Quality of life in Des Moines
Des Moines, Iowa, is characterized by a clean environment. According to our city rankings, this is a good place to live with high ratings in housing, business freedom and safety.
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Life quality score
City ranking
Housing
7
126/265Details
| Large apartment | $1300.00 |
|---|---|
| Medium apartment | $1000.00 |
| Rent index [score] | 0.66 |
| Small apartment | $800.00 |
Cost of Living
6
92/248Details
| 5km taxi ride | $7.30 |
|---|---|
| A Cappuccino | $4.20 |
| A beer | $1.90 |
| A kilogram of Apples | $3.80 |
| Bread | $0.66 |
| Inflation [score] | 0.63 |
| Lunch | $9.90 |
| Monthly fitness club membership | $35.00 |
| Monthly public transport | $51.00 |
| Movie ticket | $9.70 |
| Price of a meal at a restaurant | $61.48 |
Startups
3
208/264Details
| Average monthly increase in number of startups [score] | 0.10 |
|---|---|
| Coworking spaces [score] | 0.45 |
| Coworking spaces on WorkFrom.co | 12 |
| Meetups [score] | 0.17 |
| Meetups groups | 30 |
| Meetups members | 5902 |
| Number of investors | 21 |
| Number of startup events in the last 12 months | 296 |
| Number of upcoming meetup events | 26 |
| Startup climate scene [score] | 0.31 |
| Startup events | 175 |
| Startup events [score] | 0.76 |
| Startups [score] | 0.48 |
| Total number of startups | 83 |
Venture Capital
2
164/192Details
| Venture capital [score] | 0.18 |
|---|
Travel Connectivity
1
228/266Details
| Airport hub | 17 |
|---|---|
| Airport hub [score] | 0.16 |
| Intercity train connectivity [score] | 0.12 |
Commute
2
238/255Details
| Human city page | http://cities.human.co/details/United_States/Des_Moines |
|---|---|
| Traffic handling [score] | 0.83 |
Business Freedom
9
69/264Details
| Business freedom | 84.70 |
|---|---|
| Business freedom [score] | 0.86 |
| Freedom from corruption | 74.00 |
| Freedom from corruption [score] | 0.79 |
| Lack of labor restrictions | 91.40 |
| Lack of labor restrictions [score] | 1.00 |
| Time to open a business | 5.60 |
| Time to open a business [score] | 0.95 |
Safety
7
148/266Details
| Crime rate [score] | 0.68 |
|---|---|
| Gun-related deaths per 100,000 residents per year | 8 |
| Guns per 100 residents | 52 |
| Lack of gun related deaths [score] | 0.78 |
| Lack of guns [score] | 0.71 |
| Lack of guns and gun-related deaths [score] | 0.75 |
Healthcare
9
58/265Details
| Healthcare expenditure [score] | 0.99 |
|---|---|
| Healthcare quality [score] | 0.90 |
| Life expectancy (years) | 79.28 |
| Life expectancy [score] | 0.76 |
Education
4
165/240Details
| Country mean scores in PISA math test | 478.04 |
|---|---|
| Country mean scores in PISA reading test | 497.58 |
| Country mean scores in PISA science test | 497.41 |
| PISA math ranking (high school) | 30 |
| PISA ranking | 24 |
| PISA ranking (high school) [score] | 0.72 |
| PISA reading (high school) | 16 |
| PISA science (high school) | 19 |
| Percent of happy students | 0.77 |
| Percent of low performers in PISA math test | 0.26 |
| Percent of low performers in PISA reading test | 0.17 |
| Percent of low performers in PISA science test | 0.18 |
| Percent of top performers in PISA math test | 0.09 |
| Percent of top performers in PISA reading test | 0.08 |
| Percent of top performers in PISA science test | 0.07 |
Environmental Quality
9
26/266Details
| Air quality [score] | 1.00 |
|---|---|
| Cleanliness [score] | 1.00 |
