Lawyers pay in Iowa
$144,760avg. a year
$69.59 an hour · 3,550 employed
Lawyers in Iowa earn an average of $144,760 a year. That is $41,080 (22%) less than the U.S. average of $185,840. The best-paying metro area is Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA at $159,230.
$123,550Median pay
$69.59Average hourly
+18%Avg. pay since 2020
#34Of 50 states + D.C.
Top-paying Iowa metro areas
Average pay for lawyers by metro area. Swipe to see all 9.
11,760 jobs
Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA
$159,230
$76.55 an hour
2330 jobs
Cedar Rapids, IA
$157,430
$75.69 an hour
3160 jobs
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
$155,780
$74.89 an hour
4420 jobs
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL
$150,980
$72.59 an hour
52,010 jobs
Omaha, NE-IA
$149,080
$71.67 an hour
6140 jobs
Iowa City, IA
$142,540
$68.53 an hour
7150 jobs
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD
$142,440
$68.48 an hour
8100 jobs
Dubuque, IA
$134,060
$64.45 an hour
990 jobs
Ames, IA
$130,550
$62.76 an hour
Why people trust JobPayFacts
Official government dataEvery number comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey of employers, not self-reported salaries.
Every state and city830 jobs across all 50 states, D.C. and 199 large metro areas.
Updated every yearNew figures each spring when BLS releases them. This site uses May 2025 data.
Lawyers pay in Iowa, charted
Pay over time
Iowa, annual wage, May of each year
AverageMedian
Where Iowa lawyers work
Employment by metro area, May 2025
Related jobs in Iowa
- Paralegals and Legal Assistants$58,780
- Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates$113,160
- Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers$121,720
- Judicial Law Clerks$69,700
- Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers$45,540
- Legal Support Workers, All Other$52,600
Average pay, Iowa, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS
Questions and answers
How much do lawyers make in Iowa?
The average is $144,760 a year, and the median is $123,550. That is $41,080 (22%) less than the U.S. average of $185,840.
What is the hourly wage in Iowa?
$69.59 an hour on average; the median is $59.40.
Where in Iowa do they earn the most?
Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA ($159,230), followed by Cedar Rapids, IA ($157,430). The lowest average among 9 metro areas with data is Ames, IA ($130,550).
How does Iowa rank?
Iowa ranks #34 of 51 states (including D.C.) with published data for this job, by average pay.
Sources and notes. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 (trend: May 2020–May 2025), occupation code 23-1011. State rank compares average pay across states with published data. Metro figures cover metropolitan statistical areas; a metro area can cross state lines. See also the national lawyers page. Wages are gross pay before taxes and don't include overtime premiums, tips, bonuses or benefits; self-employed workers aren't included. Year-to-year changes can partly reflect survey method changes, so treat the trend as a guide. How we use the data. JobPayFacts isn't affiliated with BLS.