2026 Compare Cities Education:
West Des Moines, IA vs Virginia Beach, VA

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Highlights
- Virginia Beach spends 5.1% less per student than West Des Moines.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 0.6% lower in Virginia Beach than in West Des Moines. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Virginia Beach had 2.3% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to West Des Moines
 West Des Moines, IAVirginia Beach, VAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$13,565$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$11,894  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,014$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.53  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock6124573
 Students per Counselor362  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock1.7%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.2.1%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock94.5%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.1%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock11.0%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.53.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock10.7%9.3%
 Professional Degree4.1%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock1.4%1.5%
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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Reviews for Virginia Beach    95 Reviews

Over 5 years ago

If you lived here prior to 2005, your experience in Virginia Beach is likely between good and wonderful. There are still pros to living here. Other reviews have  More

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Over 7 years ago

I lived in the Hampton Roads area for 11 years while I was in the Navy. It was a bit of a culture shock, since I grew up in a small rural town in Maine with 900 people.  More

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Over 8 years ago

I lived in the Kempsville area of VB growing up and loved it. There's no way to be bored when you have so many public and neighborhood parks, libraries, events,  More

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