What is the population of Harlan city?

Harlan city has 4,896 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #89 of 1,026 in Iowa.

What is the median household income in Harlan city?

Median household income in Harlan city is $54,923 a year, 30.1% below the national figure of $78,538.

How much does it cost to rent or buy in Harlan city?

Median gross rent is $856 a month and the median home value is $137,500, so rent absorbs about 18.7% of median household income.

Is Harlan city affordable compared with the rest of the US?

Homes cost about 2.5× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Harlan city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 18.7% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.

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Iowa · Census place 34500

Harlan, IA population, income and ZIP codes

Quick answer

The population of the city of Harlan, Iowa (Harlan, IA — Census place “Harlan city”) is 4,896 residents, ranking #89 of 1026 places in Iowa. Median household income is $54,923, the median home is worth $137,500 and median gross rent runs $856 a month. Looking for the Harlan Iowa ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Harlan, IA: 51537.

Population: 4,896Harlan city residents
Median household income: $54,923Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
Median home value: $137,500Owner-occupied units
Median gross rent: $856Rent plus utilities, monthly
Median age: 48.2 yrsAll residents
Homeownership rate: 68.3%Owner-occupied households

Harlan ZIP codes (Iowa)

Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Harlan.

The Harlan IA ZIP code list below covers 1 ZIP code. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.

51537

What the numbers mean in Harlan city

Housing cost measured against local earnings.

A household earning the Harlan city median would spend about 18.7% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 2.5× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 10.9% of residents and 68.3% of households own their home.

Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year

Harlan city, IA in context

How this area compares with national benchmarks.

Harlan city is a small town in Iowa, with 4,896 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #89 of 1,026 ranked by population — larger than 91% of them. The median age here is 48.2 years against 39.1 nationally, a markedly older profile that usually tracks retirees staying put and younger households leaving for work. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.

Households in Harlan city earn a median of $54,923 a year, 30.1% below the national figure of $78,538 and 19% below the $67,791 median for the 290 Iowa cities we cover. Median household income counts every pre-tax dollar arriving at an address — wages, self-employment, Social Security, pensions, interest and public assistance — for everyone living there, so multi-earner households pull the figure up even where individual pay is modest. Poverty reaches 10.9% of residents here, below the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Harlan city is valued at $137,500, 54.7% below the national figure and 12% below the $156,300 peer median, while median gross rent runs $856 a month, 39.1% below the national figure, or roughly $10,272 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 18.7% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is cheap relative to what people here earn. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 2.5×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 68.3% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans toward owners. The rent line includes utilities paid by the tenant, a definition worth remembering when comparing it against a landlord's quoted rate.

No figure on this page is estimated by us; each one comes straight from the published ACS tables for this area. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.

Compare with nearby places

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Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this area.

What is the population of Harlan city?: Harlan city has 4,896 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #89 of 1,026 in Iowa.
What is the median household income in Harlan city?: Median household income in Harlan city is $54,923 a year, 30.1% below the national figure of $78,538.
How much does it cost to rent or buy in Harlan city?: Median gross rent is $856 a month and the median home value is $137,500, so rent absorbs about 18.7% of median household income.
Is Harlan city affordable compared with the rest of the US?: Homes cost about 2.5× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Harlan city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 18.7% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
How current is this Harlan city data?: All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.