The average annual salaries for firefighters in the state of Iowa are shown in Table 1. The comparison of the salary statistics of firefighters amongst Iowa areas is shown in Table 2. The salary statistics are based on the national compensation survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2022 and published in April 2023 [1].
| Percentile bracket | Average annual salary |
|---|---|
| 10th Percentile Wage | $30,020 |
| 25th Percentile Wage | $32,780 |
| 50th Percentile Wage | $44,850 |
| 75th Percentile Wage | $55,610 |
| 90th Percentile Wage | $66,030 |
Table 1 shows the average annual salary for firefighters in Iowa in 5 percentile scales. The average annual salary for the 90th percentile (the top 10 percent of the highest paid) is $66,030. The median (50th percentile) annual salary is $44,850. The average annual salary for the bottom 10 percent is $30,020.
The table and chart below show the trend of the median salary of firefighters from 2012 to 2022.
| Year | Median Salary | Yearly Growth | 10-Year Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $44,850 | -8.81% | 10.93% |
| 2021 | $48,800 | 0.35% | - |
| 2020 | $48,630 | 2.12% | - |
| 2019 | $47,600 | 4.54% | - |
| 2018 | $45,440 | 7.81% | - |
| 2017 | $41,890 | -1.34% | - |
| 2016 | $42,450 | 4.59% | - |
| 2015 | $40,500 | -1.75% | - |
| 2014 | $41,210 | 1.97% | - |
| 2013 | $40,400 | 1.11% | - |
| 2012 | $39,950 | - | - |
Table 3 shows the median annual salary of firefighters in some Iowa cities and metropolitan areas. We note that the median annual salary of firefighters in state of Iowa ranges from $30,980 to $50,150. The highest paying area for firefighters in Iowa is Iowa City with a median annual salary of $50,150. The second highest paying city/area in Iowa State is Davenport-Moline-Rock Island (mean annual salary $49,900). The lowest paying area is Northwest Iowa nonmetropolitan area with a median annual salary of $30,980.