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2024 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
Ames, IA vs Fairfax, VA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Fairfax or is it cheaper to live in Ames?
- Fairfax is 62.6% more expensive than Ames.

Which city has more affordable housing, Fairfax or Ames?
- Fairfax housing costs are 152.9% more expensive than Ames housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in Ames or is Health Care more affordable in Fairfax.
- Health related expenses are 15.0% less in Fairfax.
 Ames, IAFairfax, VAUnited States
 Overall87.6142.4100
 Food & Groceries97.3114.1100
 Health120.8102.7100
 Housing88.5223.8100
 Median Home Cost$239,100$654,200$338,100
 Utilities9,860.0%9,740.0%10,000.0%
 Transportation67.2127.6100
 Miscellaneous114.1145.6100

100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for Ames    12 Reviews

Over 12 years ago

Hello, I am in San Jose Ca, but am seriously thinking of moving somewhere much slower for a better quality of living. I've just turned 59, so I'm kinda preparing for  More

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Over 12 years ago

Like every other city Ames has both good and bad points. The good points are: low cost of living, very friendly people, lots of outdoor activities and quite a few events  More

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Ames enjoys a high quality of life at a very affordable cost, substantially lower than many other communities. The presence of Iowa State University, a large (28,000  More

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Reviews for Fairfax    28 Reviews

I lived in the area for 17 years through high school until I eventually became a truck driver. Having now seen most states extensively, I wanted to fairly review what  More

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Living in Fairfax, or any of the Northern Virginia suburbs of DC, means dealing with highways that are a Gordian knot of converging lanes and overpasses, making long  More

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Over 9 years ago

The Cost of living here is high. Though the standard of living is also high, unless you're making over 50,000/year, it's difficult to both live and build any sort of  More

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ZIPS IN AMES, IOWA
50010 50014 50012
ZIPS IN FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA
22030

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