Iowa is ranked 25th in size among the 50 states in the US. It is the smallest of all the Midwestern states and located in the western north-central US. Iowa covers a total area of 56,275 sq mi (145,752 sq km), of which land takes up 55,965 sq mi 144,949 q km) and inland water 310 sq mi (803 sq km). Iowa is bordered on the North  by Minnesota; on the East by Wisconsin and Illinois; on the South by Missouri; and on the West by Nebraska and South Dakota.

The capital of Iowa is Des Moines and the state's geographic center is in Story County near Ames.