Groundwork

Auto · Small-town market · Iowa

Insurance agencies in the Fort Dodge, IA area

The insurance agencies in the Fort Dodge, IA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 19 out of 100: Low

Ranked #492 of 537 scored small-town markets
#9 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa

Listings
27
4 chain locations (15%)
Official establishments
31
−20.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$26.3M
On vehicle insurance · $1,712 a household
Spending per listing
$975K
22% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
17.6
13% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
36,838
−0.4% since 2020

See the insurance agencies around any address in the Fort Dodge area

The site report maps the insurance agencies 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 Fort Dodge area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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

What this means

The Groundwork market score for insurance agencies in the Fort Dodge area is 19 (low), #492 of 537 scored small-town markets and #9 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.

At $1,712 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in the Fort Dodge area spend about $26.3M a year on vehicle insurance. Spread across 27 insurance agencies, that is $975K per agency, 22% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M.

The Fort Dodge area has 27 insurance agencies on map listings as of September 2026. 4 of them (15%) are chain locations, against 21% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 17.6, 13% above the U.S. rate of 15.6.

In 2023, official counts showed 31 businesses with payroll in the Fort Dodge area classed as insurance agencies and brokerages, down 20.5% from 2019. That is one for every 496 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Fort Dodge area declined 0.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How the Fort Dodge area compares

The same measures for Iowa and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all vehicle insurance by the insurance agencies counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Insurance agencies in Fort Dodge, IA area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureFort Dodge areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households17.617.715.6
Spending per listing$975K$984K$1.3M
Households per official establishment496660966
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−20.5%−5.7%−1.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.4%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle insurance$1,712$1,738$1,957
Median household income$68,975$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score1920

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
31−20.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
114
Annual payroll, 2023
$6.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
274 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
21The 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 insurance agencies and brokerages in the Fort Dodge 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 Fort Dodge area

Population, 2025 estimate
36,838−0.4% since 2020
Households
15,375
Median age
39.6
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
716 sq. mi.
People per square mile
52
Median household income
$68,975+45.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$83,997
Median home value
$153,800
Jobs located here
17,395
Daytime population
38,670Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Fort Dodge area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the insurance agencies on map listings by name and distance.

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Insurance agencies across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Iowa for insurance agencies, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Fort Dodge area marked.

Top small-town markets in Iowa

Small-town markets in Iowa ranked for insurance agencies by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Pella, IA592015.0$1.3M+2.3%#197 of 537
2Spirit Lake, IA341314.7$1.2M+1.7%#406 of 537
3Fort Madison, IA331913.3$1.3M−3.6%#415 of 537
4Ottumwa, IA331812.9$1.3M−0.3%#416 of 537
5Marshalltown, IA322415.5$1.2M−0.5%#426 of 537
6Muscatine, IA262816.1$1.1M−3.0%#456 of 537
7Le Mars, IA262120.4$943K0.0%#459 of 537
8Clinton, IA213517.9$971K−0.9%#481 of 537
9Fort Dodge, IA192717.6$975K−0.4%#492 of 537
10Oskaloosa, IA182124.0$785K−1.2%#503 of 537

Other business types in the Fort Dodge area

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

Questions

How many insurance agencies are in the Fort Dodge, IA area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 27 insurance agencies in the Fort Dodge area. 4 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count insurance agencies. Official counts show 31 businesses with payroll classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in 2023, down 20.5% from 2019.

How much do households in the Fort Dodge, IA area spend on vehicle insurance?

About $26.3M a year, or $1,712 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 27 insurance agencies on map listings, it comes to $975K per agency. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,375 households in the Fort Dodge area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Fort Dodge, IA area compare with the U.S. for insurance agencies?

The Fort Dodge area has 17.6 insurance agencies per 10,000 households, 13% above the U.S. rate of 15.6. Spending per agency is $975K, 22% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of insurance agencies to household spending, the Fort Dodge area would have about 21, against 27 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 496 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. The official count fell 20.5% from 2019 to 2023, against −1.0% for the U.S.

How fast is the Fort Dodge, IA area growing?

Population estimates put the Fort Dodge area at 36,838 people in 2025, down 0.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 15,375 households. Median household income in the Fort Dodge area is $68,975, 15% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 45.3%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Fort Dodge area scores 19 for insurance agencies (low), #492 of 537 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Fort Dodge area. It maps the insurance agencies 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 insurance agencies · All 56 business types in the Fort Dodge area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Dodge 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 Fort Dodge 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.