City safety & data profile
West Des MoinesIA
Polk County, Iowa. Federal health, economic and safety indicators for West Des Moines, drawn from Census, CDC and CMS data. Larger than 85% of the 4,640 U.S. cities Areazine tracks.
- 64K
- Population
- Top 15%
- By size
- $86,594
- Median income
- $309,000
- Median home
- 8.4%
- Poverty rate
The read on West Des Moines
West Des Moines posts a median household income higher than 57% of U.S. cities Areazine tracks.
- Top 43%
- by median income, US cities
Where West Des Moines income ranks nationally
Median household income vs. every place Areazine profiles (place-level ACS)
$86,594 Top 43% higher than 57% of 3,889 places Areazine profiles
Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more places Areazine profiles. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (place-level) · 2024 ACS 5-year
The quick read
Reading West Des Moines, IA beyond the headline numbers
West Des Moines sits inside Polk County, Iowa, at roughly 41.58°N, -93.71°W. Its population of 64,113 and $86,594 median household income are the two most quoted figures, but in isolation they hide the shape of the city. A median home value of $309,000 paired with median rent of $1,237 is the starting point for a price-to-income read that tells you how stretched a typical household is before any other cost of living factor is considered. The 8.4% poverty rate next to that income figure is the better signal, two cities with identical medians can have very different lived realities depending on the income distribution underneath.
Health and healthcare access are the next layer most residents and prospective movers actually care about. CDC PLACES indicators for West Des Moines show the highest-prevalence measure is obesity at 33.6%, followed by short sleep duration at 30.2%.
Areazine reconstructs these layers from U.S. Census ACS (place-level economics and demographics), CDC PLACES, and CMS Hospital Compare, each updated on its own cadence, and pairs them with live alerts from FEMA, NOAA, FDA, and CPSC scoped to the West Des Moines area. The comparison bars next to each metric anchor the number against a national reference, which is the fastest way to tell whether West Des Moines is an outlier on a given dimension before drilling into the raw value.
10-Year Trends 2013–2024
County-level trend (Polk County) - West Des Moines's own historical series isn't separately published by the Census Bureau, so these year-over-year figures track the surrounding county, not the city alone.
Economics
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Median Rent | |
| Poverty Rate | 8.4% -41% vs avg |
| Unemployment | 2.4% |
| Bachelor's Degree+ | 54.9% |
| Work From Home | 19.1% |
| Public Transit | 0.6% |
Population
Health Profile 15 measures
Health Indicators
Preventive Care
Other Measures
Frequently Asked Questions 5
What is the population of West Des Moines, IA? ▼
What is the median household income in West Des Moines? ▼
What is the median home value in West Des Moines? ▼
What are the top health concerns in West Des Moines? ▼
What is the median age in West Des Moines? ▼
Safety Context
West Des Moines, IA is located in Polk County, Iowa. With a population of 64K and a $86,594 median household income, the community faces health challenges including obesity and short sleep duration. Safety alerts for the West Des Moines area are monitored from federal and state agencies including FEMA, NOAA, FDA, and CPSC.
Safety Guides
Primary source data
EPA Outdoor Air Quality Data
Federal monitoring network, every measurement we report
AirNow - Iowa
Real-time AQI for every monitored Iowa location
National Weather Service
NOAA active watches, warnings, advisories
CDC Air Quality & Health
Health-impact reference for every AQI category
EPA NAAQS standards
National Ambient Air Quality Standards, the regulatory thresholds
Nearby Cities 8
Using West Des Moines's profile
Use this as a starting research checklist, not a verdict on whether to live here.
- Check live recalls, weather and hazard alerts scoped to the West Des Moines area before relying on national headlines. Check your area
- Read the poverty rate alongside the income figure, two places with the same median can have very different realities.
- Compare West Des Moines against Iowa peers on any ranking lens. Explore Iowa
Population and economics (income, home value, poverty, education) are place-level U.S. Census ACS; health is CDC PLACES; hospital counts reflect facilities in and around the city.
Data Sources
All data on this page comes from official U.S. government sources. Population and economic data from the Census Bureau American Community Survey (2024 5-year estimates, place geography). Health data from the CDC PLACES program (2023). Hospital ratings from CMS Hospital Compare (2024). Climate data from NOAA. Education data from NCES. Cost of living from Bureau of Economic Analysis. Crime statistics, where referenced on Areazine, originate from the FBI Crime Data Explorer. Housing market figures referenced on Areazine come from HUD Fair Market Rents. Census economics and population are at place geography; some health and hospital indicators are reported at the county level (Polk County) where that is the smallest published unit.
Every figure on Areazine is published directly from official U.S. government sources, no number is typed in by an editor. City demographic and health figures are compiled directly from U.S. Census, CDC, and CMS releases, updated quarterly within 30 days of upstream release. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026.