Postal Codes

50265 ZIP Code

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ZIP code 50265 covers West Des Moines, Iowa, with a population of about 33,061 and a median household income of $84,588.

Population
33,0611,713 per square mile
Median age
38.10.6 points below the US average
Median household income
$84,5881.2× the Iowa median
Poverty rate
7.4%5 points below the US average
Typical home value
$314,234up 21.5% in five years
Median rent
$1,0651.1× the Iowa median
Degree or higher
48.5%13.5 points above the US average
Homeownership
66%1 points above the US average
Time zone
Central UTC-06:00observes daylight saving time
Businesses
862

Where 50265 is

West Des Moines, Iowa — the area the Census Bureau draws for this ZIP code. ZIP codes are sets of delivery routes rather than areas, so this is the Census approximation of one, not a Postal Service boundary.

People and households

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Population33,061
Median age38.1
Family households59.4%
Born outside the US10.4%
Speaks a language other than English at home13.1%
White (non-Hispanic)76.6%
Black (non-Hispanic)4.3%
Asian (non-Hispanic)6.5%
Hispanic or Latino7.2%
Veterans6.6%
Population by age
MaleFemale0-45-910-1415-1920-2425-3435-4445-5455-6465-7475-8485+
Income and poverty

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median household income$84,588
Income per person$53,402
Poverty rate7.4%
Households on SNAP or cash assistance9.1%

Household income distribution

Under $10k2.8%
$10–15k2.5%
$15–20k1.9%
$20–25k2.0%
$25–30k2.4%
$30–35k5.9%
$35–40k2.5%
$40–45k4.3%
$45–50k4.3%
$50–60k6.2%
$60–75k9.2%
$75–100k12.8%
$100–125k9.2%
$125–150k9.1%
$150–200k11.9%
$200k or more13.1%

Income as declared to the IRS

Filed returns rather than survey responses, so this counts tax units and not households.

Tax returns filed16,580
Mean adjusted gross income$112,744
Returns declaring $200,000 or more9.4%
Returns, under $25k21.0%
Returns, $25k–$50k22.6%
Returns, $50k–$75k16.7%
Returns, $75k–$100k10.4%
Returns, $100k–$200k19.9%
Returns, $200k or more9.4%
Housing

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median home value$267,600
Median gross rent$1,065
Rent as a share of household income28.1%
Owner-occupied66%
Vacant homes4.5%
Median year built1984

What the homes are

Detached house57.7%
Attached house8.8%
2 to 4 units2%
5 to 19 units15.4%
20 or more units14.5%
Mobile home1.6%
Home values and rents today

Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, courtesy of Zillow. Monthly and current, where the Census figures above are a five-year average and are capped at $2,000,000.

Typical home value$314,234as of 2026-07
Typical home value, 1 yearup 1.3%
Typical home value, 5 yearsup 21.5%
Typical home value, 10 yearsup 57.6%
Typical asking rent$1,290as of 2026-07
Typical asking rent, 1 yearup 1.6%
Typical asking rent, 5 yearsup 22.1%
Typical home value since 2000
200020132026$314,234$140,336

$140,336 in 2000 to $314,234 in 2026.

Typical asking rent
202120232026$1,290$1,056

$1,056 in 2021 to $1,290 in 2026.

Work, commuting and education

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Unemployment rate2.2%
Bachelor's degree or higher48.5%
High school diploma or higher94.9%
Works from home14.8%
Drives to work alone75.3%
Takes public transport0.4%
Commutes 45 minutes or more4%
Health

CDC PLACES 2025 release, model-based estimates. These are modelled small-area estimates for adults, not counts of diagnosed cases.

Obesity35.6% 2.2 pts above the national average of 33.4%
Diagnosed diabetes9.7% 2.3 pts below the national average of 12%
Currently smokes11.7% 1.5 pts below the national average of 13.2%
High blood pressure31% 3.1 pts below the national average of 34.1%
Fair or poor general health15.5% 4.8 pts below the national average of 20.3%
No health insurance (18–64)6.4% 4.9 pts below the national average of 11.3%
Depression21.3% 0.6 pts below the national average of 21.9%
No leisure-time physical activity21.5% 3.9 pts below the national average of 25.4%
Arthritis25.8% 0.7 pts above the national average of 25.1%
Binge drinking20.8% 4.8 pts above the national average of 16%
Taking blood pressure medication76.7% 2 pts above the national average of 74.7%
Cancer (non-skin)8.1% same as the national average of 7.7%
Current asthma9.7% 0.7 pts below the national average of 10.4%
Coronary heart disease5.5% 0.7 pts below the national average of 6.2%
Routine check-up in past year76.2% 0.5 pts below the national average of 76.7%
Cholesterol screening85.2% 0.7 pts below the national average of 85.9%
Cognitive disability12.2% 2.6 pts below the national average of 14.8%
Colorectal screening68.8% 4.5 pts above the national average of 64.3%
COPD5.4% 1.2 pts below the national average of 6.6%
Visited a dentist71.3% 10 pts above the national average of 61.3%
Any disability24.7% 6 pts below the national average of 30.7%
Lacks emotional support22.3% 2.5 pts below the national average of 24.8%
Food insecurity10.3% 6.8 pts below the national average of 17.1%
Received food stamps8.2% 6.1 pts below the national average of 14.3%
Hearing disability6.1% 0.6 pts below the national average of 6.7%
High cholesterol35% 1.2 pts below the national average of 36.2%
Housing insecurity8.9% 4.9 pts below the national average of 13.8%
Independent living disability6.1% 2.3 pts below the national average of 8.4%
Lacks transport6% 3.2 pts below the national average of 9.2%
Loneliness32.4% 2 pts below the national average of 34.4%
Mammography use80.5% 4.6 pts above the national average of 75.9%
Poor mental health (14+ days)16.2% 0.6 pts below the national average of 16.8%
Mobility disability10.3% 3.7 pts below the national average of 14%
Poor physical health (14+ days)11.8% 1.7 pts below the national average of 13.5%
Self-care disability2.7% 1.3 pts below the national average of 4%
Utility shut-off threat5.8% 3 pts below the national average of 8.8%
Sleeps under 7 hours31.9% 4.5 pts below the national average of 36.4%
Stroke2.7% 0.7 pts below the national average of 3.4%
All natural teeth lost7.4% 5.6 pts below the national average of 13%
Vision disability3.5% 2.1 pts below the national average of 5.6%
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Business and employment

