Merrill is a city in Plymouth County, Iowa, home to about 846 people across 0.5 square miles. Its ZIP code is 51038.
Homes sold for a median of $132 per square foot in the three months ending August 2026, a seller’s market.
Each card is that ZIP code’s whole market, including any part outside Merrill. Seller’s market: under 4 months of supply; buyer’s market: over 6. Methodology
We’re writing up Merrill’s story and what everyday life there is like, for people thinking about moving in.
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| Nearest major airport | Eppley Airfield (OMA)98 miles away |
|---|---|
| Closer regional airport | Sioux Gateway Airport / Brigadier General Bud Day Field (SUX)23 miles away |
| Nearest city of 250,000+ | Omaha, NE100 miles away |
| Nearest city of 1 million+ | Chicago, IL441 miles away |
Straight-line distances from the center of Merrill; driving is longer.
Source: Airports from OurAirports (scheduled passenger service); city centers and populations from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Source: Members of Congress from the congress-legislators project; districts from the Census Bureau’s relationship files; governor and mayor from Wikidata.
Merrill had 717 residents in the 2020 census, down 5% since 2000.
It’s the 331st largest of 1,019 towns in Iowa by population.
Plymouth County grew from 22,209 residents in 1900 to 25,698 in 2020.
Plymouth County, 1900–2020
Source: U.S. Census Bureau decennial censuses (counties 1900–1990 from the Bureau’s historical county file).
Average highs peak around 85°F in summer, and winter lows average 7°F. About 30 inches of rain and melted snow fall in a typical year, with about 31 inches of snow.
Source: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Le Mars, IA weather station (7 miles away).
10,405 jobs at 667 businesses in Plymouth County. The biggest industries by employees:
Source: U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023 (private employers; jobs counted where people work).
1 doctors and other health care providers list an office in Merrill.
Nearest hospitals
Providers with an office here
| Nurse practitioners and physician assistants | 1 |
|---|
Source: Hospitals from CMS Hospital General Information (ratings are CMS overall star ratings); straight-line distances; providers from the CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), by practice address and primary specialty.
Libraries
Counts are within about 1 mile of the center of town.
Source: Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (openstreetmap.org/copyright), as mapped by volunteers; it can miss places or include closed ones.
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Town boundaries don’t always match ZIP codes: a ZIP code can cross into neighboring towns, and a town can share a ZIP code with its neighbors. Facts describe the town itself; market figures describe whole ZIP codes.