Clothing and laundry · Metro area · Iowa
Clothing and shoe stores in the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area
How the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 60 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #134 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 8 scored metro areas based in Iowa
- Listings
- 492
- 248 chain locations (50%)
- Official establishments
- 239
- −8.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $630.7M
- On clothing, shoes and related services · $2,139 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 16.7
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 758,539
- +6.7% since 2020
See the clothing and shoe stores around any address in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area
The site report maps the clothing and shoe stores on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Household spending on clothing, shoes and related services in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area comes to about $630.7M a year: $2,139 per household, 4% above the U.S. average. That works out to $1.3M per store, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only clothing and shoe stores.
There are 492 clothing and shoe stores on map listings in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 50% of them, against 44% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 16.7, 3% above the U.S. rate of 16.2.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area was 239 in 2023, down 8.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,234 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. Official counts list 464 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $2.4M have gone to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area.
Population estimates show the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area grew 6.7% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area scores 60 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for clothing and shoe stores, ranking #134 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 8 scored metro areas based in Iowa.
How the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area compares
The same measures for Iowa and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all clothing, shoes and related services by the clothing and shoe stores counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 16.7 | 15.6 | 16.2 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $1.3M | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,234 | 1,499 | 1,273 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −8.6% | −14.3% | −12.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.7% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services | $2,139 | $1,967 | $2,055 |
| Median household income | $85,890 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 60 | 48 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 239−8.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,018
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $64.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 464Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 492248 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 496The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $2.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as clothing and shoe stores in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 758,539+6.7% since 2020
- Households
- 294,814
- Median age
- 37.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 3,613 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 202
- Median household income
- $85,890+22.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $112,632
- Median home value
- $267,400
- Jobs located here
- 392,636
- Daytime population
- 765,807Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the clothing and shoe stores on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardClothing and shoe stores across Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Iowa for clothing and shoe stores, numbered among those based in Iowa (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Cedar Rapids, IA | 65 | 157 | 13.8 | $1.5M | +1.0% | #92 of 387 |
| Omaha, NE-IA | 64 | 612 | 15.7 | $1.4M | +4.2% | #102 of 387 |
| 2Ames, IA | 60 | 69 | 13.8 | $1.4M | +2.2% | #128 of 387 |
| 3Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | 60 | 492 | 16.7 | $1.3M | +6.7% | #134 of 387 |
| 4Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 57 | 213 | 13.2 | $1.5M | −0.9% | #156 of 387 |
| 5Iowa City, IA | 48 | 128 | 17.7 | $1.2M | +4.1% | #216 of 387 |
| 6Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA | 47 | 118 | 17.0 | $1.1M | +0.5% | #225 of 387 |
| 7Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | 33 | 109 | 19.7 | $981K | +1.0% | #303 of 387 |
| 8Dubuque, IA | 28 | 95 | 23.2 | $854K | +0.1% | #326 of 387 |
Other business types in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
- Clothing, shoes and laundry63
- Clothing and shoe stores60
- Laundromats71
- Dry cleaners72
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many clothing and shoe stores are in the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 492 clothing and shoe stores in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area. 248 of them (50%) are chain locations. The listings count clothing, shoe and accessory stores and boutiques. Official counts show 239 businesses with payroll classed as clothing and shoe stores in 2023, down 8.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 464 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?
About $630.7M a year, or $2,139 per household. That is 4% above the U.S. average (an index of 104, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 492 clothing and shoe stores on map listings, it comes to $1.3M per store. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which clothing and shoe stores share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 294,814 households in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area compare with the U.S. for clothing and shoe stores?
The Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area has 16.7 clothing and shoe stores per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 16.2. Spending per store is $1.3M, in line with the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of clothing and shoe stores to household spending, the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area would have about 496, against 492 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,234 households, against one for every 1,273 across the U.S. The official count fell 8.6% from 2019 to 2023, against −12.2% for the U.S.
How fast is the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area at 758,539 people in 2025, up 6.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 294,814 households. Median household income in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area is $85,890, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.5%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area scores 60 for clothing and shoe stores (upper middle), #134 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area. It maps the clothing and shoe stores on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for clothing and shoe stores · All 56 business types in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.