A study looking at the worst small towns in Iowa by a site called Road Snacks has gained some popularity in the last few months. Many people agreed with the list while others criticized it. One big complaint was about the negativity... thankfully it looks like we can look on the brighter side with a new top-three list.

Today we will be looking at the Best Small Towns In Iowa!

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How They Got The numbers

Once they figured out the worst small towns, finding the nice ones was easy.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using FBI crime data and the Census's 2016-2020 American Community Survey.

Things they looked at included

  • Population Density (The lower the worse)
  • Highest and lowest Unemployment Rates
  • Low and high housing costs (meaning there's no demand)
  • Adjusted Median Income (Median income adjusted for the cost of living)
  • Education (Number of high school dropouts)
  • Crime Rates

They focused on cities and towns with populations between 1,000 and 5,000 people, of which, there were a lot - 377 to be exact.

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The Best Small Towns In Iowa

3. Earlham 

Earlham is a city in Madison County, so while many consider it a small town, it is also considered a city by some as well. No matter what you call it... Earlham is number 3 on this list. 

2. Huxley

With a population of 3,912, this small town is on the larger end. Huxley is said to be a great spot and finds itself in at number 2.

Now it's time for the number one spot! Do you have a guess as to what it might be?

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1. Atkins

I've actually been here before, great town! It is part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. It has a reported population of 2,069. You can learn more about this town on their website...

More than a just a place where people live, our community is unique and vibrant. This community is home to friends and neighbors, people who contribute to the excellent quality of life. But its not just the people, but also the government, the businesses, the schools, and the activities that make us a great place to live or visit. We are proud to call this our home.

Did you guess right? let us know on our App!

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Most "Redneck" Towns In The Midwest

Since the popular Youtube channel run by Nick Johnson has made a video about almost every state when it comes to redneck towns we decided to take the number spot from each of those videos and put them in a list of the most redneck towns in the Midwest. In no particular order here are your most redneck towns.

Iowa Stingray Home

This home is located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It holds two tanks, both around 300 gallons each. They both contain different types of stingrays. As for right now, this project is just for fun, though the owners do hope to someday breed these rays.

It's been about a 6-month process getting all the supplies, tanks, and stingrays.

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