2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Des Moines, IA vs Lake Forest, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Lake Forest, is 101% more than it is in Des Moines and is 41% above the National Average.
- Des Moines unemployment rate is 5.9%.
- Lake Forest unemployment rate is 5.6%.
 Des Moines, IALake Forest, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock5.6%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock0.6%1.6%
 Future Job Growth37.4%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes6.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$31,276  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$117,374$69,021
 Family Median Income$69,816  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Des Moines, IALake Forest, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock4.9%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K4.7%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock2.9%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K10.2%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock4.1%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K8.2%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock6.9%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K14.3%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock19.0%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K4.9%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock22.5%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Des Moines, IALake Forest, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance14.3%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock11.3%6.5%
 Community, social services1.6%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.4%1.2%
 Education, library4.2%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock2.8%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology4.8%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.1%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.5%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock4.4%5.4%
 Building maintenance4.5%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.1%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support21.7%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.2%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair8.0%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock7.8%13.1%
Reviews for Des Moines    53 Reviews

Des Moines is a ok and pretty quiet place but as a teen it could be dramatic because Des Moines do have is fair or violents places to avoid in Des Moines would be the  More

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Dude · 
Over 5 years ago

This city is violent, there are too many gangs especially on the north  More

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Over 6 years ago

Good for the old that like slow pace and cheap buffets. Also good for non-descript mid-westerners that don't like a lot of action. No nightlife or mountains to hike  More

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Reviews for Lake Forest    16 Reviews

I've lived in Lake Forest for over a decade, before that elsewhere in OC and also up in LA. Lake Forest isn't perfect but it's really improved over the past decade,  More

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As a retired senior who has lived in Lake Forest (formerly El Toro) since 1977 I think LF is a great place if you can afford it. When we moved here in June '77 homes  More

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I’ve lived here for 2 years. Ok, it’s more like a 4 but there are so many idiots downplaying what it’s like here and giving Lake Forest ones and twos. There are a lot of  More

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