GeraJobs / US Wage Premium / Palo Alto County, IA
Palo Alto County, Iowa — Wages & Employment (2023)
Ranked #2,202 of 3,141 US counties by the Gera Local Wage Premium US (63.4, US = 100) — computed from real BLS QCEW 2023 establishment data.
What is the average wage in Palo Alto County, IA?
Palo Alto County, IA has a GLWP-US of 63.4 (rank #2,202 of 3,141), well below the US average. Average weekly wage: $882 (~$45,864/year, US = $1392/wk). Its highest-concentration sector is Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting (LQ 7.48x). Source: BLS QCEW 2023.
Gera Local Wage Premium US
Palo Alto County's wage premium vs US average (rank #2,202 of 3,141). Well below the US average.
How this is calculated$882
Avg weekly wage (2023)
$45,864
Approx annual pay
63.4
GLWP-US (US = 100)
#2,202 / 3,141
National rank
3,549
Average employment
$1,392
US avg weekly wage
Palo Alto County vs US average — wage comparison
| Metric | Palo Alto County | US Average | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg weekly wage | $882 | $1,392 | -$510 |
| Approx annual pay | $45,864 | $72,384 | -$26,520 |
| GLWP-US index | 63.4 | 100.0 | -36.6 |
Source: BLS QCEW 2023, all industries, all ownership types. Annual pay = weekly wage × 52 (derived). GLWP-US = (county wage / US $1392/wk) × 100.
Palo Alto County — top industries by employment concentration
Location Quotient (LQ) > 1.0 means the industry is more concentrated here than the US average. Private sector, BLS QCEW 2023.
| Industry (NAICS sector) | LQ | Avg Wk Wage (sector) |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting | 7.48x | $976 |
| Manufacturing | 1.72x | $1,316 |
| Retail Trade | 1.15x | $541 |
| Accommodation & Food Services | 1.15x | $449 |
| Utilities | 1.12x | $1,962 |
LQ = (county sector employment share) / (US sector employment share). Source: BLS QCEW 2023, agglvl_code=74, own_code=5 (private sector).
Palo Alto County — GLWP-US breakdown
GLWP-US
63.4
US = 100
National Rank
#2,202
of 3,141 counties
Wage Premium
$510
vs US avg/wk
GLWP-US = 63.4 (rank #2,202 of 3,141, well below the US average). Formula: ($882/wk ÷ $1392/wk) × 100 = 63.4.
Explore US County Wage Premiums — Interactive
US average = $$1,392/wk (GLWP-US 100). Showing top 50 results.
| Rank | County | State | GLWP-US | Avg Wk Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Dallas County | IA | 102.4 | $1,426 |
| #2 | Polk County | IA | 96.8 | $1,347 |
| #3 | Linn County | IA | 89.9 | $1,251 |
| #4 | Monroe County | IA | 89.2 | $1,241 |
| #5 | Marion County | IA | 88.9 | $1,237 |
| #6 | Johnson County | IA | 86.3 | $1,201 |
| #7 | Plymouth County | IA | 84.6 | $1,177 |
| #8 | Story County | IA | 84.5 | $1,176 |
| #9 | Muscatine County | IA | 83.3 | $1,160 |
| #10 | Black Hawk County | IA | 81.6 | $1,136 |
| #11 | Scott County | IA | 81.4 | $1,133 |
| #12 | Dubuque County | IA | 79.2 | $1,102 |
| #13 | Ida County | IA | 78.9 | $1,098 |
| #14 | Poweshiek County | IA | 78.3 | $1,090 |
| #15 | Grundy County | IA | 77.9 | $1,085 |
| #16 | Hancock County | IA | 77.2 | $1,074 |
| #17 | Webster County | IA | 76.6 | $1,066 |
| #18 | Mitchell County | IA | 76.2 | $1,061 |
| #19 | Wright County | IA | 75.9 | $1,056 |
| #20 | Lee County | IA | 75.4 | $1,050 |
| #21 | Chickasaw County | IA | 75.1 | $1,045 |
| #22 | Marshall County | IA | 74.7 | $1,040 |
| #23 | Hardin County | IA | 74.3 | $1,034 |
| #24 | Pottawattamie County | IA | 74.2 | $1,033 |
| #25 | Butler County | IA | 74.1 | $1,031 |
| #26 | Mahaska County | IA | 73.8 | $1,027 |
| #27 | Cerro Gordo County | IA | 73.3 | $1,021 |
| #28 | Floyd County | IA | 73.3 | $1,021 |
