2025 Compare Cities Education:
West Des Moines, IA vs Costa Mesa, CA

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Highlights
- Costa Mesa spends 6.9% more per student than West Des Moines.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 49.5% higher in Costa Mesa than in West Des Moines. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Costa Mesa had 9.4% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to West Des Moines
 West Des Moines, IACosta Mesa, CAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$15,277$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$11,894  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$8,037$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.53  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock163834573
 Students per Counselor362  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock6.1%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.2.1%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock87.6%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.1%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.4%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.53.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock8.9%9.3%
 Professional Degree4.1%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock1.1%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 Costa Mesa    8 Reviews

Over 15 years ago

Costa mesa has awesome shopping but is way too crowded and I have had 3 cars stolen in the past 5 years along with countless break-ins and theft. Expensive. Close to  More

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Over 16 years ago

Costa Mesa has a near perfect climate . . . plenty of sun but rarely over 100 degrees (our house doesn't even have AC). Nestled between Newport Beach and Huntington  More

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We have a good amount of low-income, medium-income, and relatively high-income  More

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