Front door cost in Iowa
Statewide estimate from BLS wages and BEA prices. Reviewed Nov 4, 2026.
- Statewide range (1 door)
- $480 – $2,350
- Per door
- $478 – $2,359
- before permit
- Versus US midpoint
- −5%
- US $1,500
- Metros covered
- 7
Across Iowa, a new front door costs about $480 to $2,350 for 1 door. Statewide, that midpoint is 5% below the US figure of $1,500. Carpenters earn a median $27.75 an hour in Iowa (US: $29.12).
Inside Iowa, the metros we cover range from $1,350 (Iowa City) to $1,450 (Davenport) at the midpoint. Pick your closest city in the table for a tighter number.
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Estimated cost for 1 door in Iowa (statewide), standard level
$1,050 to $1,800
About $1,042 to $1,794 per door before permits. Labor is about 27% of the bill.
| Part | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | $690 | $1,350 |
| Labor | $350 | $430 |
| Permits and fees | $0 | $0 |
| Total | $1,050 | $1,800 |
Cost breakdown for 1 door in Iowa
| Part of the job | Low | Midpoint | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Materials | $190 | $1,050 | $1,850 | 73% |
| Labor | $290 | $390 | $480 | 27% |
| Permits and fees | $0 | $0 | $0 | 0% |
| Total | $480 | $1,400 | $2,350 | 100% |
Basic, standard or premium: Iowa prices
Bands overlap on purpose, since a good standard job can cost as much as a light premium one. Below are the three bands for the default size, then a grid from single entry door to front and side doors.
Basic
$480 to $1,250
Basic steel door, same size opening
Standard
$1,050 to $1,800
Fiberglass door with sidelight trim or glass
Premium
$1,600 to $2,350
Wood or custom door, frame work needed
| Size | Basic | Standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| single entry door | $480 – $1,250 | $1,050 – $1,800 | $1,600 – $2,350 |
| front and side doors | $960 – $2,450 | $2,100 – $3,600 | $3,200 – $4,700 |
Which Iowa city is cheapest for front door?
3 of the 7 metros sit above the statewide midpoint of $1,400, and the top-to-bottom gap is 5%. Each row prices the default size with that metro's own BLS wages and BEA price levels, so the gap between rows is real local variation rather than a flat markup.
| Metro | Range (1 door) | Midpoint | vs. state |
|---|---|---|---|
| Davenport, IA | $490 – $2,400 | $1,450 | +1% |
| Des Moines, IA | $490 – $2,400 | $1,450 | +1% |
| Dubuque, IA | $490 – $2,400 | $1,450 | +1% |
| Cedar Rapids, IA | $480 – $2,350 | $1,400 | level |
| Waterloo, IA | $470 – $2,350 | $1,400 | −1% |
| Sioux City, IA | $460 – $2,350 | $1,400 | −2% |
| Iowa City, IA | $440 – $2,300 | $1,350 | −4% |
Why two Iowa quotes can differ
Door material
Basic steel doors run about $200-$600 for the door; fiberglass and wood go to $2,000 (HomeGuide).
Double doors
A double front door costs $1,500-$6,500+ installed; the doors alone are $1,200-$5,000.
Frame
Frame repair adds $75-$200+; rebuilding the opening for a new size costs $7-$20 per linear foot for framing.
Paint
Painting an unfinished door adds $125-$225; door and trim together are $150-$400.
Iowa against its neighbors
Iowa ranks 34 of 51 (the 50 states plus DC) for front door, where 1 is the most expensive. The costliest is Hawaii at $1,800 and the cheapest Oklahoma at $1,350, both for 1 door at the midpoint. Iowa sits at $1,400. The five states closest by workforce center are listed below.
What carpenters and the other trades earn in Iowa
Iowa's labor line is priced from 2 trades, each compared with its US median wage. After weighting by each trade's share of the work, the state comes out at 0.97 times the national level.
Carpenters (47-2031), 85% of the weighting: a median of $27.75 an hour, 5% below the US median of $29.12. The middle half of them earn between $22.91 and $31.69 an hour. About 5,770 work in the state. That is 37.0 per 10,000 jobs, compared with 43.1 nationally, so the supply of crews looks typical.
For general maintenance and repair workers (49-9071, weighted 15%) the local median is $25.08 an hour, which is 5% above the national $23.84. The middle half of them earn between $21.21 and $30.01 an hour. BLS counts 16,500 of them working in the state, 105.8 for every 10,000 jobs (US: 98.4), so the local bench is about average.
