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Towns / Utah

Parowan, Utah

Parowan is a small town of about 3,300 people in Iron County, Utah, about 6,200 feet above sea level. It's the county seat. It has grown about 9% since 2020. A typical home costs about 6.5 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Las Vegas, is about 174 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
3,282
up 8.8% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$343,400
Iron County prices up 7.6% since 2022
Household income
$53,145
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Utah
93.1
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
16 miles
Cedar City, UT
To Las Vegas
174 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 6.9% below the U.S. average in the parts of Utah outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 6.5 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Parowan itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town2 public schools: 1 elementary and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byIntermountain Health Cedar City Hospital in Cedar City, about 16 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityLas Vegas is about 174 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Parowan meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$343,400U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 7.6%Iron County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,013 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$53,145U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
73%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$1,381 a yearUtah: $2,525
Homes built before 1940
11%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
9%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
16%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
93.1U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Utah outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 7.6% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Utah outside metro areas, not Parowan alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
3,2822020: 3,017
Median age
39 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
18%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
30%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
24%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
3%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Retail (18%); professional and business services (12%)
Average commute
28 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Below the poverty line
12%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Intermountain Health Cedar City Hospital, Cedar City, UT, about 16 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

2 public schools in Parowan, run by Iron District.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Utah's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with any internet subscription
90%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
20°F
July average high
85°F
Days 90°F or hotter
12 a year
Nights at or below freezing
158 a year
Rain and melted snow
17.2 inches a year
Snow
55 inches a year
Elevation
6,216 feet

Weather station: Cedar City 5E (15 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Intermountain Health Cedar City Hospital, St. George, Las Vegas.

Iron County is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 4, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Cedar Breaks National Monument12 miles
  • Zion National Park28 miles
  • Bryce Canyon National Park36 miles

Read about Parowan's history on Wikipedia.

Know Parowan?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Paragonah, UT578 people, 5 miles
  • Summit, UT (unincorporated)104 people, 6 miles
  • Brian Head, UT162 people, 9 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.