Living in Oskaloosa, IA
Oskaloosa is a big small town of 11,504 people in Mahaska County, Iowa. It's about 54 miles from Des Moines, IA and 180 miles from Kansas City, MO, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 86°F and winter highs 31°F, with about 27 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $153k and rent runs about $831 a month.
11,504people
$153kTypical home
$831/moRent
86° / 31°Summer / winter
27"Snow
237Sunny days
95Rain/snow days
Is Oskaloosa right for you?
Take the 5-minute quiz and see your match — and how it stacks up against 34,000 other places.
Size & setting
- Big small town of 11,504
- Its own small hub, not a suburb
- About 1,428 people per sq mi
- 180 mi to Kansas City, MO
- 54 mi to Des Moines, IA
- Has its own stores and services
Money
- Typical home $153k (≈$967/mo)
- Median rent $831/mo
- Median household income $64k
- Property tax about 1.4% of value
- 5.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 86°F
- Winter highs around 31°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
- 95 days a year with rain or snow
- 27" of snow a year
- 9 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 35 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
Safety
- Low violent crime (276 per 100k)
- Low property crime (923 per 100k)
People
- Median age 38
- 29% of households have kids
- 20% are 65 or older
- 25% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 7% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 18 min
- 4% walk or take transit to work
- 55 mi to DSM airport
- 55 mi to DSM (major hub)
- 22 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 73% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1966
- 89% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Gently rolling terrain
- Elevation 850 ft
- 765 mi to the ocean
- 224 mi to a big lake
- 33 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 51 mi to the nearest ski area
- 5 mi to the nearest campground
- 13 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 59 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 11 bars within 25 mi
- 20 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 15 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 32 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 27% of Iowa districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 2 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 36 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- Vet in town
- 22 mi to the nearest dog park
- 16 congregations per 10k people
- 17 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Mahaska County: R+52 in 2024
- Iowa: R+13 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- High flood risk
- Low drought risk
- Moderate winter storm risk
- Moderate heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk