algona’s median household income is $56,000.
| Algona | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 3.9% | 8.5% | 11% |
| Median household income | $56,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.9% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Algona Community School District. Three of its 7 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Algona High School, with 458 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algona Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 419 | B− |
| Algona High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 458 | C |
| Lucia Wallace Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades 3–4 | Grades 3–4 | 226 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 34 to 16 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The property crime rate in Algona is 1.7 per 1,000 residents.
| Algona | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.7 per 1,000 residents | 7.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.3 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 72% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Algona since 2019.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Algona grades A− overall with a typical home of about $186K, below the Iowa typical value; only 10 of the 55 Iowa towns graded A− or better can say that.
The typical Algona home is worth about $186,000, up 1.4% in a year, 22% below the Iowa typical home.
| Algona | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $885 a month | $913 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 69% | 70% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Algona has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 8° and about 37 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
People 65 and older are 26% of residents (18% statewide). Algona has lost 3.3% of its people since 2020, down to 5,309 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 20% of residents are under 18 in Algona.
| Algona | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 26% | 19% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 20% | 23% | 22% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.3 points. Across Iowa, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Algona | IA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.7% | 12.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.6% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.5% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.7% | 12.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.2% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.7% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.8% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.6% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 14.1% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.9% | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 34.8% | 30% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.5% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.2% | 12.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.2% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.4% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Against the 7,735 U.S. towns with household incomes like Algona’s, it is healthier than 86%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Algona beats the Iowa average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. Among 140 Iowa towns, just 5 have a higher share of adults who had a checkup this year than Algona.
| Algona | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 21% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Algona | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81.6% | 77.8% |
| More adults getting cholesterol checked | 86.7% | 84.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.2% | 8.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
0.0 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Veterans Park, at 26 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Veterans Park | — | 26 |
| 2. South Park | — | 10 |
| 3. Blackford Park | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Algona; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Algona residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
19 notable people were born in Algona.
City in Iowa, United States
Algona is the county seat of Kossuth County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,487 at the 2020 census. Ambrose A. Call State Park is located two miles southwest of the city.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Algona grades A− overall, better than 79% of U.S. towns and #51 of 140 in Iowa. It grades B for health, B+ for safety and B− for schools.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
19 notable people were born here, including Steve Doocy and Bob Geigel.