Electric companies in Polk County, Iowa
Polk County, IA ranks 1 of 99 Iowa counties for damaging wind risk, FEMA score 99.2. Polk County in Iowa has 497,441 residents and 4 utilities listed by EIA, with home prices of 11.01 to 17.90 cents per kWh.
Polk County on the map
Polk County darker: more storm events
Outage risk in Polk County
Polk County, IA, NWS storm events 2015 to 2025: 258 in all, 51.9 per 100,000 residents of 497,441, rank 1 of 99 Iowa counties. Property damage in Polk County, IA: $83.6M, with 3 direct injuries or deaths.
Events by year in Polk County, IA
events a year, Polk County, IA
- 13'15
- 15'16
- 26'17
- 21'18
- 32'19
- 50'20
- 17'21
- 11'22
- 4'23
- 43'24
- 26'25
Events by type
| Polk County, IA | FEMA | Score | Rank | Events | Peak | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA, thunderstorm and high wind | Very High | 99.2 | 1 of 99 | 215 | 2020 (46) | $862K |
| Polk County, IA, tornado | Relatively High | 98.1 | 2 of 99 | 17 | 2024 (7) | $82.7M |
| Polk County, IA, hurricane and tropical storm | Very Low | 27.5 | 1 of 82 | 0 | none | $0 |
| Polk County, IA, ice storm | Relatively High | 91.7 | 1 of 99 | 1 | 2017 (1) | $0 |
| Polk County, IA, winter storm and heavy snow | Relatively High | 90.3 | 3 of 99 | 22 | 2015 (4) | $50K |
| Polk County, IA, heat wave | Relatively High | 96.7 | 1 of 99 | 3 | 2016 (2) | $0 |
Facts about Polk County
- Residents of Polk County, IA, ACS 2023
- 497,4411 of 99 Iowa counties
- Households in Polk County, IA
- 202,4042.46 people each
- Owner-occupied homes in Polk County, IA
- 67.1%135,757 owner and 66,647 renter households
- Median household income in Polk County, IA
- $81,6219 of 99 Iowa counties
- Housing units in Polk County, IA
- 215,01612,612 vacant or seasonal, 5.9% of the units
- Homes heated by electricity in Polk County, IA
- 31.7%64,131 homes, 12 of 99 Iowa counties
- Utilities listed for Polk County, IA
- 44 with a home price: MidAmerican Energy Co, Midland Power Coop, Consumers Energy Coop
- Lowest home price in Polk County, IA
- 11.01 ¢/kWhMidAmerican Energy Co, 38.5% below the highest
- Highest home price in Polk County, IA
- 17.90 ¢/kWhInterstate Power and Light Co
- Monthly bill gap in Polk County, IA
- $57between the two at 832 kWh, $688 a year, 0.84% of the Polk County, IA median income
- ZIP areas touching Polk County, IA
- 3850007 to 50327
- Outage-linked storm events in Polk County, IA
- 258NWS storm events, 2015 to 2025
- Homes built before 1980 in Polk County, IA
- 49.3%median year built 1981
- Flood claims in Polk County, IA
- 213NFIP 2015 to 2025, $12.9M paid
- Home energy burden in Polk County, IA
- 1.7%$974 a year on electricity (DOE LEAD)
Electric utilities in Polk County
| Utility listed for Polk County, IA | Type | Home price ¢/kWh | Yearly bill at 832 kWh | Share of Polk County, IA median income of $81,621 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MidAmerican Energy Co in Polk County, IA | Investor Owned | 11.01 | $1,100 | 1.35% |
| Midland Power Coop in Polk County, IA | Cooperative | 13.60 | $1,358 | 1.66% |
| Consumers Energy Coop in Polk County, IA | Cooperative | 15.00 | $1,498 | 1.84% |
| Interstate Power and Light Co in Polk County, IA | Investor Owned | 17.90 | $1,788 | 2.19% |
Prices are statewide utility averages, not a county price.
Bill and heat pump calculator, Polk County
Compare Polk County with its neighbours
- Warren County sits 13 miles south of Polk County, IA with 53,484 residents, 106 storm events, median home built 1984, energy burden 2.7%, income $92,990.
- Dallas County sits 21 miles west of Polk County, IA with 104,136 residents, 136 storm events, median home built 2005, energy burden 1.6%, income $102,349.
- Story County sits 29 miles north of Polk County, IA with 98,592 residents, 130 storm events, median home built 1983, energy burden 2.4%, income $69,006.
- Marion County sits 27 miles southeast of Polk County, IA with 33,551 residents, 126 storm events, median home built 1975, energy burden 3.6%, income $78,059.
- Madison County sits 28 miles southwest of Polk County, IA with 16,760 residents, 73 storm events, median home built 1977, energy burden 3.7%, income $89,542.
Cost of living with electricity in Polk County
Polk County, IA: electricity $974 a year per home (DOE LEAD), all home energy $1,641, 1.7% of $95,559 income. 199,013 households in Polk County, IA spend about $193.8 million a year on electricity and $326.6 million on all home energy. Lower-income homes in Polk County, IA ($21,453 a year) spend 5.3% of income, 3.1 times the all-home figure.
Energy burden in Polk County, IA
| Polk County, IA | Homes | Income | Power | Gas | Other | Burden |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA, all households | 199,013 | $95,559 | $974 | $657 | $10 | 1.7% |
| Polk County, IA, lower income | 44,139 | $21,453 | $780 | $341 | $7 | 5.3% |
| Polk County, IA, owners | 133,444 | $119,635 | $1,168 | $895 | $13 | 1.7% |
| Polk County, IA, renters | 65,569 | $46,560 | $578 | $173 | $3 | 1.6% |
Housing and heating in Polk County
Polk County, IA: 106,014 of 215,016 homes were built before 1980 and 62,667 in 2000 or later. Polk County, IA has 134,175 detached houses, 52,205 homes in 5+ unit buildings, 4,520 mobile homes, and 66,647 of 202,404 households rent.
