2025 Compare Cities Education:
West Des Moines, IA vs Ames, IA

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Highlights
- Ames spends 18.8% more per student than West Des Moines.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 5.3% lower in Ames than in West Des Moines. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Ames had 0.4% more residents who had graduated High School compared to West Des Moines
 West Des Moines, IAAmes, IAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$16,979$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$11,894  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,158$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.53  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock6004573
 Students per Counselor362  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock0.7%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.2.1%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock97.0%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.1%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.7%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.53.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock17.2%9.3%
 Professional Degree4.1%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock9.7%1.5%
Reviews for West Des Moines    4 Reviews

Over 16 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 16 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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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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