A crew paid at the 75th percentile for carpenters ($31.69 an hour) would add about $45 to the statewide midpoint; one at the 25th percentile ($22.91) would take off about $55. Use that as a rough guide to how far a bid can sit from our midpoint on wages alone.
BLS counts 1,559,240 jobs across Iowa (May 2025), which is 1.0% of US employment.
| Trade | Weight | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | US median | Ratio | Level used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carpenters (47-2031) | 85% | $22.91 | $27.75 | $31.69 | $29.12 | 0.95 | state |
| General maintenance and repair workers (49-9071) | 15% | $21.21 | $25.08 | $30.01 | $23.84 | 1.05 | state |
| Blended | 100% | 0.97 | |||||
Related projects, priced for Iowa
Each project weights the trades differently, so Iowa's wage level does not push every price by the same amount. Compared with the US midpoint, patio door is −4% and garage door −5%.
| Project | Size | Range | vs. US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Storm door | 1 door | $330 – $900 | −5% |
| Patio door | 1 door | $570 – $5,750 | −4% |
| Window replacement | 10 windows | $4,300 – $14,300 | −5% |
| Garage door | 1 door | $670 – $3,500 | −5% |
Iowa seasons and front door
Weather decides when exterior installation can happen, and Iowa is not uniform. The table uses NOAA's 1991-2020 climate normals from the weather station nearest each metro we cover, and counts the months that are neither cold nor hot enough to complicate the job.
Des Moines has the longest comfortable season of the metros we cover in Iowa at 9 months (March through November); Dubuque has the shortest at 8 (April through November). Rainfall runs from 29 inches a year in Sioux City to 38 inches in Dubuque.
We do not adjust prices by month, because we have no reliable published data on seasonal pricing. Timing is still worth raising when you collect bids.
| Metro | Jan avg low °F | Jul avg high °F | Precip (in/yr) | Comfortable months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Des Moines | 14 | 86 | 37 | 9: March through November |
| Davenport | 14 | 84 | 36 | 9: March through November |
| Cedar Rapids | 11 | 83 | 36 | 9: March through November |
| Iowa City | 15 | 86 | 36 | 9: March through November |
| Waterloo | 11 | 85 | 36 | 9: March through November |
| Sioux City | 10 | 85 | 29 | 9: March through November |
| Dubuque | 11 | 82 | 38 | 8: April through November |
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Detailed front door report for Iowa, $9
Multi-page report for Iowa: low, typical and high cost, a line-item breakdown of materials and labor by trade, permit notes, the best months to schedule, a quote comparison sheet, red flags, questions for contractors, checklists and every source. Save your estimate above, preview page 1 free, and unlock the full report for $9 one-time, or get every report with CostLocal Pro.
Front door in Iowa: your questions
+How much does it cost to replace a front door in Iowa?
$480 to $2,350 for 1 door, using statewide wages and prices. Metro areas inside Iowa can sit above or below that.
+Which city in Iowa is cheapest for front door?
Iowa City at about $1,350 (midpoint, 1 door). The priciest is Davenport at $1,450.
+Is front door cheaper in Iowa than the US average?
It is 5% cheaper: $1,400 against $1,500 for 1 door at the midpoint.
+What share of the price is labor in Iowa?
About 27% ($390). Materials are 73%. Statewide labor for this job is weighted 0.97x the national wage level.
+What do carpenters earn in Iowa?
The BLS statewide median is $27.75 an hour, against $29.12 for the US. The 25th to 75th percentile range is $22.91 to $31.69.
+Where does Iowa rank for front door costs?
34th most expensive of 51 (the 50 states plus DC) at the midpoint, $1,400 for 1 door. Rank 1 is the costliest.
+What do basic and premium front door work cost in Iowa?
For 1 door, basic work runs $480 to $1,250 and premium work $1,600 to $2,350. Basic means: basic steel door, same size opening. Premium means: wood or custom door, frame work needed.
+Does the season matter for front door in Iowa?
Yes where winters or summers are hard. Of the Iowa metros we cover, Des Moines has the most comfortable months (9 of 12) based on NOAA 1991-2020 normals. Our prices do not change by month, so ask contractors whether they charge more or less in busy and slow seasons.
Front door by city in Iowa
Where these numbers come from
Base prices are national ranges from the sources below. We scale labor by local BLS wages, materials by BEA goods prices and permits by the BEA all-items price level. Full method on the methodology page.
- HomeGuide: How Much Does Front Door Replacement Cost? (2026) (accessed November 4, 2026)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991-2020
Note on derived figures: Materials = HomeGuide's door prices, from about $200 for a basic steel door to $2,000 for higher-end fiberglass or wood.