Untitled photo, 2017
Hartley’s story
147 years in pictures
The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 2004.
- 1879Hartley is settled
Photo: Catherine Palczewski / FortepanIowa · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
1,579
2025 Census estimate · −1.6% since 2020
Typical home
$176K
+6.4% in a year
Household income
$58K
median
Median age
47.9
years
Jobs based here
380
A commuter town
Is Hartley a good place to live?
Hartley’s best subject grade is an A for cost of living; its weakest is a C− for incomes. Only 26 of Iowa’s 276 towns score lower on health. Hartley is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns. Among 141 Iowa towns, just 4 have a higher share of residents 65 or older than Hartley. Only 21 of Iowa’s 271 towns score lower on civic life. Hartley has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Hartley stand out
Where Hartley beats most towns.
Typical home value
Hartley$176K
Iowa$237K
Cost of livingA
2.6 years of income buys a home
More affordable than 94% of U.S. towns
Zillow Home Value Index; area median household income, Census ACS.
WalkabilityB+
More walkable than 73% of U.S. towns
5% of workers walk, bike or ride transit
EPA National Walkability Index; Census ACS.
A commuter town
86% of working residents leave Hartley for work
Where Hartley’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
380jobs based in Hartley
14%of working residents work in town
18 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Hartley grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Hartley is from typical.
Cost of livingAOpen →Jobs & incomeC−Open →HealthLess healthy than 75% of U.S. towns; Spencer Municipal Hospital 16.9 miles awayC−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 7.3 of 20; 7.3% of households have no carB+Open →SchoolsC+Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 48% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
OutdoorsC−Open →History1 notable person born hereB−Open →Civic life2.4 library visits per resident; 7.7 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsC+Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Hartley: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hartley, and how to reach them.
PowerCity of HartleyEIAHIFLD · EIA
WaterHartley Municipal Water DepartmentNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet4 providers94% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpMondayTrash dayTown site
Register to voteOnlineIn Iowa you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereO'Brien County AuditorO'Brien County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Nov 2025
ZIP code5134651346 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Hartley.
HealthC−
17% of adults in Hartley binge drink, against 20% in Iowa’s towns and 16% across U.S. towns
31% of adults get no exercise outside work in Hartley, above both Iowa’s towns (26%) and U.S. towns (25%). Only 1 of the 141 Iowa towns we compare have a lower share of adults who binge drink than Hartley. 34% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Hartley.
25%healthier than U.S. townsC−Health Grade
| Hartley | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 35% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 12% | 12% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 26% | 25% |
32 measures vs. Iowa
2 better20 too close to call10 worse
| What stands out | Hartley | IA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 17% | 20.5% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 81% | 77.8% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 4.8% | 3.3% |
Spencer Municipal Hospital
16.9 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
SchoolsC+
Hartley’s public schools trail 60% of Iowa districts
Its public schools are run by the Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn Community School District. Its two schools are below.
40%of IA districts it outscoresC+School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 261 | B+ |
| Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 203 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C−
Hartley has 0.5 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Hartley for work: only 14% work in town. Since 2013, Hartley has lost 64 jobs, to 380 in 2023. The median household income in Hartley is $58,000.
14%work in town
| Hartley | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 31% | 8% |
| Work from home | 5.7% | 8.5% | 11% |
| Median household income | $58,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In Hartley14%
Spencer9%
Sheldon8%
Sanborn4%
Sioux City3%
18 mi
median commute distance
380
jobs based in Hartley
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
B+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HousingCost of living grade A
A typical Hartley home is worth about $176K
The typical Hartley home is worth about $176,000, up 6.4% in a year, 25% below the Iowa typical home. Hartley’s median rent is $779 a month.
$176KZillow home value
| Hartley | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 80% | 70% | 73% |
| Median rent | $779 a month | $911 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Hartley$176K
Iowa$237K
+6.4%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Climate
Snowy winters and pleasant summers in Hartley
Hartley has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 7° and about 41 inches of snow falls in a winter.
41″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter11–28°
Spring35–57°
Summer59–81°
Fall37–59°
Oct 7
typical first frost
May 1
typical last frost
+0.8°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
Moderate risk in Hartley, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 52% of U.S. communities. Since 2018, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Hartley.
48risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingHailTornadoes
3
paid flood claims since 2018
7
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 851 acres
0.0 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Neebel Park | — | 10 |
| 2. Shinkle Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Hartley
19pages on Hartley
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Hartley; the nearest are
Northwest Iowa Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Sheldon20.4 mi$7,350 in-state tuitionUniversity of South DakotaUniversity or college · Public · Vermillion, SD78.1 mi$9,432 in-state tuition
About 4 of every 100 Hartley residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
About Hartley
City in Iowa, United States
Hartley is a city in O'Brien County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,605 in the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.3 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,463 ft
- ZIP code
- 51346
- Area code
- 712
Questions about Hartley
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Hartley, IA expensive?
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.