Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Oskaloosa gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $192K, 2.7 years of the Oskaloosa area’s $71K median household income. It grades B− overall, 80th of 140 graded towns in Iowa. On the plus side, it is more walkable than 90% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 96% of U.S. towns, with 40 places on the National Register. Its National Register listings include Oskaloosa Public Library and Carroll Alsop House. On hazard risk, just 21 of Iowa’s 276 towns do better. Oskaloosa is home to William Penn University.
Where Oskaloosa beats most towns.
Daniel Nelson House and Barn
Its 40 National Register listings are more than in 94% of Iowa towns with a listing.
Census counts: 625 in 1850, 11,558 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1852 and 2 maps from 1968 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Oskaloosa is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Oskaloosa, 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 Oskaloosa.
Oskaloosa is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has colder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of Iowa.
6.9 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. Oskaloosa’s trail density is 0.9 miles per square mile, above both Iowa’s towns (0.3) and U.S. towns (0.4). The biggest park or preserve is Edmundson Park, at 62 acres.
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.9 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1.4% | 3.1% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Edmundson Park | 0.4 mi | 62 |
| 2. Vanderbilt Park | — | 19 |
| 3. City Square Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Oskaloosa Community School District. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Oskaloosa High School, with 632 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oskaloosa Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 903 | C+ |
| Oskaloosa High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 632 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 83% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 13.4°: colder than most of the country, but milder than 80% of Iowa places with climate records; July afternoons average 84.9°.
Oskaloosa has cold winters and warm summers. Oskaloosa’s January low is 13°F, near the Iowa town median (12°F) and below the median of U.S. towns (22°F). About 24 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 13°F | 12°F | 22°F |
| July high | 85°F | 84°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Typical home values rose 7.1% in the year to September 2026. 61% of households own their home in Oskaloosa.
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 61% | 70% | 73% |
| Median rent | $831 a month | $913 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
About one in 3 of Oskaloosa’s working residents works in town. Oskaloosa’s average trip to work is 16 minutes. The top destinations are Pella (6%), Ottumwa (4%) and Des Moines (4%).
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 32% | 31% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 17% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 6.5% | 8.5% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 9,738 U.S. towns with household incomes like Oskaloosa’s, it is healthier than 53%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Oskaloosa beats the Iowa average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 30% of Oskaloosa adults get no exercise outside work.
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 26% | 25% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Oskaloosa | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 15.5% | 11.6% |
| More adults who get no exercise | 29.6% | 24.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.2% | 6.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Iowa average. 25% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 31% across Iowa.
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 37.6 years | 38.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 19% | 18% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.6 points. Across Iowa, 49.8% of residents are women. Median age: women 39.2, men 35.8.
| Oskaloosa | IA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.7% | 12.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.2% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.9% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.1% | 12.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.7% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 9.3% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.7% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.7% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.7% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.8% | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 36% | 30% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.7% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.1% | 12.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.8% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.6% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The violent crime rate in Oskaloosa is 2.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Oskaloosa | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 9.8 per 1,000 residents | 7.2 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
1 within 15 miles of the center of Oskaloosa
About 7 of every 100 Oskaloosa residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Iowa.
40 places in Oskaloosa on the National Register of Historic Places.
25 notable people were born in Oskaloosa.
City in the United States
Oskaloosa is a city in, and the county seat of, Mahaska County, Iowa. The population was 11,558 in the 2020 U.S. census. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Oskaloosa was a national center of bituminous coal mining. Today, Oskaloosa is home to William Penn University, a private university, and Lake Keomah State Park which is located four miles east of the city.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Oskaloosa.
| Town | IA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oskaloosa | #80 | B− | A− | B− | C+ | C+ |
| University Park | — | — | — | — | — | — |
University Park isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Oskaloosa with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Oskaloosa grades B− overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #80 of 140 in Iowa. It grades C+ for health, B− for safety and C+ for schools.
25 notable people were born here, including Chester Conklin and Patrick O'Bryant.
