The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Iowa For 2026

Curious about the highest-paying careers in Iowa? Whether you’re looking to switch jobs or simply want to know how much your dentist earns for their expertise, we’ve got the insights you need.

Here at Zippia, we share a passion for uncovering data trends, especially when it comes to lucrative job opportunities in Iowa. Our team has conducted an extensive analysis of current salary data to bring you the latest rankings of the highest-paying professions in the state.

Our findings reveal that Operators and Truck Drivers lead the pack in terms of salary in Iowa.

Here’s a quick overview of the top ten highest-paying jobs in Iowa:

How We Determined the Highest Paying Jobs in Iowa For 2026

To compile our salary estimates, Zippia utilizes data from reputable sources such as the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released in March 2026, Foreign Labor Certification Data Center (FLC), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and more. Our data science team enhances these findings by analyzing millions of job postings daily to identify published salaries. We cross-reference these salaries with other datasets based on companies, locations, and job titles. The result is a comprehensive weighted average salary estimate for various job titles in Iowa.

In total, the team reviewed salary data for all 66 job categories in Iowa to pinpoint the highest earners.

Detailed List Of Highest Paying Jobs In Iowa

Rank	Job Title	Average Salary	Entry Level Salary	# Of People
1	Operator And Truck Driver	$192,157	$133,000	4,836
2	Finance Services Director	$184,426	$139,000	1,227
3	Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist	$177,360	$121,000	2,095
4	Owner/operator	$160,722	$110,000	3,726
5	Executive Director, Information Technology	$158,116	$104,000	1,160
6	President And General Manager	$150,961	$97,000	1,044
7	Public Health Dentist	$145,137	$88,000	2,312
8	Nurse Anesthetist	$144,886	$89,000	1,133
9	Senior Director, Product Marketing	$143,094	$103,000	1,021
10	Senior Director, Product Management	$142,400	$104,000	1,071
11	Director, Product Engineering	$140,662	$101,000	1,141
12	Emergency Medicine Specialist	$140,329	$82,000	1,995
13	Engineering Production Operations Director	$139,357	$92,000	1,194
14	Clinical Physician Assistant	$138,259	$85,000	2,285
15	Family Practitioner	$137,240	$79,000	2,020
16	Director Program Management	$133,441	$97,000	1,012
17	Director Of Manufacturing Operations	$133,272	$97,000	1,111
18	Director, Product Marketing	$130,630	$88,000	1,034
19	Director, Business Development And Strategy	$126,473	$88,000	1,160
20	Senior Director Of Business Development	$125,076	$89,000	1,179
21	Health Information Management Director	$122,174	$90,000	1,320
22	Manager Of Business Consulting	$121,825	$89,000	1,069
23	Vice President & General Manager	$121,405	$76,000	1,055
24	Executive Director Business Development	$120,687	$79,000	1,036
25	Product Management Director	$120,481	$90,000	1,080
26	Director Of Engineering, Quality & Program Management	$119,392	$86,000	1,019
27	Business Services Director	$118,986	$88,000	1,395
28	Engineering And Operations Director	$115,473	$83,000	1,204
29	Director Of Call Center Operations	$114,187	$75,000	1,570
30	Contractor-Registered Nurse	$113,945	$72,000	2,410
31	Driver/owner Operator	$113,321	$58,000	4,315
32	Director Of Strategic Business Development	$112,907	$72,000	1,148
33	Director Of Business Systems	$112,062	$86,000	1,236
34	Director Of New Product Development	$111,664	$73,000	1,095
35	Marketing Technology Director	$111,616	$76,000	1,042
36	Information Technology Systems Director	$110,216	$77,000	1,174
37	Director Of Project Management	$108,960	$75,000	1,179
38	Professional Development Director	$108,550	$58,000	1,088
39	Director Of User Experience	$107,613	$71,000	2,692
40	Project Engineer/software Engineer	$107,191	$83,000	1,166
41	Information Technology Technical Services Manager	$105,124	$79,000	1,195
42	Application Development Team Lead	$102,658	$82,000	1,002
43	Director Of Marketing Services	$102,576	$69,000	1,185
44	Customer Service Senior Engineer	$102,290	$70,000	1,323
45	Client Services Director	$101,472	$68,000	1,045
46	Director Of Customer Care	$101,460	$73,000	1,001
47	Deputy General Manager	$101,137	$66,000	1,025
48	Professional Services Project Manager	$100,971	$77,000	1,025
49	Lead Development Engineer	$100,634	$78,000	1,011
50	Management Information Systems Director	$100,633	$74,000	1,156
51	Engineer Of System Development	$100,132	$72,000	1,094
52	Business Developer	$98,490	$63,000	1,003
53	Business Program Manager	$98,041	$71,000	1,127
54	Project Development Director	$97,901	$60,000	1,182
55	Software Development Project Manager	$95,979	$68,000	1,046
56	Business Development Director	$95,091	$57,000	1,171
57	Director, International Business Development	$93,506	$53,000	1,161
58	Customer Service Senior Manager	$93,320	$52,000	1,417
59	Customer Leader	$93,056	$61,000	1,010
60	Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner	$92,315	$50,000	1,979
61	General Manager/director	$92,025	$60,000	1,303
62	Director Of Quality & Engineering	$91,696	$65,000	1,096
63	Business Development & Sales Executive	$91,641	$61,000	1,038
64	Director/manager	$91,088	$61,000	1,189
65	Associate Business Manager	$90,688	$63,000	1,227
66	Software Development Specialist	$90,358	$69,000	1,063

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated for 2026. This marks our sixth edition ranking the highest paying jobs in Iowa.

Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

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