$100k salary, packing up from Boulder
changea dispatch from
des moines
IA
41.59°N
93.62°W
Des Moines is the Iowa State Fair every August (think butter cows, deep-fried everything, and the political circus of every presidential cycle), insurance industry stability, and a downtown that's grown into a genuinely good food and brewery scene. The East Village neighborhood is the cool kid pocket. The whole city is bikeable. Friendly, affordable, and chronically underestimated.
in our guides
the verdict
less monthly outlay than Boulder
Des Moines is the kind of cheap that changes the math. Same salary, a different life on the other side.
a quick ledger.
$1,268/mo
43% cheaper than Boulder(vs $2,216/mo)
6%
$133/mo more in state tax than Boulder
vs 4.4% in Boulder
$6,565/mo
$814 more than Boulder
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$300k
62% cheaper than Boulder
vs $783k in Boulder
737k
vs 327k in Boulder
field notes, weather & such.
151
pleasant days a year, in des moines.
Boulder edges ahead with 178 pleasant days.
A month here packs 7.7× the events of Boulder.
55/100
30% lower than Boulder
vs 79/100 in Boulder
Closest outdoor draw: Rock Creek State Park, 40.2 mi.
78/100
7% lower than Boulder
vs 84/100 in Boulder
17
90% fewer than Boulder
vs 169 nonstops in Boulder
neighbors of des moines on the map of tradeoffs:
