Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Webster City gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $151K, 2.1 years of the county’s $72K median household income. It grades B− overall, 91st of 140 graded towns in Iowa. 41% of working residents work locally in Webster City, against 31% in Iowa’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. On civic life, just 9 of Iowa’s 271 towns do worse. Webster City has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Kendall Young Public Library and Albright Bridge.
Where Webster City beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Webster City is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,339 in 1870, 7,825 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1901 and 3 maps from 1978 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Webster City, 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 Webster City.
Webster City is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has homes that are cheap against local pay.
At 2.1 years of the county’s $72K median household income, the typical home (about $151K) costs less against local pay than in 87% of Iowa towns; that ratio is one input to that grade.
The share of households in Webster City who live in a home they own: 64%. The typical home value here is about $151,000, up 1% in a year, 36% below the Iowa typical home. In Webster City, the midpoint rent is $907 a month.
| Webster City | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 64% | 70% | 73% |
| Median rent | $907 a month | $913 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The largest public high school is Webster City High School, with 505 students. The public schools here belong to the Webster City Community School District. Two of its 5 schools are shown below, with the reason for each.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webster City Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 454 | C |
| Webster City High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 505 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
The range runs from 9° on a January night to 83° on a July afternoon, with about 33 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
In Webster City, the median household income is $63,000. Half commute less than 10 miles. The top destinations are Fort Dodge (7%), Ames (3%) and Clarion (2%).
| Webster City | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 18 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $63,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 8.6% | 11% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The national flood insurance program has paid 19 claims in Webster City since 1981. Compared with 63% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage here is higher. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 56% come from inland flooding and 19% from tornadoes. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Webster City after 5 declared disasters, most recently in 2014.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
23% of adults 25 and older hold at least a bachelor’s degree, against 31% across Iowa. Adults 18 to 34 are 18% of residents (23% statewide). Among residents in Webster City, 27% are under 18.
| Webster City | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 27% | 23% | 22% |
| Median age | 37.6 years | 38.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 23% | 25% | 29% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2 points. Across Iowa, 49.8% of residents are women.
| Webster City | IA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14.8% | 12.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.2% | 10% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.1% | 12.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.6% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.5% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.5% | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.4% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.2% | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 31.2% | 30% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.2% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 15.1% | 12.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.1% | 20.9% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.1% | 10.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Against the 9,639 U.S. towns with household incomes like Webster City’s, it is healthier than 78%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Only 8 of the 140 Iowa towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Webster City. In Webster City, 19% of adults binge drink, and 15% report frequent mental distress. Also worth knowing: for adults here, the share who get no exercise outside work is 27%.
| Webster City | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 21% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 9% | 7% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Webster City | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 9% | 7.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The rate of thefts and burglaries in Webster City is 11.7 per 1,000 residents. The violent offense rate here is 0.9 per 1,000 residents.
| Webster City | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 11.7 per 1,000 residents | 7.2 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.9 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Trails total 0.2 miles in 6 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Kendall Young Park, at 20 acres. Parks and preserves in Webster City: 6, covering 59 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kendall Young Park | — | 20 |
| 2. Nokomi's Park | — | 15 |
| 3. Riverview Park | — | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Webster City; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Webster City residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
3 places in Webster City on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Webster City.
City in Hamilton County, Iowa, U.S.
Webster City is a city in Hamilton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 7,717 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Hamilton County. Webster City is known as 'Boone River Country', as the Boone River meanders along the east side of the city.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Webster City grades B− overall, better than 46% of U.S. towns and #91 of 140 in Iowa. It grades B for health, B− for safety and C 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.
9 notable people were born here, including Jenny Simpson and MacKinlay Kantor.
