Decorah is a somewhat small city located in the state of Iowa. With a population of 7,454 people and two associated neighborhoods, Decorah is the 53rd largest community in Iowa. Much of the housing stock in Decorah was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country.

Decorah real estate is some of the most expensive in Iowa, although Decorah house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.

Of important note, Decorah is also a city of artists. Decorah has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Decorah’s character.

One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 10.80% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Decorah is a place where college students are a big part of the character and culture of the town. Small towns have often struggled with declining populations over the past few decades, but the presence of such a large college student population has helped Decorah to fight this trend. Not only does the college population add spending and jobs to local economy, but it also contributes a very tangible, youthful energy to the town.

Compared to the rest of the country, citizens of Decorah spend much less time in their cars: on average, their commute to work is only 13.89 minutes. This also means that noise and pollution levels in the city are less than they would otherwise be.

The citizens of Decorah are among the most well-educated in the nation: 42.21% of adults in Decorah have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree, whereas the average US city has 21.84% holding at least a bachelor's degree.

The per capita income in Decorah in 2022 was $35,743, which is middle income relative to Iowa and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $142,972 for a family of four. However, Decorah contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

The people who call Decorah home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Decorah residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Decorah include German, Norwegian, Irish, English, and Czech.

The most common language spoken in Decorah is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and German/Yiddish.