2025 Compare Cities Education:
Chicago, IL vs Ames, IA

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Highlights
- Ames spends 22.5% less per student than Chicago.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 5.2% higher in Ames than in Chicago. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Ames had 12.4% more residents who had graduated High School compared to Chicago
 Chicago, ILAmes, IAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$16,979$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$18,508  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,158$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio13.97  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock6004573
 Students per Counselor481  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock0.7%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.6.8%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock97.0%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.0%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.7%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.41.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock17.2%9.3%
 Professional Degree3.6%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock9.7%1.5%
Reviews for Chicago    270 Reviews

I've lived in Chicago city and later moved to suburbs when family size increased. Absolutely love this city. This is the cleanest and most beautiful among the major  More

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Chicago is probably the best value in a major city that you can find and my personal favorite city. It will become increasingly important as climate change makes the  More

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I've live on north side and south side, UIC medical center. Don't move here go to the north side. No good amenities, if you get bored with one there is no other choices.  More

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Reviews for Ames    12 Reviews

Over 13 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 13 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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