There are 32 cities in Polk County, Iowa.
Note: As defined by the US Census Bureau, a city's official boundaries often extend miles beyond the city itself and may even cross county lines. As such, several thousand US cities officially exist in two or more counties (and therefore appear on multiple counties' lists of cities.)
City | Rank | 2024 Population | 2020 Population | Annual Change | Density (/mi²) | Area (mi²) | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Des Moines | 1 | 209,232 | 213,826 | -0.55% | 2,373 | 88.2 | City |
| Ankeny | 2 | 76,435 | 68,527 | 2.66% | 2,412 | 31.7 | City |
| West Des Moines | 3 | 73,300 | 68,919 | 1.52% | 1,550 | 47.3 | City |
| Urbandale | 4 | 47,112 | 45,579 | 0.82% | 2,089 | 22.5 | City |
| Waukee | 5 | 34,066 | 24,380 | 7.65% | 1,564 | 21.8 | City |
| Johnston | 6 | 24,816 | 24,111 | 0.71% | 1,273 | 19.5 | City |
| Altoona | 7 | 22,372 | 19,674 | 3.11% | 1,885 | 11.9 | City |
| Clive | 8 | 19,122 | 18,654 | 0.62% | 2,498 | 7.7 | City |
| Grimes | 9 | 16,615 | 15,601 | 1.55% | 1,384 | 12.0 | City |
| Norwalk | 10 | 15,524 | 12,919 | 4.38% | 1,333 | 11.6 | City |
| Pleasant Hill | 11 | 12,092 | 10,192 | 4.09% | 1,118 | 10.8 | City |
| Bondurant | 12 | 9,465 | 7,439 | 5.65% | 999 | 9.5 | City |
| Polk City | 13 | 6,537 | 5,599 | 3.71% | 1,160 | 5.6 | City |
| Windsor Heights | 14 | 5,009 | 5,239 | -1.15% | 3,493 | 1.4 | City |
| Huxley | 15 | 4,741 | 4,313 | 2.31% | 1,446 | 3.3 | City |
| Carlisle | 16 | 4,379 | 4,166 | 1.23% | 775 | 5.7 | City |
| Madrid | 17 | 2,798 | 2,801 | -0.04% | 2,286 | 1.2 | City |
| Saylorville | 18 | 2,760 | 2,743 | -1.36% | 407 | 6.8 | CDP |
| Mitchellville | 19 | 2,661 | 2,485 | 1.68% | 1,055 | 2.5 | City |
| Granger | 20 | 2,142 | 1,724 | 5.1% | 1,284 | 1.7 | City |
| Prairie City | 21 | 1,717 | 1,696 | 0.29% | 1,382 | 1.2 | City |
| Slater | 22 | 1,619 | 1,541 | 1.19% | 847 | 1.9 | City |
| Elkhart | 23 | 1,090 | 892 | 4.71% | 578 | 1.9 | City |
| Maxwell | 24 | 852 | 859 | -0.23% | 780 | 1.1 | City |
| Cambridge | 25 | 828 | 828 | 0% | 619 | 1.3 | City |
| Hartford | 26 | 722 | 733 | -0.41% | 664 | 1.1 | City |
| Cumming | 27 | 524 | 432 | 4.59% | 152 | 3.4 | City |
| Runnells | 28 | 449 | 455 | -0.44% | 1,085 | 0.4 | City |
| Alleman | 29 | 434 | 433 | 0% | 148 | 2.9 | City |
| Mingo | 30 | 316 | 303 | 0.96% | 513 | 0.6 | City |
| Sheldahl | 31 | 315 | 299 | 1.29% | 390 | 0.8 | City |
| Luther | 32 | 144 | 148 | -0.69% | 245 | 0.6 | City |
Note: City markers shown outside the county boundary mean that a part of the city extends into this county, but is primarily located in an adjacent county.
Des Moines is the largest city in Polk County.
Luther is the smallest city in Polk County.
There are 32 cities in Polk County, Iowa.