It began at Clay Street in Leando, crossed the Des Moines River, and ended at Iowa 16 north of Douds.

Iowa 98 began in the census-designated place (CDP) of Leando at an intersection with Clay Street.

For the first one-fifth mile (320 m) of its routing, the two-lane highway ran parallel to and approximately 400 feet (120 m) from the Des Moines River.

Douds sprawls for three-quarters mile (1.2 km), despite only having a population of 152 in the 2010 Census.

[4] The entire route had an annual average daily traffic of 1060 vehicles.

[5] It was a 6-mile-long (9.7 km) spur route which connected Eldon to Primary Road No.