Why look at Dubuque?
- Affordable housing. Median home is $247k — well below the national median.
- Rising market. Home values up +6.4% year-over-year — momentum is positive.
- Strong overall momentum. Composite score 71/100 (Rising).
Where Dubuque stands
At or near all-time high. home values up 6.4% in the last year.
Home value trajectory · last 10 years
Zillow ZHVI · monthlyLifestyle scores
Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.
Rent trajectory · last 5 years
Zillow ZORI · monthlyHome value vs rent · indexed to 100
Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)Rent vs buy
At a 18.7 price-to-rent ratio, Dubuque is in the 'depends on horizon' zone. Buy if you'll be there 5+ years and value flexibility on the home; rent if you might move, want zero maintenance friction, or expect rates to drop.
How the momentum score breaks down
methodology →About Dubuque (Wikipedia)
Dubuque is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region locally known as the Tri-State Area. It serves as the main commercial, industrial, educational, and cultural center for the area. Geographically, it is part of the Driftless Area, a portion of North America that escaped all three phases of the Wisconsin Glaciation, resulting in a hilly topography unlike most of the Midwestern United States.
Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.
City facts
Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.
Local safety & alerts
No active National Weather Service alerts for Dubuque County right now.
Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Dubuque County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.
Neighborhoods of Dubuque
9 tracked · ranked by median home valueRun the numbers for Dubuque
Iowa context
Schools
Dubuque is served by 18 public schools enrolling about 10,071 students, with a student-teacher ratio of 12.8:1 — smaller classes than the US average of ~15:1. Public-school facts are from the NCES Common Core of Data; check ratings and attendance boundaries by exact address below.
Ratings, districts & boundaries:
Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.
Climate & natural-disaster risk
State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.
Current weather
Find rentals & listings
Open current Dubuque listings on the major real-estate sites.
Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.
Local news & community
Latest news in Dubuque
1 from local press- Rooftop restaurant at Dubuque's Key Hotel to open next weekLOCALTelegraphHerald.com6d ago
- Dubuque teacher arraigned on federal child pornography chargesKCRG5d ago
- Dubuque teacher charged with 6 counts of child exploitationKWWL1w ago
- Dubuque County commission recommends data center moratoriumKCRG1w ago
- Dubuque teacher pleads not guilty to child exploitation chargesKWWL5d ago
- Dubuque teacher facing federal child exploitation charges, remains on paid leaveKCRG1w ago
What locals are saying
- “What should I do in Dubuque?” r/dubuque
- Where do we find the women’s at? r/dubuque
- Where is a good place to talk to someone about depression/anxiety r/dubuque
- Data centers? r/dubuque
- natural swimming? r/dubuque
Updated 2026-05-28 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Filtered for Dubuque-specific coverage. Headlines link to original sources.
Local sports teams
Major professional teams the Dubuque area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.
Local economy & environment
Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.
Find more cities like Dubuque
Open the matchmaker pre-filled to match Dubuque’s price band, region, and size — refine to taste.
Find more like Dubuque →Cities similar to Dubuque
Explore other places with comparable momentum or affordability.
Cost-of-ownership at the median
Snapshot assumes a $150k single earner buying at the median home. Your real numbers depend on bracket, deductions, school district, and HOA. Use the affordability calculator and net-pay calculator for your specific case.
Schools & crime context
School quality is district-by-district and varies dramatically within a city. Check GreatSchools or your state DOE rankings for specific schools before deciding. City-level school data coming soon.
Iowa: 248 violent crimes per 100K residents (state avg, FBI UCR). Neighborhood-level rates can vary 10× within one city — research specific areas via CrimeGrade or local police data.
Compare to where you live now
Set your current city once and we’ll show the cost delta on every city profile.
Jobs & hiring
In Dubuque, unemployment sits around 4.5%, and hiring momentum has been steady. The strongest local sectors are healthcare, skilled trades & manufacturing and tech.
Search current openings: