Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,098, platted in 1854. 91% more nonprofits per person than the typical Iowa town.
Calmar’s best subject grades are an A for cost of living and civic life; its weakest is a C− for walkability. Only 18 of Iowa’s 276 towns score lower on walkability. Calmar is home to Northeast Iowa Community College. Calmar has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Calmar beats most towns.
| College | Students |
|---|---|
| Northeast Iowa Community College | 3,477 |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Calmar is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 617 in 1880, 1,125 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 3 maps from 1906 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Calmar, 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 Calmar.
Most working residents leave Calmar for work: only 4% work in town. Calmar’s median household income is $93,000, above both Iowa’s towns ($69,000) and U.S. towns ($80,000). Jobs based in Calmar grew to 236 in 2023, 20 more than in 2013.
| Calmar | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.5% | 31% | 8% |
| Median household income | $93,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the South Winneshiek Community School District. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Winneshiek High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 205 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Calmar beats the Iowa average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 22% of adults binge drink in Calmar, above both the Iowa town median (20%) and the median of U.S. towns (16%). 30% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Calmar.
| Calmar | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 20% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 35% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 9.4% | 12% | 12% |
| What stands out | Calmar | IA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.4% | 11.6% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 5.5% | 6.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Calmar’s July high is 81°F. Calmar has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 63% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
People 65 and older are 13% of residents (18% statewide). The median age in Calmar is 30.5 years. Calmar has lost 2.8% of its people since 2020, down to 1,098 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Calmar | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 30.5 years | 38.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 13% | 19% | 18% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±5.5 points. Across Iowa, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Calmar | IA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.7% | 12.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 16.6% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 19.2% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 6.5% | 12.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.2% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.1% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.5% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.3% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 1.5% | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 22.2% | 30% | 26% |
| Some college | 29.2% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 21.3% | 12.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.8% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,100, single groups can be off by several points
The typical Calmar home is worth about $205,000, up 3.3% in a year, 13% below the Iowa typical home. Only 6 of the 138 Iowa towns we compare have a lower median rent than Calmar.
| Calmar | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $694 a month | $911 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 70% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Calmar Pool Park | — | 7 |
| 2. Calmar Lions Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Calmar. Close and well known come first.
32 mi National MonumentEffigy Mounds National Monument57K visitors a year
9 mi MuseumVesterheim Norwegian-American Museum
4 mi MuseumBily Clock Museum
38 mi MuseumFort Crawford
36 mi AttractionPreston Overlook
19 mi MuseumBurr Oak House/Masters HotelEffigy Mounds National Monument: National Park Service, Public domain · Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum: Jonathunder, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bily Clock Museum: Jonathunder, GFDL 1.2 · Fort Crawford: Jonathunder, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Preston Overlook: Jonathunder, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Burr Oak House/Masters Hotel: Jonathunder, CC BY-SA 3.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Calmar
About 7 of every 100 Calmar residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Iowa.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
City in Iowa, United States
Calmar is a city in Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,125 at the 2020 census. It is at the junction of U.S. Route 52 and State highways 150 and 24, with both state routes terminating in Calmar.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
91% more nonprofits per person than the typical Iowa town.
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 A.
