The Des Moines Register
The Des Moines Register is a regional daily newspaper and digital news platform serving Des Moines, central Iowa, and broader Iowa as a subsidiary of Gannett's USA TODAY Network, monetizing through print and digital subscriptions, advertising, classifieds, and public notices.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1902
- HeadquartersDes Moines, United States
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
The Des Moines Register firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Des Moines Register
- Legal name
- Gannett Co., Inc.
- Website
- https://desmoinesregister.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1902
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- The Des Moines Register is a regional daily newspaper and digital news platform serving Des Moines, central Iowa, and broader Iowa as a subsidiary of Gannett's USA TODAY Network, monetizing through print and digital subscriptions, advertising, classifieds, and public notices.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where The Des Moines Register is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Des Moines
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Des Moines Register business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Subscription Revenue: Physical newspaper subscriptions and digital eNewspaper subscriptions for readers accessing news content
- Advertising: Display advertising, digital advertising, and sponsored content across website and publication
- Classifieds and Legals: Public notices, classified ads, job listings, real estate listings, and obituaries
- Event Services: Event promotion and ticketing services through partnerships
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Digital Subscription |
| Subscription | Annual | Print Subscription |
| Subscription | Monthly | eNewspaper |
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
The Des Moines Register product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Des Moines Register is a daily newspaper and digital news publisher serving Des Moines, central Iowa, and broader statewide audiences. It produces and distributes local news, sports, business, opinion, obituaries, and public notices through print editions, a digital website, mobile apps, eNewspaper, and email newsletters. The publication also operates marketplace services for classifieds, job listings, and real estate, and generates revenue from advertising and legal/public notice publication.
Product overview
The Des Moines Register operates as a traditional newspaper publisher with a digital-first strategy. The core product is its news website (desmoinesregister.com) providing comprehensive local coverage across news, sports, opinion, and business. Supporting products include the eNewspaper digital subscription, mobile applications for on-the-go access, email newsletters, and marketplace services for obituaries, public notices, classifieds, jobs, and real estate. The publication is part of the Gannett/USA TODAY Network, leveraging shared infrastructure while maintaining local editorial focus for central Iowa.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- USA TODAY Network: National network of local newspapers and media properties operated by Gannett, with The Des Moines Register as a regional member.
Companies that use The Des Moines Register
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
The Des Moines Register technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
The Des Moines Register partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- GannettcoreParent company providing corporate infrastructure, advertising partnerships, digital platform support, and USA TODAY Network syndication. The Des Moines Register operates as part of Gannett's extensive newspaper network.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
The Des Moines Register competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Omaha World-Herald: Lee Enterprises daily covering neighboring Omaha/Council Bluffs market; closely comparable in geographic proximity, mid-sized Midwest metro dynamics, and traditional newsroom product mix.
- The Tennessean: Gannett/USA TODAY Network daily covering Nashville; operates with the same subscription, advertising, and marketplace verticals as the Register and faces analogous digital-transition dynamics.
- The Indianapolis Star: Gannett/USA TODAY Network daily newspaper serving Indianapolis, a similar mid-sized Midwestern state-capital metro; comparable local monopoly, subscription/ad/classifieds mix, and digital product portfolio.
- The Columbus Dispatch: Gannett/USA TODAY Network daily serving Columbus, Ohio. Operates an essentially identical portfolio (print, digital, newsletters, classifieds, obituaries, public notices, jobs, real estate).
- Star Tribune: Independent Minneapolis-based regional daily; directly comparable as a Midwestern metro newspaper of record with a similar subscription-ad-classifieds revenue mix and digital expansion strategy.
- The Arizona Republic: Gannett's flagship regional paper serving Phoenix. Larger in scale but built on the same Gannett local-news playbook (print, digital, e-edition, newsletters, public notices, marketplace).
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Gannett daily serving Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Closely mirrors the Register in size, regional/midwest positioning, USA TODAY Network infrastructure, and multi-channel digital distribution.
- Detroit Free Press: Gannett's Michigan flagship; comparable as a regional metro daily with the same network-wide digital infrastructure and audience-monetization stack as the Register.
Broad incumbents
- Gannett Co., Inc. Public-company parent (NYSE: GCI) of The Des Moines Register and the broader USA TODAY Network; comparable as the conglomerate within which the Register's economics sit and against which any structural separation or peer benchmarking would occur.
Emerging players
- Iowa Starting Line: Digital-native Iowa local news outlet focused on progressive political and policy coverage; competes with the Register for Iowa political-news audience and digital ad attention.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Des Moines Register social profiles
Digital presenceThe Des Moines Register financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Des Moines Register leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
The Des Moines Register subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
The Des Moines Register funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Des Moines Register M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Des Moines Register
What does The Des Moines Register do?
The Des Moines Register is a daily newspaper and digital news publisher serving Des Moines, central Iowa, and broader statewide audiences. It produces and distributes local news, sports, business, opinion, obituaries, and public notices through print editions, a digital website, mobile apps, eNewspaper, and email newsletters. The publication also operates marketplace services for classifieds, job listings, and real estate, and generates revenue from advertising and legal/public notice publication.
Is The Des Moines Register a public or private company?
The Des Moines Register is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was The Des Moines Register founded?
The Des Moines Register was founded in 1902. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is The Des Moines Register based?
The Des Moines Register is headquartered in Des Moines, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Des Moines Register make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Subscription Revenue is the primary driver. The others are advertising, classifieds and Legals and event Services.
Who are The Des Moines Register's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Omaha World-Herald, The Tennessean, The Indianapolis Star, The Columbus Dispatch, Star Tribune, The Arizona Republic, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Detroit Free Press. Gannett Co., Inc. is listed as a broad incumbent. Iowa Starting Line is listed as an emerging player.
Does The Des Moines Register have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Des Moines Register.