The Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate shows the six-county metro added 7,762 residents over the year, with Dallas and Polk counties driving most of the growth.
By Hola Iowa
The Des Moines-West Des Moines metro area reached an estimated population of 758,539 as of July 1, 2025. That’s according to U.S. Census Bureau data released March 27, 2026. The estimate marks an increase of 7,762 residents from 2024, a growth rate of about 1%.
The six-county metro includes Polk, Dallas, Warren, Jasper, Madison and Guthrie counties. Polk County remains the largest, with an estimated 516,546 residents in 2025, up from 492,401 in the 2020 census. Dallas County posted the fastest growth. It reached an estimated 118,457 residents in 2025, up from 99,678 in 2020. That’s a gain of nearly 19,000 people in five years.
Dallas County remains the fastest-growing suburb in the metro
Dallas County’s population has outpaced every other county in the metro since 2020. New housing developments in Waukee, Adel and nearby communities are driving that growth. Polk County, still the metro’s largest by far, has grown at a slower rate over the same period.
The metro added about 11,000 residents a year on average since 2020
The metro has added 49,022 residents since the 2020 census count of 709,517. That’s an average of about 9,800 people a year. At that pace, the metro would not reach 1 million residents until sometime in the 2040s.
Des Moines still trails Omaha’s metro by more than 240,000 people
Metro Omaha passed the 1 million population mark in 2024, Census Bureau estimates show. That milestone makes Omaha eligible for national rankings and site-selection lists some businesses use when choosing where to expand. Des Moines remains below that threshold. It ranks 82nd among 387 U.S. metropolitan areas as of the most recent count.
Federal criteria, not local boundaries, define the metro’s six counties
The U.S. Office of Management and Budget defines metro areas using strict criteria. It starts with an urban core city of at least 50,000 residents — in this case, Des Moines. From there, it adds surrounding counties with strong economic and commuting ties to that core.
Some regional groups use a broader definition. The Greater Des Moines Partnership, for example, counts 10 or 12 counties. That list includes Story County, home to Ames, and Marion County, home to Pella. That wider area already has a combined population close to 940,000. It isn’t, however, the federally recognized metro used for Census Bureau population rankings.
Data for this update comes from the Census Bureau’s annual metro population estimates, published through the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Related: Big city amenities combined with small-town-style perks help spur Des Moines metro’s growth
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