| Drinking water quality [score] | 0.81 |
| Urban greenery [score] | 0.67 |
Economy
7
16/263Details
| Currency exchange rate per US dollar for urban area | 1.00 |
|---|---|
| Currency for urban area | USD |
| GDP growth rate | 0.02 |
| GDP growth rate [score] | 0.43 |
| GDP per capita | $54596.65 |
| GDP per capita [score] | 0.87 |
Taxation
4
151/266Details
| Effective company profit tax rate on payouts as dividends [score] | 0.54 |
|---|---|
| Income tax level [score] | 0.33 |
| Profit tax (% of profit) | 0.44 |
| Time overhead to file company taxes | 175 |
| VAT (Sales Tax) | 0.06 |
Internet Access
6
111/266Details
| Download speed (Mbps) | 36.56 |
|---|---|
| Internet access (download) [score] | 0.53 |
| Internet access (upload) [score] | 0.61 |
| Upload speed (Mbps) | 16.17 |
Leisure & Culture
6
117/264Details
| Art galleries | 91 |
|---|---|
| Art galleries [score] | 0.71 |
| Cinemas | 54 |
| Cinemas [score] | 0.60 |
| Comedy clubs | 29 |
| Comedy clubs [score] | 0.80 |
| Concert venues | 111 |
| Concerts [score] | 0.76 |
| Historical sites | 62 |
| Historical sites [score] | 0.61 |
| Museums | 27 |
| Museums [score] | 0.60 |
| Performing art venues | 122 |
| Performing arts [score] | 0.66 |
| Sport venues | 43 |
| Sports [score] | 0.70 |
| Zoos | 11 |
| Zoos [score] | 0.83 |
Tolerance
8
44/266Details
| LGBT Equality Index | 93.13 |
|---|---|
| LGBT Equality Index [score] | 0.96 |
| LGBT adoption rights | ✔ Legal |
| LGBT age of consent | ✔ Equal |
| LGBT blood donation regulations | ✖ Banned (indefinite deferral) |
| LGBT conversion therapy regulations | Ambiguous |
| LGBT discrimination legality | ✔ Illegal |
| LGBT employment discrimination legality | ✔ Sexual orientation and gender identity |
| LGBT gender changing rights | ✔ Legal, but requires surgery |
| LGBT homosexuality rights | ✔ Legal |
| LGBT housing discrimination legality | ✔ Sexual orientation and gender identity |
| LGBT marriage rights | ✔ Legal |
| Tolerance towards minorities [score] | 0.74 |
Outdoors
3
220/266Details
| Urban area elevation (meters) | 266.00 |
|---|---|
| Water access [score] | 0.66 |
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Cost of living
Costs of living in Des Moines are in the 92nd place of all 248 Teleport cities. Sign up for free to get access to our cost of living index and use our international cost of living calculator to do cost comparison by city.
Housing costs (USD)
$800
Median rent for
apartments in city center
apartments in city center
Daily living costs (USD)
 Monthly fitness club membership | $35 |
|---|---|
 Movie ticket | $10 |
 Broadband internet connection | $41 |
 Monthly public transport | $51 |
 Lunch | $10 |
-36%
compared to
San Francisco
San Francisco
Job salary calculator
Software Engineer salaries in Des Moines are above average. For this job type, Des Moines ranks 74th for salaries among 265 cities. Get access to our salary comparison calculator by signing up. Compare salaries city by city with our free salary wizard and convert your own salary to a local salary in Des Moines.
Estimated annual salary (in USD)
$59,548
Median salary
Locals review Des Moines
Do locals recommend living in Des Moines?
What could Des Moines do better?#improveDesMoines
How could Des Moines improve to make it a more liveable city? We will make sure that the local government will know about the suggestions that reach enough votes*.
