registered sex offenders live in Iowa — that's 1 in every 337 residents, or 29.7 per 10,000, 24% above the national average.
Registered sex offender counts for the 12 largest cities in Iowa, with each city's rate per 10,000 residents. Raw counts track population — the per-capita column is the fair comparison, and the spread is dramatic: Davenport's rate is 7× Ankeny's. Click a city for its full breakdown, or a column header to sort.
| # | City | Registered offenders | Population | Per 10,000 residents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Moines | 214,058 | 49.5 | |
| 2 | Davenport | 101,730 | 75.1 | |
| 3 | Sioux City | 85,894 | 58.1 | |
| 4 | Cedar Rapids | 137,732 | 33.9 | |
| 5 | Council Bluffs | 62,781 | 64.8 | |
| 6 | Waterloo | 67,309 | 58.8 | |
| 7 | Dubuque | 59,676 | 34.9 | |
| 8 | Iowa City | 74,825 | 14.8 | |
| 9 | West Des Moines | 68,725 | 14.0 | |
| 10 | Ames | 66,432 | 12.9 | |
| 11 | Urbandale | 45,577 | 16.7 | |
| 12 | Ankeny | 68,095 | 11.0 |
Counts as of July 2026, compiled from official registry records. City populations from the 2020 U.S. Census. red = 1.5× the state rate or more · green = well below the state rate.
Every Iowa city we track has its own page with neighborhood-level numbers, risk levels, and recent registrations:
Statewide numbers only tell you so much — what matters is who lives near your home, your kids' school, or the places your family spends time. The free Predator Map app searches any U.S. address and shows every registered offender around it on an interactive map, with photos, offense details, and registered addresses from official government registries. You can also search the official Iowa Sex Offender Registry (DPS) directly.
Tier I–III registration. Iowa assigns federal-style tiers that set how often registrants verify (annually to quarterly) and how long they register (10 years to life). All adult registrants appear on the public site with tier shown.
2,000-foot rule for child-victim offenders. Iowa bars offenders convicted of serious sex offenses against minors from living within 2,000 feet of a school or childcare facility, plus exclusion zones limiting presence near schools, pools, and libraries.
Registration & verification. Registrants must keep their address, employment, and schooling current with the registry, and verify in person on a recurring schedule — more frequently for higher-risk or higher-tier registrants. Failure to register or verify is itself a crime and commonly appears as a listed offense on registry records.
Current risk-level breakdown in Iowa:
As of July 2026, there are 9,464 registered sex offenders in Iowa — about 29.7 for every 10,000 residents, 24% above the national average. Counts change as offenders register, move, or are removed from the registry.
Des Moines has the most registered sex offenders in Iowa with 1,059. Raw counts track population, so the fairer comparison is per capita: adjusted for population, Davenport has the highest rate among major cities at 75.1 per 10,000 residents, while Ankeny has the lowest at 11.0.
Use the free Predator Map app to search any Iowa address and see registered offenders around it on a map, with photos and offense details from official registry records. You can also search the official Iowa Sex Offender Registry (DPS) website directly.
Public registry websites only show what the state chooses to publish. Iowa publishes all adult registrants; juvenile registrants are excluded from the public site in most cases. Statistics on this page are compiled from aggregated official registry records, so they can differ from — and often exceed — what a manual search of the public site returns.
2,000-foot rule for child-victim offenders. Iowa bars offenders convicted of serious sex offenses against minors from living within 2,000 feet of a school or childcare facility, plus exclusion zones limiting presence near schools, pools, and libraries. Address-level monitoring matters more than assumptions about "safe" neighborhoods.
Iowa assigns Tier I (lowest, annual verification), Tier II, and Tier III (highest, quarterly verification, generally lifetime registration) based on the offense. All tiers appear on the public registry. There are currently 3,094 registrants at the highest classification in Iowa.
Statistics on this page are compiled from official state registry records and refreshed monthly. This page was last updated in July 2026. Always verify individual records with the official state registry.
Yes. Predator Map Pro monitors up to 5 addresses daily and sends push and email alerts when a registered offender moves in nearby, a new offender registers, or someone moves away.
Yes. Registry information is public record under federal and state law (Megan's Law), and anyone may search it to protect themselves and their family. What the law prohibits is using registry information to harass, threaten, or commit a crime against a registrant — misuse can be prosecuted.
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Methodology: Statistics are compiled from aggregated official state registry records and refreshed monthly. City figures count the city listed on each registry record. Per-capita rates use 2020 U.S. Census populations. Aggregated counts can exceed what public registry websites display because some classification levels are excluded from public searches. Figures are estimates and change daily as registries update — always verify individual records with the official state registry.