2026 Compare Cities Education:
Richardson, TX vs West Des Moines, IA

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Highlights
- West Des Moines spends 8.5% more per student than Richardson.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 3.5% higher in West Des Moines than in Richardson. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- West Des Moines had 5.1% more residents who had graduated High School compared to Richardson
 Richardson, TXWest Des Moines, IAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$14,293$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$10,291  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,373$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.01  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock7994573
 Students per Counselor361  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock1.3%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.3.2%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock96.6%88.9%
 Some College Educ.18.8%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock9.6%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.53.9%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock13.3%9.3%
 Professional Degree3.5%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock1.6%1.5%
Reviews for Richardson    6 Reviews

Over 15 years ago

Lived in Richardson for 40 years and it's home. Good schools, hospitals, emergency services, retail and restaurants. Fair weather and slightly high but reasonable cost  More

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Over 16 years ago

It's great to live in a neighborhood. Better yet a community. It is relatively quiet and peaceful. Having lived in the city (Dallas) for a number of years it was a  More

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Over 18 years ago

My wife and I have lived in Richardson for 4 years now. Richardson is like anywhere else in terms of it depends on what you are looking for. Richardson has a lot of  More

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Reviews for West Des Moines    4 Reviews

Over 17 years ago

I just moved here from out-of-state a few months ago and have been pleasantly surprised by the broad range of activities and amenities available in this medium sized IA  More

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Over 17 years ago

Am contemplating a move to WDM from the East Coast (NYC). Might there be anyone out there that may have experienced this and could offer guidance or comment. Thanks.   More

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We just moved to West Des Moines and we love it here! We moved here three months ago and every weekend we have been able to do something different and fun. There is  More

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