Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Tipton gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $244K for a typical one, or 3 years of the county’s $81K median household income. It grades A− overall, 38th among Iowa's 140 graded towns. On the plus side, it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 82% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 92% of U.S. towns, with 7 places on the National Register. Tipton's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 96% of U.S. towns. Tipton has 6 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Floral Hall and Hannah Morse Fowler Hall House. 27% of working residents work locally in Tipton, below the Iowa town median (31%) but above the median of U.S. towns (8%).
Where Tipton beats most towns.
Floral Hall
Census counts: 252 in 1850, 3,149 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1883 and 2 maps from 1889 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Tipton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tipton, 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 Tipton.
Tipton trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and trades workers with Iowa City and other neighbors, but it is a long drive from an emergency room.
Tipton has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 13° and about 40 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Its public schools are run by the Tipton Community School District. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Tipton High School, with 302 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tipton Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 284 | C |
| Tipton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 302 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Tipton’s property crime rate is 4.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Tipton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.6 per 1,000 residents | 7.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.3 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 65% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Tipton has about as many jobs (1,471) as working residents, but only 416 people both live and work here.
About one in 4 of Tipton’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Tipton is 26 minutes. The top destinations are Iowa City (16%), Cedar Rapids (9%) and Muscatine (4%).
| Tipton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Homes are within reach (about $244K for the typical one, A for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 23 miles. 62.7% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 43.9% across Iowa.
Typical home values rose 4.4% in the year to September 2026.
| Tipton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $845 a month | $913 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 70% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The nearest emergency room, University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center Down, is 21.9 miles away in a straight line. Against the 9,200 U.S. towns with household incomes like Tipton’s, it is healthier than 72%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
Tipton beats the Iowa average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 40% of Tipton adults have obesity.
| Tipton | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 38% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 21% | 23% |
| What stands out | Tipton | IA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.1% | 11.6% |
| More adults seeing a dentist | 72.6% | 66.8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.9% | 8.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
0.0 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The biggest park or preserve is Tipton City Park, at 39 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Tipton City Park | — | 39 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Tipton; the nearest are
About 0 of every 100 Tipton residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
6 places in Tipton on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Tipton.
City in Iowa, United States
Tipton (/ˈtɪptən/) is a city in Cedar County, Iowa, United States. The population was 3,149 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Cedar County.
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. Tipton grades A− overall, better than 83% of U.S. towns and #38 of 140 in Iowa. It grades B− for health, B for safety and B 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.
4 notable people were born here, including Joseph Patrick O'Hara and Robert G. Cousins.
