The map above shows California and Iowa side by side at exactly the same scale, using equal-area projections, so their true relative sizes are preserved.
California vs Iowa Geography
Land area
- California has a land area of 155,859 square miles (403,673 km²), while Iowa has 55,854 square miles (144,660 km²).
- California's land area is 2.8 times (179%) larger than Iowa's.
Total area
- California: 163,694 square miles (423,965 km²) vs Iowa: 56,273 square miles (145,746 km²), including inland and coastal water.
- California's total area is 2.9 times (191%) larger than Iowa's.
Length
- California is 761 miles (1,224 km) long from north to south; Iowa is 216 miles (347 km).
- California's north-south length is 3.5 times (252%) longer than Iowa's.
Width
- California spans 706 miles (1,137 km) east to west; Iowa spans 335 miles (539 km).
- California's east-west width is 2.1 times (111%) wider than Iowa's.
Highest point
- California's highest point is Mount Whitney at 14,484 feet (4,415 m); Iowa's is Hawkeye Point at 1,669 feet (509 m).
- Mount Whitney is 12,815 feet higher than Hawkeye Point.
Lowest point
- California's lowest point is Death Valley at -279 feet; Iowa's is Mississippi River at 480 feet.
- California's lowest point is 759 feet lower.
California vs Iowa Population and History
Population
- California has a population of 39,431,263 (2024), while Iowa has 3,241,488 (2024).
- California's population is 12.2 times larger than Iowa's.
Population density
- California: 253.0 people per square mile vs Iowa: 58.0.
- California's population density is 4.4 times (336%) higher than Iowa's.
Biggest city
- California's biggest city is Los Angeles with 3,878,704 people; Iowa's is Des Moines with 213,096.
- Los Angeles' population is 18.2 times larger than Des Moines'.
Largest metro area
- California's largest metropolitan area is Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area (12,927,614 people) vs Iowa's Omaha, NE-IA metro area (1,001,010).
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area's population is 12.9 times larger than Omaha, NE-IA metro area's.
History
- California: Admitted to the Union on September 9, 1850, as the 31st state.
- Iowa: Admitted to the Union on December 28, 1846, as the 29th state.
- In its current form, Iowa is the older of the two by 4 years.
California vs Iowa Economy
GDP
- California's GDP is $4,048.1 billion (2024) vs Iowa's $265.8 billion.
- California's economic output is 15.2 times larger than Iowa's.
GDP per capita
- California: $102,662 per person vs Iowa: $81,998.
- California's GDP per capita is 1.3 times (25%) higher than Iowa's.
Average income
- California: $86,232 vs Iowa: $65,225 average income per person (per capita personal income).
- California's average income is 1.3 times (32%) higher than Iowa's.
California vs Iowa Counties
Number of counties
- California has 58 counties, while Iowa has 99.
- Iowa's county count is 1.7 times (71%) higher than California's.
Biggest county by area
- California's largest county is San Bernardino County at 20,068 square miles; Iowa's is Kossuth County at 973 square miles.
- San Bernardino County's land area is 20.6 times larger than Kossuth County's.
Smallest county by area
- California: San Francisco County (47 sq mi) vs Iowa: Dickinson County (381 sq mi).
- Dickinson County's land area is 8.1 times (715%) larger than San Francisco County's.
Most populous county
- California: Los Angeles County (9,757,179 people) vs Iowa: Polk County (516,185 people).
- Los Angeles County's population is 18.9 times larger than Polk County's.
Least populous county
- California: Alpine County (1,099 people) vs Iowa: Adams County (3,606 people).
- Adams County's population is 3.3 times (228%) larger than Alpine County's.
Richest county
- California: Marin County ($190,891 per capita income) vs Iowa: Mitchell County ($98,211).
- Marin County's income is 1.9 times (94%) richer than Mitchell County's.
Poorest county
- California: Trinity County ($42,191 per capita income) vs Iowa: Decatur County ($46,134).
- Decatur County's income is 1.1 times (9%) richer than Trinity County's.
California vs Iowa Taxes
State income tax
- California has a top income tax rate of 13.3%, while Iowa has a top income tax rate of 3.8%.
- California's top rate is 9.5 percentage points higher.
Property tax
- California: 0.71% effective rate vs Iowa: 1.29% of home value per year.
- Iowa's rate is 0.58 percentage points higher.
Sales tax
- California: 9.03% combined state and average local rate vs Iowa: 6.94%.
- California's combined rate is 2.09 percentage points higher.
Official Websites
California official website · Iowa official website
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More Size Comparisons
All California size comparisons · All Iowa size comparisons
Area, elevation and boundary figures come from official national statistics and US Census Bureau and Natural Earth boundary data; US state population, economic, county and tax figures come from the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Tax Foundation. Figures are rounded and for general reference.