Is prostitution legal in Iowa?
Illegal
Prostitution is illegal.
Iowa is classified “Illegal” for sex work, as are 48 of the other 49 states and the District of Columbia. For the United States as a whole, the classification is “Varies by region”.
Source
- Last checked
- 17 September 2026
- How it was classified
- Read from the source’s state-by-state coverage; the topic is published only once hand-verified reference states match it.
Across the United States
- Legal & regulated 1 state.
- Buying illegal (Nordic model) 1 state.
- Illegal 48 states and the District of Columbia, including Iowa.
Nearby states
Other laws in Iowa
- Abortion
- Legal (limited)
- Euthanasia
- Illegal
- Same-Sex Marriage
- Marriage legal
- Age of Consent
- 16–17
- Death Penalty
- Fully abolished
- Gun Laws
- Permissive
- Cannabis
- Legal (Medical)
Sex work in the United States → · Where is sex work legal? →
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.