Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 38/100
D−
Median home value$597,000
Seattle $717,500
Median rent$1,799/mo
Seattle $2,000/mo
Cost-burdened households41%
Seattle 35%
Des Moines
King County32,823 residents2 school districts
49
D+
Suburbgrade score
54th of 59 Seattle suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by employment & income.
49
Seattle median 59
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Des Moines yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 49 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Des Moines is like to live in, by category
Bars show Des Moines against Seattle. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 36/100
F
Within-state proficiency18th pct
Seattle median 70th pct
Student–teacher ratio18.2
Seattle median 18.4
Graduation rate86%
Seattle median 88%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 71/100
B−
Housing cost index88
Seattle 100
Eff. tax rate0.90%
Seattle 0.77%
Local sales tax10.40%
Seattle median 10.30%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 45/100
D
Mean commute30.8 min
Seattle 29.2 min
Under 30 minutes51%
Seattle 55%
Transit stops / sq mi7.8
Seattle median 8.8 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 77/100
B
Restaurants & cafés81
Seattle median 84 · within 2 miles
Groceries7
Seattle median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks84
Seattle median 95 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 35/100
F
Median household income$92,483
Seattle $115,177
Unemployment7.5%
Seattle 4.8%
Professional occupations38%
Seattle 52%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
—
No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Des Moines yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
—
Do you feel safe walking after dark?
—
Can you walk to a grocery store?
—
Is it good for young children?
—
Are yards and streets well kept?
—
Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Des Moines on employment & income
Des Moines's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbEmploymentOverall
Snoqualmie24 mi from Des MoinesA 69 B− Sammamish19 mi from Des MoinesA− 70 B− Mercer Island13 mi from Des MoinesB 75 B Issaquah17 mi from Des MoinesB 73 B Redmond22 mi from Des MoinesB− 75 B Bellevue16 mi from Des MoinesB− 74 B Median household income: ACS 2020–24 · Unemployment: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Des Moines
Is Des Moines, WA a good place to live?
Des Moines scores 49 out of 100, 54th of 59 Seattle suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on employment & income. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Des Moines expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $597,000, 17% below the Seattle median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.90%. $1,799/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Des Moines?
Schools grade F. The districts serving Des Moines sit at the 18th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 86% graduation rate and a 18.2 student–teacher ratio. Des Moines is served by Highline School District and Federal Way School District. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Des Moines?
The mean commute is 30.8 min, with 51% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 15% working from home. Transit density is 7.8 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Des Moines?
Within two miles there are 7 groceries, 81 restaurants and cafés and 84 parks, which grades B on amenities.
Are the homes in Des Moines old or new?
The median home in Des Moines was built in 1974 — older than the Seattle median of 1985. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 58% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.