Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Public schools that outperform most of Iowa.
Harlan gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $206K, 2.8 years of the county’s $73K median household income. It grades B+ overall, ranked 60th of 140 in Iowa. On the plus side, its schools rank ahead of 86% of Iowa towns. 45% of working residents work locally in Harlan, where Iowa’s towns sit at 31% and U.S. towns at 8%. Harlan has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them St. Paul's Episcopal Church and Shelby County Courthouse. Among 93 Iowa towns, just 1 have a lower violent crime rate than Harlan.
Where Harlan beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Harlan Primary | PK–2 | 342 |
| Harlan Intermediate School | 3–5 | 309 |
| Shelby County Catholic School | PK–5 | 101 |
St. Paul's Episcopal ChurchEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Harlan is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 47 in 1860, 4,893 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1910 and 2 maps from 1978 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Harlan, 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 Harlan.
Harlan pairs an A for schools with modest home prices, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has commutes shorter than most of Iowa.
Its A for schools comes with an A− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $206K.
Its public schools are run by the Harlan Community School District. Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Harlan High School, with 486 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harlan PrimaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 342 | – |
| Harlan High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 486 | A |
| Harlan Community Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 335 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Harlan has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 11° and about 31 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 2,189 working residents takes 13.7 minutes, against 19.8 across Iowa.
The average trip to work in Harlan is 14 minutes. Jobs based in Harlan fell to 2,918 in 2023, 261 fewer than in 2013. The median household income in Harlan is $57,000.
| Harlan | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 14 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $57,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 10% | 8.5% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 9.1% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
People 65 and older are 24% of residents (18% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 17% of residents (23% statewide). Harlan’s median age is 44.6 years. 22% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 31% across Iowa.
| Harlan | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 24% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 44.6 years | 38.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 22% | 25% | 29% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.5 points. Across Iowa, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Harlan | IA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.3% | 12.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.6% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.7% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.5% | 12.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.4% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.4% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 17.2% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.4% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 13.6% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7% | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 34.3% | 30% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.3% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 15.3% | 12.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 13.5% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.6% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,900, single groups can be off by several points
Against the 8,163 U.S. towns with household incomes like Harlan’s, it is healthier than 67%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Harlan beats the Iowa average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 30% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Harlan.
| Harlan | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 20% | 16% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| What stands out | Harlan | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81.4% | 77.8% |
| More adults getting cholesterol checked | 86.1% | 84.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15.2% | 11.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Harlan home is worth about $206,000, up 4.2% in a year, 13% below the Iowa typical home.
| Harlan | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $783 a month | $913 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 70% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 61% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Harlan.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Harlan's reported crime rate is well below Iowa's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. Violent crime is rare: 2 reported in 2022.
FBI crime data, 2022 · crimes reported to police
1.1 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is JJ Jensen Park, at 30 acres.
| Harlan | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.4% | 3.1% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pioneer Park | 1.1 mi | 19 |
| 2. JJ Jensen Park | — | 30 |
| 3. Little George Park | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Harlan; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Harlan residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
4 places in Harlan on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Harlan.
City in Iowa, United States
Harlan is a city in and the county seat of Shelby County, Iowa, along the West Nishnabotna River. The population was 4,893 at the time of the 2020 census.
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. Harlan grades B+ overall, better than 74% of U.S. towns and #60 of 140 in Iowa. It grades C+ for health and A 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 A−.
10 notable people were born here, including Kij Johnson and Lynn Reynolds.