Census ZIP Code Business Patterns 2022

Business establishments862
People employed12,026
Annual payroll$639,193,000
Natural hazard risk

FEMA National Risk Index, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data — the NRI is not published per ZIP.

Overall riskHigher than 55.8% of US census tracts
FEMA ratingVery Low to Relatively Moderate across the 12 census tracts this ZIP code covers
Expected annual loss63.9 out of 100
Community resilience85.9 out of 100

By hazard

Score is out of 100 and is the area-weighted average across the census tracts this ZIP code covers. The rating beside it is the highest any one of those tracts carries.

Strong wind92.1Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Hail86.9Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Tornado86.5Very High at its worst in this ZIP code
Heat wave77.4Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Landslide77.4Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Ice storm76.6Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Winter weather65.9Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Wildfire65.6Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Drought65.2Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Cold wave64.3Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
River flooding63.7Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Lightning41.1Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Hurricane22.5Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Earthquake21.5Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Compared with Iowa and the United States

State and national columns are figures for those areas, not for this ZIP code. American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

This ZIPIowaUnited States
Median household income$84,588$73,147$78,538
Income per person$53,402$39,728$43,289
Poverty rate7.4%11%12.4%
Median home value$267,600$195,900$303,400
Median gross rent$1,065$949$1,348
Homeownership66%71.5%65%
Bachelor's degree or higher48.5%30.9%35%
Unemployment rate2.2%3.6%5.2%
Works from home14.8%10.4%13.5%
Born outside the US10.4%5.7%13.9%
Median age38.138.638.7
Climate

NOAA US Climate Normals 1991-2020, from the nearest weather station with a full year of records. The station and its distance are named above, because a station forty kilometres away describes somewhere else.

Weather stationDES MOINES INTL AP, IA US9.2 km away
Rain in a year37 in
Snow in a year36 in

Average high and low by month

January30.9°F / 13.8°F1.08 in rain, 9.4 in snow
February35.7°F / 18°F1.34 in rain, 10.2 in snow
March49.2°F / 29.6°F2.17 in rain, 4.4 in snow
April62°F / 40.6°F4.02 in rain, 1.2 in snow
May72.4°F / 52.3°F5.24 in rain, 0.2 in snow
June81.9°F / 62.4°F5.26 in rain
July85.6°F / 66.4°F3.82 in rain
August83.6°F / 64.2°F4.17 in rain
September76.9°F / 55.4°F3.18 in rain
October63.4°F / 42.9°F2.78 in rain, 0.5 in snow
November48.3°F / 30.2°F1.91 in rain, 2.7 in snow
December35.9°F / 19.5°F1.58 in rain, 7.9 in snow
Access to food

USDA Food Access Research Atlas, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Each figure is the share of the ZIP code's land area that falls in a tract carrying that flag.

Low income and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
Far from a supermarket84% of this ZIP code's area
No vehicle and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
School districts

NCES Geographic Relationship File 2025, which states the association between each district and each ZIP code tabulation area directly. Elementary and secondary districts can cover the same ground, so shares need not total 100%.

This ZIP code is served by 3 school districts, so the address decides which one, not the ZIP code.

West Des Moines Community School District90.1% of this ZIP code's land area
Des Moines Independent Community School District6.6% of this ZIP code's land area
Norwalk Community School District3.2% of this ZIP code's land area
Community and walkability

CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 and the EPA National Walkability Index, both estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Vulnerability figures are national percentile ranks, not measurements.

Overall social vulnerability47more vulnerable than 47% of US census tracts
Socioeconomic status41more vulnerable than 41% of US census tracts
Household characteristics60more vulnerable than 60% of US census tracts
Racial and ethnic minority status33more vulnerable than 33% of US census tracts
Housing type and transport52more vulnerable than 52% of US census tracts
Walkability8.8 out of 20Below average
Nearby ZIP codes

The closest ZIP codes by centre point, which is not the same as sharing a border.

50325 Clive, IA2.9 km away
50324 Windsor Heights, IA3.5 km away
50266 West Des Moines, IA4.7 km away
50322 Urbandale, IA5.7 km away
50398 Urbandale, IA5.8 km away
50323 Urbandale, IA5.9 km away
50312 Des Moines, IA6.1 km away
50311 Des Moines, IA6.4 km away
Location, counties and time zone

County shares from Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Time zone from the USDOT National Transportation Atlas, which renders the boundaries written into 49 CFR Part 71.

Polk County96.8% of this ZIP code's land area
Warren County3.2% of this ZIP code's land area
Time zoneCentral (UTC-06:00 standard)
Daylight saving timeObserved
Land area19.3 sq mi
Water area0.76 sq mi
Population density1,713 people per sq mi
Latitude, longitude41.5805, -93.7447

Figures are published for this ZIP code or its Census tabulation area unless a section says otherwise. Estimates whose margin of error made them unreliable are omitted rather than shown. Sources: US Census Bureau, CDC, IRS.

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