2025 Compare Cities Education:
West Des Moines, IA vs Elgin, IL

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Highlights
- Elgin spends 23.1% more per student than West Des Moines.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 7.1% lower in Elgin than in West Des Moines. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Elgin had 16.9% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to West Des Moines
 West Des Moines, IAElgin, ILUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$17,588$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$11,894  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$8,985$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.53  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock13524573
 Students per Counselor362  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock11.5%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.2.1%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock80.3%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.1%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock8.6%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.53.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock7.8%9.3%
 Professional Degree4.1%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock0.9%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 Elgin    9 Reviews

When I first moved to Elgin 2 years ago I did not like it. I lived in a mobile home park near the river and highway 90 in a senior community that over prices it's lot  More

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Hi, as a way of updating the post for Elgin and providing a rebuttal for some of the negative reviews, I've decided to post on this board. I've lived in Elgin since  More

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Over 15 years ago

I have lived in Elgin my whole life and it is very sad to read these comments about my town.... I'm a senior at South Elgin High School and I will be graduating this  More

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