2025 Compare Cities Education:
Tacoma, WA vs Des Moines, IA

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Highlights
- Des Moines spends 22.2% less per student than Tacoma.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 16.9% lower in Des Moines than in Tacoma. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Des Moines had 3.5% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to Tacoma
 Tacoma, WADes Moines, IAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$14,293$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$14,056  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,373$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio18.68  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock7994573
 Students per Counselor441  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock6.5%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.5.7%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock87.1%88.9%
 Some College Educ.23.3%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock9.2%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.31.3%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock6.2%9.3%
 Professional Degree2.3%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock0.8%1.5%
Reviews for Tacoma    40 Reviews

I've lived in Tacoma for 3.5 years and love it! It's not a perfect city, nowhere is perfect and Tacoma does have its' share of problems, but overall have found T-Town  More

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Over 4 years ago

We LOVE tacoma. Grew up in Seattle, and tacoma is so much better! Easy access to the water, hiking, and Mt Rainier and the Olympics. We love the coffee shops and  More

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Over 5 years ago

Having lived over half my life here I can tell you real friends are few and far between. You will go through many and only have a handful who stick with you. Your  More

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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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