Groundwork

Clothing and laundry · Metro area · Iowa

Dry cleaners in the Ames, IA metro area

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for dry cleaners in the Ames, IA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #122 of 272 scored metro areas
#3 of 3 scored metro areas based in Iowa

Listings
5
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$98.1M
On clothing, shoes and related services · $1,968 a household
Spending per listing
$19.6M
25% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
1.0
23% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
128,090
+2.2% since 2020

See the dry cleaners around any address in the Ames metro area

The site report maps the dry cleaners 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 Ames metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Households in the Ames metro area spend about $98.1M a year on clothing, shoes and related services, or $1,968 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. Spread across 5 dry cleaners, that is $19.6M per shop, 25% above the U.S. figure of $15.7M. The spending figure covers all clothing, shoes and related services, not only dry cleaners.

The Ames metro area has 5 dry cleaners on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations, against 23% across the U.S. That comes to 1.0 for every 10,000 households, 23% below the U.S. rate of 1.3.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for dry cleaning and laundry services in the Ames metro area, since they leave out counts under 3.

Population estimates show the Ames metro area grew 2.2% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for dry cleaners in the Ames metro area is 54 (upper middle), #122 of 272 scored metro areas and #3 of 3 scored metro areas based in Iowa.

How the Ames 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 dry cleaners counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Dry cleaners in Ames, IA metro area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureAmes metro areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households1.00.61.3
Spending per listing$19.6M$31.2M$15.7M
Households per official establishmentn/a22,6858,177
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−15.9%−18.7%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.2%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on clothing, shoes and related services$1,968$1,967$2,055
Median household income$73,127$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score5469

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
50 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
6The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as dry cleaning and laundry services in the Ames 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 Ames metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
128,090+2.2% since 2020
Households
49,840
Median age
35.1
Homes lived in by their owners
61%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
1,143 sq. mi.
People per square mile
111
Median household income
$73,127+24.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$97,543
Median home value
$246,300
Jobs located here
57,558
Daytime population
130,790Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Ames 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 dry cleaners on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Ames metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Dry cleaners across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Iowa for dry cleaners, numbered among those based in Iowa (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Ames metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Iowa

Metro areas in Iowa ranked for dry cleaners by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA72341.2$18.5M+6.7%#25 of 272
2Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL61110.7$28.6M−0.9%#77 of 272
3Ames, IA5451.0$19.6M+2.2%#122 of 272
Omaha, NE-IA53571.5$14.5M+4.2%#134 of 272

Other business types in the Ames metro area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many dry cleaners are in the Ames, IA metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 5 dry cleaners in the Ames metro area. None of them are chain locations. The listings count dry cleaners. No official count is published for dry cleaning and laundry services in the Ames metro area: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in the Ames, IA metro area spend on clothing, shoes and related services?

About $98.1M a year, or $1,968 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 dry cleaners on map listings, it comes to $19.6M per shop. That spending covers all clothing, shoes and related services, which dry cleaners share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 49,840 households in the Ames metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Ames, IA metro area compare with the U.S. for dry cleaners?

The Ames metro area has 1.0 dry cleaners per 10,000 households, 23% below the U.S. rate of 1.3. Spending per shop is $19.6M, 25% above the U.S. figure of $15.7M. At the U.S. ratio of dry cleaners to household spending, the Ames metro area would have about 6, against 5 on map listings.

How fast is the Ames, IA metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Ames metro area at 128,090 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 49,840 households. Median household income in the Ames metro area is $73,127, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.8%, 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 Ames metro area scores 54 for dry cleaners (upper middle), #122 of 272 scored metro areas.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Ames metro area. It maps the dry cleaners 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 dry cleaners · All 56 business types in the Ames metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Ames 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 Ames 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.