| #29 | Mills County | IA | 73.3 | $1,021 |
| #30 | Sioux County | IA | 73.3 | $1,020 |
| #31 | Boone County | IA | 72.2 | $1,005 |
| #32 | Delaware County | IA | 72.2 | $1,005 |
| #33 | Jefferson County | IA | 72.2 | $1,005 |
| #34 | Guthrie County | IA | 72.1 | $1,004 |
| #35 | Wapello County | IA | 72.1 | $1,003 |
| #36 | Hamilton County | IA | 72.0 | $1,002 |
| #37 | Woodbury County | IA | 72.0 | $1,002 |
| #38 | Greene County | IA | 71.8 | $1,000 |
| #39 | Buena Vista County | IA | 71.6 | $996 |
| #40 | Clay County | IA | 71.6 | $996 |
| #41 | Crawford County | IA | 71.5 | $995 |
| #42 | Franklin County | IA | 71.5 | $995 |
| #43 | Henry County | IA | 71.3 | $993 |
| #44 | Humboldt County | IA | 70.5 | $981 |
| #45 | Bremer County | IA | 70.4 | $980 |
| #46 | Clinton County | IA | 70.3 | $979 |
| #47 | Kossuth County | IA | 70.1 | $976 |
| #48 | Des Moines County | IA | 70.0 | $974 |
| #49 | Louisa County | IA | 69.8 | $971 |
| #50 | Pocahontas County | IA | 69.3 | $965 |
Source: BLS QCEW 2023 Annual Single File, US public domain. GLWP-US = (county avg weekly wage ÷ US avg $1,392/wk) × 100. Top sector LQ = employment location quotient (private sector). Computed by GeraJobs.
This explorer covers Iowa counties. Explore every US county on the US Wage Premium hub.
Palo Alto County wages — FAQ
- What is the GLWP-US score for Palo Alto County, IA?
- Palo Alto County, IA has a Gera Local Wage Premium US (GLWP-US) of 63.4 (US average = 100), ranking #2,202 of 3,141 US counties. This puts it well below the US average. Source: BLS QCEW 2023.
- What is the average weekly wage in Palo Alto County, Iowa?
- The BLS QCEW 2023 data shows the annual average weekly wage in Palo Alto County, Iowa is $882, equating to approximately $45,864/year. The US average is $1392/wk ($72,384/year). GLWP-US: 63.4 (US = 100).
- How many people are employed in Palo Alto County?
- In 2023, Palo Alto County, Iowa had an annual average employment of 3,549 workers covered by unemployment insurance, per the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. This covers private-sector and government workers across all industries.
- What industries are most concentrated in Palo Alto County?
- Based on BLS QCEW 2023 employment Location Quotients, the most concentrated private-sector industries in Palo Alto County, Iowa are: Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting (LQ 7.48x, avg $976/wk); Manufacturing (LQ 1.72x, avg $1316/wk); Retail Trade (LQ 1.15x, avg $541/wk); Accommodation & Food Services (LQ 1.15x, avg $449/wk); Utilities (LQ 1.12x, avg $1962/wk). An LQ above 1.0 means the county has a higher share of that industry than the US overall.
- How does Palo Alto County's wage compare to Iowa overall?
- Palo Alto County has a GLWP-US of 63.4 vs the US average of 100. To see how Palo Alto County compares to other counties in Iowa, explore the full GeraJobs US Wage Premium rankings. The GLWP-US is computed from BLS QCEW 2023 establishment data covering all industries and ownership types.
How the Gera Local Wage Premium US is calculated
GLWP-US = (county avg weekly wage / US avg weekly wage) × 100. US average $1392/wk in 2023 → US = 100 by construction. Data: BLS QCEW 2023 annual singlefile, all industries, all ownership. Suppressed cells excluded. No imputation. Full methodology · Licence: US public domain.
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Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, QCEW 2023 Annual Single File (data.bls.gov/cew/data/files/2023/csv/2023_annual_singlefile.zip). US public domain. Area title from BLS area_titles.csv. FIPS: 19147. No figure is modelled or estimated.