Living in Grinnell, IA
Grinnell is a big small town of 9,505 people in Poweshiek County, Iowa. It's about 47 miles from Des Moines, IA and 204 miles from Kansas City, MO, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 83°F and winter highs 28°F, with about 31 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $210k and rent runs about $895 a month.
9,505people
$210kTypical home
$895/moRent
83° / 28°Summer / winter
31"Snow
237Sunny days
114Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Big small town of 9,505
- A standalone small town, not a suburb
- About 1,671 people per sq mi
- 204 mi to Kansas City, MO
- 47 mi to Des Moines, IA
- 16 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $210k (≈$1,321/mo)
- Median rent $895/mo
- Median household income $65k
- Property tax about 1.5% of value
- 4.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 83°F
- Winter highs around 28°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 63°F)
- 237 sunny days a year (88 totally clear)
- 128 cloudy days a year
- 41 of 90 winter days are gray
- 114 days a year with rain or snow
- 31" of snow a year
- 11 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 41 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
Safety
- Low violent crime (295 per 100k)
- Low property crime (1,186 per 100k)
People
- Median age 37
- 22% of households have kids
- 21% are 65 or older
- 37% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 19% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 14 min
- 20% walk or take transit to work
- 50 mi to DSM airport
- 50 mi to DSM (major hub)
- 52 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 71% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1971
- 87% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 1,001 ft
- 796 mi to the ocean
- 203 mi to a big lake
- 37 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 43 mi to the nearest ski area
- 10 mi to the nearest campground
- 11 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 63 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 18 bars within 25 mi
- 13 coffee shops within 25 mi
- 1 music venue or club within 25 mi
- 13 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- Farmers market in town
Everyday
- Schools in the top 30% of Iowa districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 1 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 16 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- Vet in town
- Dog park in town
- 11 congregations per 10k people
- 25 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Poweshiek County: R+17 in 2024
- Iowa: R+13 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Low flood risk
- Very low drought risk
- Moderate winter storm risk
- Moderate heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk