Iowa Nuclear jobs: 626 employed (2024)
As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, Iowa employs 626 people in the nuclear sector — about 1.1% of the U.S. total. That makes Iowa the 27th-largest state for nuclear jobs nationwide.
Nuclear Jobs in Iowa (2024)
National share: 1.08% of all U.S. nuclear jobs.
Typical Median Wage
1. Employment Landscape
Iowa ranks 27th out of 51 U.S. states in nuclear employment. At 626 workers, the state sits below the 25th-ranked Arkansas’s tally by 352 jobs, and trails the national leader South Carolina by 3,680 nuclear workers.
1.1 Iowa’s position vs. the top 10 and median states
1.2 Share of U.S. total
The nuclear sector nationwide employs roughly 57,942 workers; Iowa accounts for 626 of them.
1.3 Where Iowa sits in its own mix
| Sector | Jobs (2024) | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficiency | 21,088 | #30 |
| Wind | 3,895 | #9 |
| Solar | 1,405 | #40 |
| Electric Vehicles | 1,190 | #25 |
| Storage & Grid | 901 | #30 |
| Nuclear | 626 | #27 |
| Clean Fuels | 231 | #25 |
| Hydropower | 125 | #40 |
1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in Iowa
Every nuclear-related sub-category reported for Iowa in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.
2. Pay & Career Roles in Iowa
Iowa contributes 1.08% of the nation’s nuclear workforce. Within Iowa’s own clean-energy economy, nuclear accounts for 2.1% of total clean-energy jobs (626 of 29,462 workers).
Cost-of-living in Iowa is roughly 9.9% lower the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for nuclear roles in Iowa is shown alongside the national BLS figure.
| Role | National median | Iowa-adjusted | Job Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nuclear Engineer | $122,480 | $110,354 | 4 |
| Nuclear Power Reactor Operator | $120,350 | $108,435 | 3 |
See all 2 nuclear occupations with national wages and skills →
4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix
Iowa employers rate 23.0% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 24.8% as “somewhat difficult”) — on par with the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 47.7% of Iowa’s clean-energy roles see some level of hiring friction.
4.1 Employer hiring difficulty
4.2 Jobs by NAICS industry group
| Industry (NAICS group) | Jobs (2024) |
|---|---|
| Construction | 24,088 |
| Manufacturing | 18,675 |
| Trade | 14,334 |
| Other Services | 11,679 |
| Utilities | 6,403 |
| Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows | 4,558 |
| Professional Services | 4,427 |
| Agriculture and Forestry | 2,487 |
| Mining and Extraction | 41 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Data source: U.S. Department of Energy — 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report (reflecting 2024 employment); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics; O*NET Occupation Database 29.1.
Last updated: April 2026.