CITY PROFILE
Des Moines, IA
WHAT LIVING HERE IS LIKE
Des Moines is a smaller metro with moderately priced housing, offering a temperate four-season climate with moderate sunshine and moderate rainfall throughout the year. If you value distinct seasons and reasonable housing costs without the intensity of a major urban center, this is a straightforward fit; expect real winters and summers alongside a measured pace of day-to-day life.
By the numbers
| Typical home value | $296K · Zillow, May 2026 (ZHVI) |
|---|---|
| Typical rent | $1,293/mo · Zillow, May 2026 (ZORI) |
| Average temperature | 10.2°C · warmest 24.8°C · coolest -5.6°C · NASA POWER |
| Annual precipitation | 884 mm · NASA POWER |
| Sunshine (solar energy) | 4.09 kWh/m²/day · NASA POWER (annual mean) |
| Metro size rank (US) | #84 · Zillow SizeRank |
Match scores
- Affordable to buy87
- Affordable to rent84
- Climate comfort43
- Plenty of sunshine45
- Big-city amenities80
Scores are 0–100, normalised across the metros we cover, derived from the sourced figures above (higher = better on that factor). A research aid, not a recommendation to move. Job market, safety, and healthcare access need key-gated feeds (BLS, FBI, Census) not yet wired — see the methodology.
