Look, if you’ve got a college degree and you’re tired of hearing “there’s nothing out here,” Iowa is quietly proving everyone wrong. In 2025 this state is cranking out great Iowa jobs that actually pay the bills, let you buy a house without selling a kidney, and still leave weekends free for tailgating or fishing. Des Moines is turning into a legit tech and insurance hub, Cedar Rapids is still the manufacturing heartbeat, and even smaller spots like Ames and Iowa City are hungry for sharp people. I’ve talked to enough grads who moved here from both coasts and now laugh at how much house $400k buys. Here are the six great Iowa jobs that keep popping up in my conversations with recruiters and friends who actually work them. Let’s take a look at some great Iowa jobs.
1. Software Engineer
Average pay: $95k–$130k
Des Moines and West Des Moines have quietly become “Silicon Prairie.” Principal Financial, Nationwide, and a swarm of fintech startups are throwing money at anyone who can write clean code. A CS or engineering degree gets your foot in the door, but they really care that you can ship features and not just talk about LeetCode all day.
Why it’s hot: Companies here grew up on mainframes, so modern cloud work feels like rocket science to them—meaning big bonuses for anyone who can drag them into 2025.
Top shops: Wellmark Blue Cross, Workiva, Dwolla, and the whole “Global Payments Campus” thing in West Des Moines.
Real talk from a buddy at Principal: “We’ll take a good engineer from anywhere and pay relocation. Just don’t make us teach you Git.”
2. Registered Nurse (BSN)
Average pay: $75k–$100k + insane sign-on bonuses
MercyOne, UnityPoint, and University of Iowa Hospitals are in a full-on arms race for nurses. If you’ve got a BSN and can pass boards, some places are tossing $20k–$30k just for saying yes.
Why it’s hot: Iowa’s population is aging faster than most states, and rural hospitals are desperate. You can literally pick your shift and still have energy left for kids’ soccer games.
Best spots: UIHC in Iowa City (top-20 hospital pay), Mercy in Des Moines, or Genesis in Davenport.
Word from the floor: Night-shift differential + overtime can push you over six figures easy.
3. Supply Chain Analyst / Logistics Engineer
Average pay: $70k–$95k
Iowa sits smack in the middle of everything. John Deere, HNI (Hon Industries), and a million trucking companies need people who can make stuff move cheaper and faster. A business, industrial engineering, or analytics degree is perfect.
Why it’s hot: Deere’s new admin tower in Johnston and Amazon’s giant fulfillment centers mean fresh projects and promotions that don’t require 20 years of tenure. Making it a great Iowa job opportunity.
Go-to employers: John Deere, Vermeer in Pella, Kinze in Williamsburg, or the big third-party logistics outfits in Cedar Rapids.
4. Financial Analyst (Insurance or Ag focus)
Average pay: $70k–$100k
Everyone knows Des Moines is the insurance capital outside Hartford. What people forget is they’re also the biggest players in ag reinsurance—think crop insurance for half the Midwest. A finance, econ, or ag-business degree lands you a desk a and a great Iowa job pretty quick.
Why it’s hot: Starting pay is solid, and the CFA actually gets you real raises here, not just a pat on the back.
Big names: Principal, Nationwide, Athene, and the farm-credit system banks.
5. Manufacturing / Process Engineer
Average pay: $80k–$110k
Cedar Rapids (Rockwell Collins/Collins Aerospace), Dubuque (Deere), and Davenport (Alcoa/Arconic) are still making real things—planes, tractors, beer cans—and they need engineers who can keep the lines humming.
Why it’s hot: Overtime is plentiful, tuition reimbursement is basically free money, and you can own a process end-to-end instead of being a tiny cog in a California machine.
Bonus: Most of these plants are union-friendly for the floor folks, so engineers get treated pretty well too.
6. High School Teacher (especially Math, Science, or SpEd)
Average pay: $55k–$75k (plus massive loan forgiveness)
Iowa is begging for teachers, making this a another great Iowa job opportunity. Districts in Waukee, Ankeny, and even smaller towns like Pella or Decorah are offering $10k–$20k signing bonuses and will pay for your master’s.
Why it’s hot: Class sizes are sane, kids still say “yes ma’am/sir,” and you get legit summers off to fish the Mississippi or road-trip to Denver.
Best bets: West Des Moines, Iowa City, or Cedar Falls districts.
How to Actually Land One of These Great Iowa Jobs
- Show up to the Iowa State Fair job tent in August—half the state’s HR people are there eating pork chops on sticks.
- Use the state’s free WorkSmart connectors (they’ll literally drive you to interviews).
- Put “relocation-friendly” or “willing to move to Iowa” in your LinkedIn headline—recruiters search for it daily.
- Tailor the resume: swap “scaled microservices for 10M users” for “reduced downtime 40% saving $400k annually”—Iowa bosses love dollars saved.
- Hit up Iowa Workforce or the Des Moines “Talent Bank” events. They’re low-key but packed with decision-makers.
Bottom Line
Iowa may not sound sexy on paper, but talk to anyone who moved here with a degree five years ago—they’re buying lake houses while their coastal friends are still renting shoeboxes. Great Iowa jobs are real, they pay real money, and half the time you’re done with work by 4:30 so you can actually enjoy the place. If that sounds like your speed, earn your degree, dust off the resume and come see what the fuss is about. Got other ideas? Let us know your great Iowa jobs!