Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Chariton gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $157K for a typical one, or 2.5 years of the county’s $62K median household income. It grades C overall, ranked 101st of 140 in Iowa. The low prices come with trade-offs. The median household income is $47K, and 17% of residents live below the poverty line, and CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 83% of the country. On the plus side, 8% of its land is conserved. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 97% of U.S. towns, with 15 places on the National Register. Its National Register listings include Burlington Railroad Overpass and O. E. Payne House. Only 3 of the 140 Iowa towns we compare have a lower median household income than Chariton. The biggest park or preserve is Northwest Park, at 61 acres.
Where Chariton beats most towns.
Census counts: 641 in 1860, a peak of 5,754 in 1940, 4,193 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1879 and 2 maps from 1918 on.
14 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Chariton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chariton, 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 Chariton.
Chariton trades lower home prices for longer drives to work, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has colder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of Iowa.
Against the 4,649 U.S. towns with household incomes like Chariton’s, it is less healthy than 50%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
19% of adults smoke cigarettes in Chariton, above both the Iowa town median (15%) and the median of U.S. towns (14%). 16% of Chariton adults report frequent physical distress. Chariton beats the Iowa average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 15.
| Chariton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 18% | 19% |
| What stands out | Chariton | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 17% | 11.6% |
| More adults with COPD | 10% | 6.9% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4.5% | 3.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Chariton Community School District. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Chariton High School, with 372 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–2 | Grades K–2 | 301 | – |
| Chariton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 372 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Homes are within reach (about $157K for the typical one, A for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 40 miles.
Chariton’s median rent is $689 a month, against $913 a month in Iowa’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns. The typical Chariton home is worth about $157,000, up 0.7% in a year, 34% below the Iowa typical home. 65% of households own their home in Chariton.
| Chariton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $689 a month | $913 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 65% | 70% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 68% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 13.5°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 82% of Iowa places with climate records; July afternoons average 85.2°.
Chariton has cold winters and warm summers. Chariton’s January low is 14°F. About 24 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Chariton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 14°F | 12°F | 22°F |
| July high | 85°F | 84°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 3 of Chariton’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Chariton is 16 minutes. Since 2013, Chariton has added 302 jobs, to 2,524 in 2023.
| Chariton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 31% | 31% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
0.7 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves.
| Chariton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.7% | 3.1% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cinder Path Bike Trail | 0.5 mi | 11 |
| 2. Northwest Park | — | 61 |
| 3. Highway 34 Wetlands | — | 39 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Chariton; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Chariton residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
14 places in Chariton on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Chariton.
City in Iowa, United States
Chariton ( SHAIR-it-ən) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Iowa, United States. The population was 4,193 at the 2020 census. Chariton is the primary distribution center for and the former corporate headquarters of the Hy-Vee supermarket chain.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Chariton grades C overall, better than 34% of U.S. towns and #101 of 140 in Iowa. It grades C− for health and C for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
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.
10 notable people were born here, including Gordon Willey and Lyle Tuttle.