Age of homes in Polk County, IA
% of homes by decade built, Polk County, IA
- 15pre-40
- 440s
- 1050s
- 860s
- 1370s
- 980s
- 1390s
- 1400s
- 1310s
- 220+
Heating fuel in Polk County, IA
| Polk County, IA | Value | State median | Gap | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA, median year built | 1981 | 1962 | +19 years | 5 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, built before 1980 | 49.3% | 72.5% | -23.2 points | 95 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, built 2000 or later | 29.1% | 12.8% | +16.4 points | 5 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, detached houses | 62.4% | 82.1% | -19.7 points | 97 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, apartments in 5+ unit buildings | 24.3% | 6.5% | +17.8 points | 3 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, mobile homes | 2.1% | 3.3% | -1.2 points | 71 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, renter households | 32.9% | 23.6% | +9.3 points | 5 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, median home value | $248,400 | $148,600 | +$99,800 | 5 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, median gross rent a month | $1,113 | $800 | +$313 | 2 of 99 |
| Polk County, IA, people per household | 2.41 | 2.35 | +0.06 | 30 of 99 |
Flood claims and flood insurance in Polk County
Polk County, IA: 213 NFIP flood claims in 2015 to 2025, $12.9M paid, median paid claim $28,165.
670 of 163,854 residential structures in Polk County, IA carry an NFIP contract. 1,130 NFIP policies of any type were in force in Polk County, IA on 8 Sep 2026. Polk County, IA lists 61 repetitive-loss properties, 5 of them severe repetitive loss.
Polk County, IA: claims history, not an outage count.
Flood claims by year in Polk County, IA
flood claims a year, Polk County, IA
- 37'15
- 0'16
- 0'17
- 145'18
- 21'19
- <5'20
- <5'21
- 0'22
- <5'23
- <5'24
- <5'25
| Polk County, IA | Value | Median county | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA, claims 2015-2025 | 213 | — | 3 of 47 |
| Polk County, IA, paid 2015-2025 | $12.9M | — | 1 of 47 |
| Polk County, IA, median paid claim | $28,165 | — | — |
| Polk County, IA, claims per 1,000 homes | 1.3 | 1.9 | 27 of 47 |
| Polk County, IA, homes with flood insurance | 0.4% | 0.3% | 33 of 88 |
| Polk County, IA, policies in force | 1,130 | — | — |
| Polk County, IA, repetitive-loss properties | 61 | — | — |
Polk County, IA: OpenFEMA NFIP, claims as of 8 Sep 2026, insured share as of 3 Aug 2026; counts under 5 are hidden.
Polk County: flood claims by state, flood hub.
Analyst note on Polk County
Polk County, IA counts 497,441 residents in 202,404 households. Polk County, IA touches 38 ZIP areas, 50007 to 50327, about 13,091 residents each. Household income in Polk County, IA is $81,621; 135,757 of its 202,404 households own.
64,131 of the 202,404 homes in Polk County, IA heat with electricity. Polk County, IA has 215,016 housing units, 12,612 (5.9%) vacant or seasonal, and 66,647 rented homes. Polk County, IA logged 258 storm events for its 497,441 residents.
The median home in Polk County, IA dates from 1981. Homes in Polk County, IA pay $974 a year for electricity. Polk County, IA home prices run MidAmerican Energy Co to Interstate Power and Light Co, $57 a month apart at 832 kWh.
Cities in Polk County
- Des Moines electricity rates212,464 residents
- Ankeny electricity rates70,542 residents
- West Des Moines electricity rates69,893 residents
- Urbandale electricity rates46,026 residents
ZIP codes in Polk County
- 50007
- 50009
- 50021
- 50023
- 50032
- 50035
- 50046
- 50047
- 50073
- 50109
- 50111
- 50124
- 50131
- 50161
- 50169
- 50226
- 50237
- 50243
- 50244
- 50265
- 50266
- 50309
- 50310
- 50311
- 50312
- 50313
- 50314
- 50315
- 50316
- 50317
- 50319
- 50320
- 50321
- 50322
- 50323
- 50324
- 50325
- 50327
Iowa: home prices since 2001, planned plants.
Questions on Polk County
Polk County, IA: what do homes pay for electricity?
Polk County, IA homes paid 11.01 to 17.90 cents per kWh in 2024 across 4 listed utilities: $92 to $149 a month at 832 kWh, 1.35% to 2.19% of Polk County, IA income.
Polk County, IA: how many homes heat with electricity?
Polk County, IA: 64,131 of 202,404 occupied homes, 31.7%, rank 12 of 99.
Polk County, IA: median household income?
$81,621 in Polk County, IA, rank 9 of 99; 497,441 residents, 202,404 households.
Polk County, IA: outage-linked storms since 2015?
Polk County, IA: 258 NWS events, peak year 2020.
Polk County, IA: flood insurance claims since 2015?
Polk County, IA: 213 NFIP flood claims, $12.9M paid, 1.3 per 1,000 homes, 0.4% of homes insured.
How old are the homes in Polk County, IA?
Polk County, IA: median home built 1981; 49.3% predate 1980, 62.4% detached, 24.3% in 5+ unit buildings.
Polk County, IA: share of income for energy?
Polk County, IA homes spend $974 a year on electricity, $1,641 on all energy: 1.7% of $95,559; 5.3% for lower incomes.