Iowa · 2026 pay
How much do Iowa Judicial Branch employees make?
$56,724typical pay, counting everyone paid in 2026
$44,978 – $85,022what most people earned
Includes everyone paid during 2026, including part-year and seasonal workers. The source doesn't show who worked the full year.
Iowa Department of Administrative Services publishes pay by position without employee names, so there is no name search here.
Common jobs: Judicial Operations ClerkCourt ReporterMagistrate
✓ Official data from Iowa Department of Administrative ServicesMatches the agency's latest releasedata.iowa.gov ↗
Is pay going up?
Yes. Typical pay went from $49,697 in 2016 to $56,724 in 2026 (+14%).
What changed since 2025
- +5.9%Typical pay went up from $53,564 to $56,724.
- +142,038 people were paid in 2026, compared with 2,024 in 2025.
- +14%Since 2016, typical pay has gone from $49,697 to $56,724, while the number of people paid went up from 1,970 to 2,038.
The next update is expected in late 2027.
Worth knowing about pay at Iowa Judicial Branch
What stands out in the payroll data, checked against the rest of our data before it is shown.
- +6.3%
People paid by Iowa Judicial Branch in both 2025 and 2026 saw their pay change by a typical +6.3%.
Usual among the 7 other state agencies in Iowa in our data: +4.5%.
Compares the same people in both years, so new hires and leavers do not move it. Overtime and hours worked count too.
- +22%
Since 2016, total pay at Iowa Judicial Branch went up 22% while the number of people paid went up 3%.
Counts everyone paid during each year. Not adjusted for inflation.
Pay by job
Jobs held by 5 or more people in 2026.
| Job | People | Typical pay | Most earn | Since 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Judicial Operations Clerk | 630 | $45,262 | $43k – $53k | ▲ 33.7% |
| Court Reporter | 162 | $81,592 | $65k – $102k | ▼ 0.6% |
| Magistrate | 160 | $46,621 | $41k – $47k | ▲ 2.5% |
| Juvenile Court Officer | 145 | $80,289 | $66k – $102k | new |
| Judicial Attendant | 113 | $49,005 | $48k – $53k | new |
| District Court Judge | 109 | $170,108 | $170k – $170k | ▲ 2.5% |
| District Associate Judge 1-81 | 87 | $151,208 | $151k – $151k | ▲ 2.5% |
| Judicial Operations Coordinator | 45 | $55,954 | $48k – $74k | new |
| Senior Judge | 45 | $10,080 | $10k – $10k | ▲ 2.5% |
| Clerk of District Court | 41 | $81,869 | $76k – $90k | new |
| Judicial Operations Supervisor | 39 | $65,043 | $59k – $81k | new |
| Law Clerk | 32 | $47,860 | $27k – $57k | new |
| Juvenile Court Services Supervisor | 27 | $108,206 | $95k – $119k | new |
| Information Technology Support Technician | 26 | $63,620 | $54k – $76k | new |
| Administrative Assistant | 25 | $56,370 | $49k – $75k | new |
| Staff Attorney Judicial Branch | 22 | $104,855 | $102k – $127k | new |
| Juvenile Court Officer 1 | 20 | $53,854 | $18k – $57k | ▲ 15.3% |
| Deputy District Court Administrator | 17 | $93,218 | $83k – $107k | new |
| Judicial Intern | 17 | $3,869 | $3k – $5k | ▲ 20.0% |
| Law Clerk Court of Appeals | 16 | $52,259 | $10k – $60k | ▼ 0.5% |
| Information Technology Support Specialist | 14 | $83,431 | $77k – $91k | new |
| Law Clerk Supreme Court | 13 | $60,393 | $12k – $65k | ▲ 10.0% |
| Accounting Specialist | 12 | $41,918 | $31k – $42k | new |
| Chief District Court Judge | 9 | $176,409 | $173k – $176k | ▲ 2.5% |
| Appellate Court Judge | 8 | $182,709 | $183k – $183k | ▲ 2.5% |
| Chief Juvenile Court Officer | 8 | $122,892 | $118k – $126k | new |
| District Court Administrator | 8 | $115,813 | $115k – $119k | ▲ 7.1% |
| Program Manager | 8 | $93,531 | $86k – $107k | new |
| Finance Analyst | 8 | $93,030 | $83k – $94k | new |
| Program Coordinator | 8 | $53,549 | $27k – $54k | new |
| Project Manager | 7 | $76,796 | $42k – $101k | new |
| Contract Administrator | 7 | $57,387 | $55k – $82k | new |
| Accounting Specialist Senior | 7 | $47,682 | $45k – $52k | new |
| Supreme Court Justice | 6 | $201,609 | $202k – $202k | ▲ 2.5% |
| Infrastructure Administrator | 6 | $83,586 | $70k – $106k | new |
| Staff Attorney District | 6 | $73,613 | $66k – $76k | new |
| Court Access Services Coordinator | 6 | $59,447 | $58k – $60k | new |
| Records Clerk | 6 | $57,243 | $15k – $70k | new |
| Judicial Operations Call Center Representative | 6 | $49,662 | $45k – $57k | new |
| Juvenile Court Officer Support | 6 | $47,186 | $46k – $50k | new |
| Judicial Temporary Worker | 6 | $8,512 | $3k – $23k | ▼ 5.4% |
| Information Technology Manager | 5 | $77,973 | $72k – $81k | new |
| Accountant | 5 | $71,948 | $64k – $73k | new |
No jobs match.
How many people earn what
- Under $10k118
- $10k – $30k158
- $30k – $50k611
- $50k – $70k375
- $70k – $90k294
- $90k – $110k163
- $110k – $150k100
- $150k or more219
Includes part-time and seasonal workers, which is why many earn under $10k.
Highest paid at Iowa Judicial Branch in 2026
- 1Susan K ChristensenChief Justice Supreme Court$211,060▲ $5,148 vs 2025
- 2Christopher L McdonaldSupreme Court Justice$201,609▲ $4,917 vs 2025
- 3Dana L OxleySupreme Court Justice$201,609▲ $4,917 vs 2025
- 4David N MaySupreme Court Justice$201,609▲ $4,917 vs 2025
- 5Edward M MansfieldSupreme Court Justice$201,609▲ $4,917 vs 2025
- 6Matthew C McdermottSupreme Court Justice$201,609▲ $4,917 vs 2025
- 7Thomas D WatermanSupreme Court Justice$201,609▲ $4,917 vs 2025
- 8Mary E TaborChief Judge Appellate Court$189,010▲ $5,390 vs 2025
- 9Gina C BaddingAppellate Court Judge$182,709▲ $4,456 vs 2025
- 10John Mandel SandyAppellate Court Judge$182,709▲ $5,874 vs 2025
Common questions
How much does a Iowa Judicial Branch employee make?
The typical employee was paid $56,724 in 2026: half of the 2,038 people paid earned more, half earned less. Most earned between $44,978 and $85,022.
Why do so many people earn very little?
The list includes everyone who got a paycheck during the year: part-time, seasonal and short-term workers, and people who joined or left partway through. 118 people (5.8%) were paid under $10,000.
Does this include benefits like health insurance or pension?
No. It is gross pay as published; the source does not split it into regular pay and overtime.
Where does this data come from, and when is it updated?
From Iowa Department of Administrative Services (Iowa Data Hub) (data.iowa.gov). Our figures match the agency's latest release; the next update is expected in late 2027.
"Typical pay" is the median: half earn more, half earn less. "Most earn" is the middle half of workers. Figures are calculated by PublicPayData from the official dataset; 0 records with $0 or negative pay are left out. How we calculate this · Corrections & removals