Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A typical home costs 2 years of the county’s $72K median household income.
The best of Corning’s subject grades are an A+ for cost of living, an A for history, and an A− for civic life; the weakest is a C− for incomes. Only 27 of Iowa’s 276 towns score higher on cost of living. Corning has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Adams County Jail and Corning Opera House. Corning has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Corning beats most towns.
Adams County JailEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Corning is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,526 in 1880, a peak of 2,162 in 1940, 1,564 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1877 and a map from 1980 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Corning, 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 Corning.
The typical Corning home is worth about $145,000, down 0.9% in a year, 39% below the Iowa typical home. At $754 a month, Corning’s median rent is where Iowa’s towns sit at $911 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month.
| Corning | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $754 a month | $911 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 70% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Corning Community School District. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corning Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 210 | B− |
| Southwest Valley High schoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 195 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Corning has cold winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 13° and about 28 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 48.9 years, Corning’s median age is above both the Iowa town median (38.7 years) and the median of U.S. towns (40.5 years). 25% of Corning residents are 65 or older. Corning has lost 3.3% of its people since 2020, down to 1,511 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Corning | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 48.9 years | 38.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 25% | 19% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 19% | 23% | 22% |
52% women, 48% men
About 92 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.1 points). Across Iowa, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Corning | IA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.9% | 12.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.7% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.4% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.3% | 12.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.7% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.9% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.1% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.9% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 13.1% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 8.1% | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 28.1% | 30% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.4% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 15.2% | 12.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.6% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 5.6% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,500, single groups can be off by several points
About one in 3 of Corning’s working residents works in town. Corning’s average trip to work is 17 minutes. The top destinations are Creston (8%), Lenox (5%) and Des Moines (5%).
| Corning | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 31% | 31% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $65,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Corning beats the Iowa average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 38% of adults have high blood pressure in Corning.
| Corning | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 38% | 35% |
| What stands out | Corning | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15.3% | 11.6% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8% | 6.6% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4% | 3.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 60% of U.S. communities. Since 2008, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Corning.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
0.3 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Spring Lake Park, at 51 acres.
| Corning | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.5% | 3.1% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Spring Lake Park | — | 51 |
| 2. Grove Park | — | 2 |
| 3. Central Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Corning; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Corning residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
3 places in Corning on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Corning.
City in Iowa, United States
Corning is a city in Quincy and Jasper Townships, Adams County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,564 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Adams County. Corning is located just north of the intersection of U.S. Route 34 and Iowa Highway 148. Corning is perhaps best known as the birthplace of Johnny Carson. Daniel Webster Turner, who was governor of Iowa from 1931 to 1933, was born in Corning on March 17, 1877. The town is named for Erastus Corning who owned stock in the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad which reached Corning on August 23, 1869 (resulting in the local depot moving from nearby Queen City to Corning). Corning donated a church bell to the Methodist Church..…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
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+.
8 notable people were born here, including Johnny Carson and Ben F. Wilson.
