Living in Country around Kanawha, IA
Country around Kanawha is a rural area of about 1,145 people in Wright County, Iowa, named for the post office its ZIP code uses. It's about 63 miles from Ames, IA and 143 miles from Minneapolis, MN, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 83°F and winter highs 25°F, with about 35 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $87k and rent runs about $584 a month.
1,145people
$87kTypical home
$584/moRent
83° / 25°Summer / winter
35"Snow
233Sunny days
103Rain/snow days
Is Near Kanawha right for you?
Take the 5-minute quiz and see your match — and how it stacks up against 34,000 other places.
Size & setting
- Rural — about 1,145 people spread over the area
- A standalone small town, not a suburb
- About 11 people per sq mi
- 143 mi to Minneapolis, MN
- 63 mi to Ames, IA
- 34 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $87k (≈$547/mo)
- Median rent $584/mo
- Median household income $76k
- Property tax about 1.3% of value
- 2.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 83°F
- Winter highs around 25°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 61°F)
- 233 sunny days a year (82 totally clear)
- 132 cloudy days a year
- 40 of 90 winter days are gray
- 103 days a year with rain or snow
- 35" of snow a year
- 12 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 52 nights a year below 10°F
- Windier than most places
Safety
- Very low violent crime (55 per 100k), county-wide
- Very low property crime (227 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 39
- 30% of households have kids
- 21% are 65 or older
- 23% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 2% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 24 min
- 4% walk or take transit to work
- 28 mi to MCW airport
- 97 mi to DSM (major hub)
- 133 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 89% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1956
- 86% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 1,165 ft
- 821 mi to the ocean
- 200 mi to a big lake
- 72 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 63 mi to the nearest ski area
- 11 mi to the nearest campground
- 16 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 30 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- 3 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 16 museums within 25 mi
- 1 brewery or distillery within 25 mi
- 66 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the top 20% of Iowa districts (reading)
- 11 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 11 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 56 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 11 mi to the nearest vet
- 26 mi to the nearest dog park
- 20 congregations per 10k people
- 24 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Wright County: R+37 in 2024
- Iowa: R+13 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Very low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Moderate flood risk
- Low drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk