What it's like to live in Muscatine
Muscatine is a small city in Iowa with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, crime rates well below the national average, and commutes that run shorter than most cities. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Muscatine deals with household incomes below the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, college degree attainment below the national average, and a poverty rate above the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low crime rates
- Short commutes
- Low student-teacher ratio
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Air quality concerns
- Low college degree attainment
- High poverty rate
- Cold, harsh winters
- Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
How Muscatine compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Muscatine
Based on Muscatine's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,948
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $38,960 a year
- 48% of Muscatine renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$30,720
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $15,360
- Homes cost 2.6× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 31% below US
$974/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $974 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $153,600. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $153,600 · 48% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
3.8% county unemployment
Unemployment in Muscatine County is 3.8%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Muscatine County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 44% below US
186 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 936/100k · Muscatine Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 37% below US
16 min average commute
Commutes run short here, averaging 16.3 minutes. That's an underrated perk of living in a smaller or well-planned city, where time isn't lost sitting in traffic. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 6% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 84°F, and winters are cold and harsh, with lows dropping to 17°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 4.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 41% below US
21% bachelor's degree or higher
College degree attainment runs below average at 21%. That tends to reflect a more trade and working-class economy, which can be great or limiting depending on the industry.
Schools
9 public schools inside the boundary
There are 9 public schools inside the boundary and 2 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 14:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Herbert Hoover National Historic Site (23 miles away).
Bottom line
Muscatine's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and air quality that falls short of national benchmarks. A year of median rent ($974/mo) equals 20% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, anyone prioritizing low crime, and people who want short commutes. It may be a harder fit for anyone who doesn't drive and anyone who dislikes long, cold winters.
Other places near Muscatine
All Iowa guides →Moving to Iowa City →
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Rent $1,094/mo · Income $58,546
Compare with Muscatine →Moving to Bettendorf →
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Rent $1,187/mo · Income $100,495
Compare with Muscatine →Moving to Coralville →
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