Which has more people, Illinois or Iowa?

Illinois has a population of 12,735,249 (6th of 51 US states) and Iowa has 3,246,320 (32nd of 51).

How do Illinois and Iowa compare on Median Household Income?

Median Household Income: Illinois $83,390 (18th of 51), Iowa $75,059 (32nd of 51) among US states. Illinois ranks better.

How do Illinois and Iowa compare on Unemployment Rate (%)?

Unemployment Rate (%): Illinois 4.6% (tied 40th of 51), Iowa 3.5% (tied 15th of 51) among US states. Iowa ranks better.

Where does Illinois beat Iowa most clearly?

Illinois ranks far ahead on SSI Procurement (Most Corrupt States): 86.3 vs 60.4; DUI Rate (Worst Drivers by State): 0.6 per 1k drivers vs 2.4 per 1k drivers; Obesity Rate - Native American and Alaskan (Most Obese States): 34.6% vs 50.6%.

Where does Iowa beat Illinois most clearly?

Iowa ranks far ahead on LLC Filing Fee (LLC Cost by State): $50 vs $500; Student Loan Average Borrower Debt (Student Loan Debt by State): $30,464 vs $37,757; Corruption Score (BestLife) (Most Corrupt States): 82.14 vs 3.36.

Illinois vs Iowa

Iowa comes out ahead of Illinois on 403 of 797 statistics where one end is better, to 381 with 13 ties. Illinois leads on Sports, Travel and Tech & Business and 6 more categories. Iowa leads on Agriculture, Crime & Safety and Politics & Government and 4 more categories.

797 statistics with a better end, compared

Each counts once for the place that ranks better; 13 ties. Totals that mostly track population are left out.

Illinois

Wins: 381
Avg. percentile: 52
Categories led: 9

Iowa

Wins: 403
Avg. percentile: 54
Categories led: 7

At a glance

Headline statistics, each ranked among all US states.

Statistic	Illinois	Iowa
Population	12,735,249 6th of 51	3,246,320 32nd of 51
Median Household IncomeHousing, Income and Commutes by State (Census)	$83,390 18th of 51	$75,059 32nd of 51
Unemployment Rate (%)Unemployment Rate by State (BLS)	4.6% tied 40th of 51	3.5% tied 15th of 51
Poverty Rate (%)Housing, Income and Commutes by State (Census)	11.8% 26th of 51	11.1% 21st of 51
Price Level (All Items)Cost of Living by State (Regional Price Parities)	100.0 33rd of 51	87.8 3rd of 51
Real Personal Income per Person (2017 Dollars)Real Personal Income by State	$60,333 17th of 51	$60,144 19th of 51
Average Annual Wage, All JobsAverage Wage by State (BLS)	$71,130 16th of 51	$59,830 42nd of 51
Median Rent (Monthly, Capped at $3,501)Housing, Income and Commutes by State (Census)	$1,274 28th of 51	$972 7th of 51
Violent Crime Rate (per 100K)Crime Rates by State (FBI)	251.0 21st of 51	233.9 16th of 51
Heating Degree Days per YearClimate by State (1991–2020 Averages)	6,104 32nd of 48	6,821 36th of 48

By category

Average percentile on each category's widely ranked statistics.

AgricultureIowa · 15 statistics
SportsIllinois · 17 statistics
Crime & SafetyIowa · 73 statistics
TravelIllinois · 29 statistics
Tech & BusinessIllinois · 48 statistics
Politics & GovernmentIowa · 128 statistics
Infrastructure & EnergyIowa · 36 statistics
EnvironmentIowa · 39 statistics
EconomicsIowa · 292 statistics
EducationIllinois · 50 statistics
Facts & TriviaIllinois · 18 statistics
CultureIllinois · 79 statistics
HealthIowa · 187 statistics
LawIllinois · 66 statistics
GeographyIllinois · 25 statistics
PopulationIllinois · 125 statistics

Biggest differences

The 30 statistics where their rankings differ most, among rankings of at least 26 US states.

Statistic	Illinois	Iowa
LLC Filing FeeLLC Cost by State	$500 50th of 51	$50 tied 1st of 51
Student Loan Average Borrower DebtStudent Loan Debt by State	$37,757 45th of 51	$30,464 2nd of 51
Corruption Score (BestLife)Most Corrupt States	3.36 49th of 50	82.14 7th of 50
Fiscal StabilityBest States to Live In	50th 49th of 49	9th 8th of 49
Mid-Grade Gas, Avg Price per GallonGas Price by State	$5.09 45th of 51	$4.09 3rd of 51
SSI ProcurementMost Corrupt States	86.3 1st of 50	60.4 42nd of 50
FTE Reporter RankMost Corrupt States	2nd 2nd worst of 49	41st 8th best of 49
DUI RateWorst Drivers by State	0.6 per 1k drivers tied 2nd of 51	2.4 per 1k drivers tied 43rd of 51
Income Tax Minimum RateTaxes by State	4.95% 33rd of 39	0.33% 2nd of 39
CAS Illegal Executive Corruption Level (1-5)Most Corrupt States	3 tied 37th of 48	1 tied 1st of 48
Average Engagement Ring CostEngagement Ring Cost by State	$9,197 49th of 51	$4,939 9th of 51
Gini CoefficientWealth Inequality by State	0.48 tied 41st of 51	0.44 tied 3rd of 51
Price Level (Goods)Cost of Living by State (Regional Price Parities)	103.8 43rd of 51	93.7 4th of 51
Obesity Rate - Native American and AlaskanMost Obese States	34.6% 10th of 46	50.6% 45th of 46
Experienced Any Domestic Violence in Lifetime - % of MenDomestic Violence by State	34.1% 39th of 50	20.4% 1st of 50
Average (Minutes)Commute Time by State	29 45th of 51	19.5 7th of 51
Best States for Teachers Total ScoreBest States for Teachers	55.25 5th of 51	40.6 43rd of 51
Average Commute Time (Minutes)Single Mom Friendly States	29 tied 44th of 51	20 tied 6th of 51
OpportunityBest States to Live In	38th 38th of 49	2nd 2nd of 49
Educational Attainment DiversityMost Diverse US States	11th 11th of 50	47th 47th of 50
Regulatory Policy RankMost Libertarian States	38th 38th of 50	2nd 2nd of 50
CAS Legal Judicial Corruption Level (1-5)Most Corrupt States	3 tied 36th of 48	1 tied 1st of 48
Avg. Annual Retirement Income (MZ)Average Retirement Income by State	$31,977 11th of 51	$24,411 47th of 51
Avg. Monthly Retirement Income (MZ)Average Retirement Income by State	$2,665 11th of 51	$2,034 47th of 51
Opportunity & Competition RankBest States for Teachers	6th 6th of 51	42nd 42nd of 51
School Safety RankPublic School Rankings by State	10th 10th of 50	45th 45th of 50
SocioeconomicsBest States to Raise a Family	45th 45th of 50	10th 10th of 50
Regulatory Policy RankMost Free States	38th 38th of 50	3rd 3rd of 50
Property Crime Rate per 100kMost Dangerous Cities by State	1,094 6th of 45	2,885 37th of 45
Economy RankWorst States to Live in	9th 8th worst of 50	43rd tied 8th best of 50

See every statistic they shareSearch and sort all of them, adjust for cost of living or population, or add up to two more places.

Quick answers

Which is better, Illinois or Iowa?: Iowa comes out ahead of Illinois on 403 of 797 statistics where one end is better, to 381 with 13 ties. Illinois leads on Sports, Travel and Tech & Business and 6 more categories. Iowa leads on Agriculture, Crime & Safety and Politics & Government and 4 more categories. Statistics where neither end is better, and totals that mostly track population, are not counted.
Which has more people, Illinois or Iowa?: Illinois has a population of 12,735,249 (6th of 51 US states) and Iowa has 3,246,320 (32nd of 51).
How do Illinois and Iowa compare on Median Household Income?: Median Household Income: Illinois $83,390 (18th of 51), Iowa $75,059 (32nd of 51) among US states. Illinois ranks better.
How do Illinois and Iowa compare on Unemployment Rate (%)?: Unemployment Rate (%): Illinois 4.6% (tied 40th of 51), Iowa 3.5% (tied 15th of 51) among US states. Iowa ranks better.
Where does Illinois beat Iowa most clearly?: Illinois ranks far ahead on SSI Procurement (Most Corrupt States): 86.3 vs 60.4; DUI Rate (Worst Drivers by State): 0.6 per 1k drivers vs 2.4 per 1k drivers; Obesity Rate - Native American and Alaskan (Most Obese States): 34.6% vs 50.6%.
Where does Iowa beat Illinois most clearly?: Iowa ranks far ahead on LLC Filing Fee (LLC Cost by State): $50 vs $500; Student Loan Average Borrower Debt (Student Loan Debt by State): $30,464 vs $37,757; Corruption Score (BestLife) (Most Corrupt States): 82.14 vs 3.36.

More matchups

Other comparisons with Illinois or Iowa.

All US states matchups