Auto · Small-town market · Iowa
Insurance agencies in the Ottumwa, IA area
How the Ottumwa, IA area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for insurance agencies: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 33 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #416 of 537 scored small-town markets
#4 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa
- Listings
- 18
- 3 chain locations (17%)
- Official establishments
- 17
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $23.6M
- On vehicle insurance · $1,688 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.3M
- 5% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.9
- 17% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 35,210
- −0.3% since 2020
See the insurance agencies around any address in the Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa 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
The Ottumwa area scores 33 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for insurance agencies, ranking #416 of 537 scored small-town markets and #4 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 18 insurance agencies in the Ottumwa area. Of those, 3 are chain locations, or 17%, against 21% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.9, 17% below the U.S. rate of 15.6.
Households in the Ottumwa area spend about $23.6M a year on vehicle insurance, or $1,688 per household, 14% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.3M per agency, 5% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in the Ottumwa area was 17 in 2023. That is one for every 823 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $621K have gone to businesses classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in the Ottumwa area. Population estimates put the population change in the Ottumwa area from 2020 to 2025 at −0.3%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Ottumwa 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.
| Measure | Ottumwa area | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.9 | 17.7 | 15.6 |
| Spending per listing | $1.3M | $984K | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 823 | 660 | 966 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −5.7% | −1.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.3% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle insurance | $1,688 | $1,738 | $1,957 |
| Median household income | $64,766 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 33 | 20 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 17
- Employees, 2023
- 60
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 183 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 19The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $621K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in the Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 35,210−0.3% since 2020
- Households
- 13,997
- Median age
- 40.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 432 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 82
- Median household income
- $64,766+40.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $82,469
- Median home value
- $125,100
- Jobs located here
- 15,175
- Daytime population
- 34,077Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardInsurance 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 Ottumwa area marked.
Top small-town markets in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pella, IA | 59 | 20 | 15.0 | $1.3M | +2.3% | #197 of 537 |
| 2Spirit Lake, IA | 34 | 13 | 14.7 | $1.2M | +1.7% | #406 of 537 |
| 3Fort Madison, IA | 33 | 19 | 13.3 | $1.3M | −3.6% | #415 of 537 |
| 4Ottumwa, IA | 33 | 18 | 12.9 | $1.3M | −0.3% | #416 of 537 |
| 5Marshalltown, IA | 32 | 24 | 15.5 | $1.2M | −0.5% | #426 of 537 |
| 6Muscatine, IA | 26 | 28 | 16.1 | $1.1M | −3.0% | #456 of 537 |
| 7Le Mars, IA | 26 | 21 | 20.4 | $943K | 0.0% | #459 of 537 |
| 8Clinton, IA | 21 | 35 | 17.9 | $971K | −0.9% | #481 of 537 |
| 9Fort Dodge, IA | 19 | 27 | 17.6 | $975K | −0.4% | #492 of 537 |
| 10Oskaloosa, IA | 18 | 21 | 24.0 | $785K | −1.2% | #503 of 537 |
Other business types in the Ottumwa 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
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many insurance agencies are in the Ottumwa, IA area?
There are 18 insurance agencies on map listings in the Ottumwa area as of September 2026. 3 of them (17%) are chain locations. The listings count insurance agencies. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in 2023.
How much do households in the Ottumwa, IA area spend on vehicle insurance?
About $23.6M a year, or $1,688 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 18 insurance agencies on map listings, it comes to $1.3M per agency. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,997 households in the Ottumwa area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Ottumwa, IA area compare with the U.S. for insurance agencies?
The Ottumwa area has 12.9 insurance agencies per 10,000 households, 17% below the U.S. rate of 15.6. Spending per agency is $1.3M, 5% above the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the national ratio of insurance agencies to household spending, the Ottumwa area would have about 19, against 18 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 823 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S.
How fast is the Ottumwa, IA area growing?
Population estimates put the Ottumwa area at 35,210 people in 2025, down 0.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,997 households. The median household income in the Ottumwa area is $64,766 a year, 20% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 40.1% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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 Ottumwa area scores 33 for insurance agencies (lower middle), #416 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 Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Ottumwa 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 Ottumwa 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.