Iowa wildfire risk
99 counties scored 0 rated Very High
Woodbury County has the highest wildfire risk in Iowa, scoring 87.4 out of 100 — rated "Relatively Low" by FEMA's National Risk Index.
| # | County | NRI score | Rating |
NOAA events 2016–2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Woodbury County | 87.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 2 | Plymouth County | 70.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 3 | Davis County | 68.6 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 4 | Pottawattamie County | 67.2 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 5 | Tama County | 65.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 6 | Johnson County | 64.4 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 7 | Monona County | 63.5 | Relatively Low | 0 |
| 8 | Marshall County | 62.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 9 | Wapello County | 61.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 10 | Iowa County | 61.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 11 | Muscatine County | 60.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 12 | Madison County | 59.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 13 | Harrison County | 59.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 14 | Appanoose County | 59.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 15 | Warren County | 59.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 16 | Polk County | 57.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 17 | Washington County | 54.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 18 | Jefferson County | 54.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 19 | Lucas County | 54.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 20 | Dickinson County | 54.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 21 | Jasper County | 53.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 22 | Mills County | 52.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 23 | Scott County | 52.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 24 | Van Buren County | 52.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 25 | Decatur County | 52.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 26 | Marion County | 50.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 27 | Clinton County | 50.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 28 | Union County | 49.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 29 | Lee County | 48.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 30 | Henry County | 47.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 31 | Linn County | 47 | Very Low | 0 |
| 32 | Crawford County | 46.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 33 | Poweshiek County | 46.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 34 | Keokuk County | 44.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 35 | Wayne County | 43.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 36 | Des Moines County | 42.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 37 | Mahaska County | 42.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 38 | Clarke County | 42 | Very Low | 0 |
| 39 | Cass County | 40.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 40 | Dallas County | 40.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 41 | Monroe County | 40 | Very Low | 0 |
| 42 | Sioux County | 39.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 43 | Guthrie County | 39.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 44 | Hardin County | 39 | Very Low | 0 |
| 45 | Black Hawk County | 36.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 46 | Fremont County | 36.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 47 | Taylor County | 36.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 48 | Benton County | 36.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 49 | Jackson County | 35.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 50 | Louisa County | 35.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 51 | Montgomery County | 35 | Very Low | 0 |
| 52 | Page County | 34.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 53 | Adair County | 34.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 54 | Audubon County | 33.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 55 | Ringgold County | 32.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 56 | Cedar County | 31.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 57 | Adams County | 31.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 58 | Story County | 30.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 59 | Clay County | 29.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 60 | Floyd County | 28.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 61 | Carroll County | 28.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 62 | Lyon County | 28.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 63 | Jones County | 27.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 64 | Cerro Gordo County | 26.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 65 | Cherokee County | 24.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 66 | Emmet County | 23.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 67 | Bremer County | 22.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 68 | Dubuque County | 22.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 69 | Winneshiek County | 22.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 70 | Butler County | 22.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 71 | Shelby County | 21.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 72 | Ida County | 20.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 73 | Chickasaw County | 19.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 74 | Webster County | 19.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 75 | Buena Vista County | 17.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 76 | Allamakee County | 16.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 77 | Boone County | 15.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 78 | Fayette County | 14.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 79 | Winnebago County | 13.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 80 | Hamilton County | 13.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 81 | Kossuth County | 13.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 82 | Osceola County | 12.9 | Very Low | 0 |
| 83 | O'Brien County | 12.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 84 | Delaware County | 12.4 | Very Low | 0 |
| 85 | Clayton County | 12.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 86 | Mitchell County | 11.7 | Very Low | 0 |
| 87 | Palo Alto County | 11 | Very Low | 0 |
| 88 | Greene County | 10.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 89 | Sac County | 9.8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 90 | Howard County | 9.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 91 | Calhoun County | 8.5 | Very Low | 0 |
| 92 | Grundy County | 8 | Very Low | 0 |
| 93 | Wright County | 7.3 | Very Low | 0 |
| 94 | Buchanan County | 7.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 95 | Hancock County | 6.6 | Very Low | 0 |
| 96 | Franklin County | 6.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 97 | Humboldt County | 5.1 | Very Low | 0 |
| 98 | Pocahontas County | 4.2 | Very Low | 0 |
| 99 | Worth County | 3.2 | Very Low | 0 |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0, December 2025. Scores are 0–100 percentile rankings among all US counties. See the methodology page for definitions. Download the full CSV for all counties.
Wildfire risk nationally:
Other hazard risks in Iowa:
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest wildfire risk county in Iowa?
Woodbury County, IA has the highest wildfire risk in Iowa, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 87.4 out of 100 (rated "Relatively Low").
What causes wildfire risk in Iowa?
Wildfire risk reflects expected annual losses to buildings, population, and agriculture from wildfire, adjusted for social vulnerability and community resilience. High scores cluster in the western US, where dry climate, fuel loads, and seasonal wind patterns combine with rapid suburban development into fire-prone terrain.