PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA

58.7
Life Score / 100
B+
Grade (curved)
#72
of 387 metros
81%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census

The verdict

Des Moines ranks #72 of 387 US metros, ahead of 81% - carried by its safety (73/100) and held back most by environment (24/100).

73
strongest: Safety
70
then: Wages
24
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Des Moines sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

59 Top 19% higher than 81% of 387 US metros

25–30: 1 US metros (0%). Below this entry. 30–35: 16 US metros (4%). Below this entry. 35–40: 46 US metros (12%). Below this entry. 40–45: 53 US metros (14%). Below this entry. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Below this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Below this entry. 55–60: 68 US metros (18%). This entry sits in this band. 60–65: 40 US metros (10%). Above this entry. 65–70: 12 US metros (3%). Above this entry. 70–75: 3 US metros (1%). Above this entry. This metro 25 75 every US metro, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainCompare composite of BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, EPA data · May 2026

How the score is built

Reading the Des Moines Life Score

Des Moines's composite score of 58.7 out of 100, a grade of B+, places the metro at rank #72 of 387, ahead of 81% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Safety (73/100) and Wages (70/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (24/100) and Schools (45/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 91.7 (rent-RPP 84.7). BLS median salary $69,930, 394,120 jobs (Customer Service Representatives, Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,318/mo (studio $1,063).

FBI UCR (IA): 238 violent, 1286 property/100K. NCES: 14.8:1 ratio, 0.3% charter. DOL infant childcare $8,306/yr. EPA: 25 Superfund sites (IA). Ranks #69-#75 below.

Dimension detail

How Des Moines scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 65/100 (20%)
Wages 70/100 (20%)
Rent 49/100 (15%)
Safety 73/100 (15%)
Schools 45/100 (10%)
Childcare 65/100 (10%)
Environment 24/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

91.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$69,930
Avg Median Salary
$1,318
2BR Fair Market Rent
238
Violent Crime/100K (IA)
14.8:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$8,306
Infant Childcare/yr (IA)
25
Superfund Sites (IA)
394,120
Total Employment

Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level where metro-specific data is unavailable.

Compare Des Moines With...

Des Moines vs Waterloo Compare → Des Moines vs Sioux City Compare → Des Moines vs Ames Compare → Des Moines vs Wildwood Compare → Des Moines vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Des Moines outranks 81% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#69 Jacksonville, FL 59.0 B+
#70 La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN 59.1 A-
#71 Lima, OH 59.2 A-
#72 Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA 58.7 B+
#73 Decatur, IL 58.7 B+
#74 New Orleans-Metairie, LA 58.7 B+
#75 Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA 58.6 B+

IA Metro Scores

Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA A+ 71.5 Sioux City, IA-NE-SD A+ 66.7 Ames, IA A 65.2 Cedar Rapids, IA A 64.2 Dubuque, IA A 63.5 Iowa City, IA A 62.2

Using Des Moines's Life Score

Des Moines is a regional baseline, not a neighborhood reading, use it to shortlist, then dig into the dimensions that matter to you.

  • Its strongest dimension is safety (73/100) and its weakest is environment (24/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Des Moines head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Des Moines lands on the national rankings for cost, safety, pay and more. Browse rankings

Scores summarize federal data at the metro level; crime, schools and cost vary widely within a single metro.

Explore more

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Des Moines's biggest strengths? ▼
Des Moines's strongest dimensions are Safety (73/100), Wages (70/100), Cost of Living (65/100). Safety is top-tier nationally.
What are Des Moines's weakest areas? ▼
Des Moines's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (24/100), Schools (45/100), Rent (49/100). Environment weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Des Moines compared to the national average? ▼
Des Moines's Regional Price Parity is 91.7 (8.3% less than national); rent RPP 84.7.
What is the average salary in Des Moines? ▼
Des Moines median salary: $69,930, 394,120 jobs. Top: Customer Service Representatives, Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Des Moines's 58.7/100 blends 7 federal-data dimensions - see our methodology page for the weighting.

Research Guides

Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.

Related

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - multi-dimension demographic + housing + income aggregates for cross-area comparison. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • BEA Regional Economic Accounts - GDP, personal income, employment by state and metro. bea.gov/data/regional
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) - wage estimates for comparable-area indexing. bls.gov/oes
  • FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - crime statistics for safety-score component. fbi.gov/ucr
  • NCES Common Core of Data - public-school quality indicators by area. nces.ed.gov/ccd
  • EPA AirNow + Air Quality System (AQS) - air-quality measurements by area. epa.gov/outdoor-air-quality-data
  • HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR) - county and metro housing-cost indicators. huduser.gov/datasets/fmr

Every figure on PlainCompare is loaded directly from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OEWS, NCES, DOL, EPA, and the Census Bureau, no number is typed in by an editor. This metro's Life Score is computed directly from the 7 federal sources cited above. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026.