*Suggestions will be delivered to: Mayor of Des Moines - Frank Cownie
What makes Des Moines a special place?#praiseDesMoines
Is Des Moines a great place to live? What makes it special for you? What makes it liveable? What should others know about? Why should they move here? Why do you love it?
Taxation
Personal taxation
Effective income tax rate
14%
For annual salary of $40000
20%
For annual salary of $80000
Value added tax (VAT)
6%
Standard tax rate. Different rates might apply for certain product categories.
Compared to other cities
155/266
Corporate taxation
Compared to other cities
113/263
Local Currency
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Safety
Overall crime rates
Homicide
High
6/8
Assault
Very Low
12/51
Theft
Very Low
13/49
Motor vehicle theft
Very Low
8/24
Crime rate development in the last 6 months
Change in the last 6 months
- Assault-38%
- Theft-29%
Gun crimes & Ownership
52.43
Guns per 100 people
8.19
Gun deaths per 100k people / year
North America
Europe
Asia
South America
Africa
Oceania
Overall crime rate city ranking
The overall crime rate puts Des Moines in position 94 of 266 Teleport Cities in a ranking for the safest cities.
Education
Visa
For visits up to 90 days
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Explore the streets of Des Moines
People in Des Moines
Friends living in Des Moines
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Teleport Users X Des Moines
Teleport users who are Des Moines
Work in:
11.11%
11.11%
11.11%
11.11%
11.11%
11.11%
11.11%
22.22%
Come from:
LGBT rights in Des Moines
Homosexuality
Legal
Changing gender
Legal
But Requires Surgery
Discrimination
Illegal
Marriage
Legal
Adoption
Legal
Climate
Average number of clear days per year
105Climate type
Hot Summer Continental
Average daily maximum temperature
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Startup scene
Number of startups
83
By stage
Total funding last 12 months
$0
Funding last 12 months
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On living in Des Moines
Des Moines, capital of Iowa, is in the western region of the American Midwest.
Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa and the annual site of the Iowa State Fair. Because of Iowa's early presidential caucus date, the city is also a hotbed of political dreams and discourse every four years when presidential candidates tour the state and have multiple debates within the city.
The meaning of 'Des Moines' itself is not clear as local Native Americans, the Moingona, had already been using a term (which meant 'river of the mounds') due to the number of burial mounds which were popular in the area. French Trappist Monks (Moines de la Trappe) called their settlement areas at the mouth of the Des Moines River 'La Riviere des Moines' which, in English, translates to 'the river of the monks.' "De Moyn," which means "middle," may have been used on the map of explorer Jacques Marquette to help others locate the Des Moines River-area (equidistant between the larger Mississippi and Missouri rivers). "Des Moines," today pronounced "duh MOIN," is located at the junction of the Des Moines River and the Raccoon River.
Read moreGood Country Index
Every city comes with a country. How is this one doing in terms of giving back to the global community? Our friends at The Good Country Index measure what each country on earth contributes to the common good of humanity, and what it takes away, relative to its size.
Overall ranking
23rd from a total of 163 countries
World Order
26thRefugees hosted
Refugees generated
Charity giving
Birth rate
UN Treaties signed
International Peace & Security
66thDues in arrears to UN peace keeping budgets
International violent conflict
Peacekeeping troops
Arms exports
Internet security (2014)
Planet & Climate
34thEcological footprint
Reforestation since 1992
Hazardous pesticides exports
CO2 emissions
Ozone
Prosperity & Equality
46thDevelopment assistance
FDI outflows
Fairtrade market size
UN volunteers abroad
Open trading
Culture
53rdFreedom of movement
Press freedom
Creative services exports
UNESCO dues in arrears as % of contribution
Creative goods exports
Science & Technology
20thNobel prizes
Patents
Journal exports
International publications
International Students
Health & Wellbeing
12thPharmaceutical exports
Voluntary excess donations to the WHO
Food aid
Humanitarian aid donations
International Health Regulations Compliance
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