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Indiana vs Iowa

Federal spending comparison

Iowa accounts for $3.84B in USAspending.gov obligations; Indiana accounts for $3.83B. The stacked stocks are a near-tie. Population is not: Indiana’s 6,924,275 residents against Iowa’s 3,241,488. Spending per capita favors Iowa, $127.17 versus $80.53. Award counts favor Indiana, 58,316 to 48,706. FY2026 dollars favor Indiana, $557.6M versus $412.2M. Indiana’s top industry is commercial and institutional building construction; Iowa’s is radio and television broadcasting and wireless communications equipment manufacturing. The figures are obligations, not outlays.

Key figures

  • Iowa $3.84B vs Indiana $3.83B in stacked USAspending obligations — a near-tie.
  • Iowa per capita $127.17 vs Indiana $80.53 on 3,241,488 vs 6,924,275 residents.
  • Awards: 58,316 vs 48,706; FY2026 $557.6M in Indiana vs $412.2M in Iowa.
  • Top industries: commercial construction in Indiana; wireless communications equipment in Iowa.
  • Figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Two Corn Belt stocks, one intensity gap

Iowa’s $3.84B is about 1.00 times Indiana’s $3.83B. Population is about 0.47 times: 3,241,488 versus 6,924,275. Indiana has roughly twice the people on the same obligation stock, which is the setup for Iowa’s $127.17 per capita against Indiana’s $80.53. Cite those ratios as packet figures beside the Census counts.

Award counts stay in the same band, 58,316 in Indiana and 48,706 in Iowa. Indiana’s file is slightly busier. Iowa’s 48,706 actions on $3.84B still sit beside the hotter per-capita reading.

FY2026 is the ranking Indiana wins. $557.6M versus $412.2M hands Indiana the latest-year dollar lead even while the stacked stocks remain a photo finish. Indiana’s 6,924,275 residents versus Iowa’s 3,241,488 is a twofold Census gap on $3.83B versus $3.84B, which is why $80.53 versus $127.17 is the intensity ranking this pair actually supports.

Commercial construction versus wireless equipment

Indiana’s lead NAICS is commercial and institutional building construction. Iowa’s lead NAICS is radio and television broadcasting and wireless communications equipment manufacturing. Those peaks sit on $3.83B and $3.84B. Neighboring states can still peak in different codes on nearly identical dollar stocks.

The 58,316 Indiana awards and 48,706 Iowa awards include many actions outside those labels. Use the Indiana and Iowa state hubs for agencies and recipients. Both peaks are USAspending.gov obligation mixes.

Full analysis: Indiana vs Iowa on USAspending: $3.83B vs $3.84B

Questions

Does Indiana or Iowa have more federal spending?
Iowa leads stacked USAspending.gov obligations $3.84B to Indiana’s $3.83B — a near-tie. Iowa also leads spending per capita, $127.17 versus $80.53, on 3,241,488 residents against Indiana’s 6,924,275. Indiana has more awards (58,316 vs 48,706). FY2026 obligations are $557.6M in Indiana and $412.2M in Iowa.
Why is Iowa’s per-capita figure higher than Indiana’s?
The packet reports $127.17 per capita in Iowa on 3,241,488 residents and $80.53 in Indiana on 6,924,275. Stacked stocks are essentially tied ($3.84B vs $3.83B). Indiana has more people on the same obligation stock. Award counts are 48,706 versus 58,316. These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not outlays.
What industries lead in Indiana and Iowa?
Indiana’s top industry is commercial and institutional building construction. Iowa’s is radio and television broadcasting and wireless communications equipment manufacturing. Those labels are the largest NAICS slices on $3.83B and $3.84B. Award counts are 58,316 in Indiana and 48,706 in Iowa.
Are Indiana vs Iowa figures Treasury outlays?
No. The $3.83B and $3.84B totals, and FY2026 amounts of $557.6M and $412.2M, are USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. Spending per capita ($80.53 vs $127.17) uses Census population where present.

State comparison from SpendingVault aggregates of USAspending obligations. Per-capita uses Census population where present.

Side-by-side federal spending and demographic comparison between Indiana and Iowa.
IndianaMetricIowa
$99.17BTotal Spending$16.45B
$14KPer Capita$5K
N/A% of GDPN/A
6.9MPopulation3.2M
N/AMedian IncomeN/A
N/APoverty RateN/A
N/ABachelor Degree %N/A
N/AMedian AgeN/A
N/AUnemploymentN/A
N/AGDP (Millions)N/A

Top Agencies — Indiana

  • Department of Health and Human Services$414.23B
  • Social Security Administration$88.48B
  • Department of Defense$22.52B
  • Department of Agriculture$10.62B
  • Department of Veterans Affairs$8.70B

Top Agencies — Iowa

  • Social Security Administration$42.07B
  • Department of Health and Human Services$31.54B
  • Department of Defense$15.44B
  • Department of Agriculture$9.48B
  • Department of Veterans Affairs$4.32B

Top Industries — Indiana

  • ENGINEERING SERVICES$4.21B
  • AIRCRAFT ENGINE AND ENGINE PARTS MANUFACTURING$4.19B
  • MILITARY ARMORED VEHICLE, TANK, AND TANK COMPONENT MANUFACTURING$2.55B
  • SEARCH, DETECTION, NAVIGATION, GUIDANCE, AERONAUTICAL, AND NAUTICAL SYSTEM AND INSTRUMENT MANUFACTURING$2.20B
  • TRUCK TRAILER MANUFACTURING$1.90B

Top Industries — Iowa

  • OTHER COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING$2.56B
  • AMMUNITION (EXCEPT SMALL ARMS) MANUFACTURING$2.47B
  • RADIO AND TELEVISION BROADCASTING AND WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING$2.13B
  • SEARCH, DETECTION, NAVIGATION, GUIDANCE, AERONAUTICAL, AND NAUTICAL SYSTEM AND INSTRUMENT MANUFACTURING$1.58B
  • AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURING$1.40B