Elk Horn is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, United States. The population was 601 at the period of the 2020 census. Elk Horn is known as an enclave of Danish ethnicity and is house to the Museum of Danish America.

Elk Horn was platted in 1901, and incorporated as a town in 1910. The city took its make known from Elk Horn Creek.
Newspaper articles from the Atlantic, Iowa newspaper published in 1919 upon the death of Mrs. Winters and 1939 upon the history of Clay Township
In 1864 a colony of Wisconsin people afterward 3 or 4 covered wagons came to Iowa to sustain a town and settled upon a knoll two miles southwest of what is now Elk Horn. With the creation of the publish office, Mrs. Caroline Whitney Winters, wife of Theron W. Winters suggested the name of Elk Horn as suitably many elk shed their horns in the timber there. Mrs. Winters was the first declare mistress as the make known office was kept in the Winters cabin for a number of years. Her husband traversed temporary route along the ridge country in the company of Grove City and Harlan, carrying the mail prior to the advent of the railroad. The site of the cabin was difficult occupied by Chris and Stena Jensen, and the Lawrence Nelson and Mrs. Peter M Petersen farms.

Elk Horn is located at 41°35′34″N 95°3′35″W / 41.59278°N 95.05972°W / 41.59278; -95.05972 (41.592694, -95.059615).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total Place of 0.77 square miles (1.99 km), all of it land.