Uprootmap
Chicago · Registered nurse · $98,500 · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Uprootmap
Des Moines skyline
Tim Kiser ( w:User:Malepheasant ). CC BY-SA 2.5. Photo source · License

#25 of 387 for you

Des Moines: $2,910/mo left

Move scoreB+
Alabama: $2,168 left in a typical monthArizona: $2,126 left in a typical monthArkansas: $2,400 left in a typical monthCalifornia: $1,645 left in a typical monthColorado: $2,458 left in a typical monthConnecticut: $2,294 left in a typical monthDelaware: $1,980 left in a typical monthDistrict of Columbia: $2,913 left in a typical monthFlorida: $2,204 left in a typical monthGeorgia: $1,988 left in a typical monthIdaho: $2,056 left in a typical monthIllinois: $2,569 left in a typical monthIndiana: $2,407 left in a typical monthIowa: $2,838 left in a typical monthKansas: $2,391 left in a typical monthKentucky: $2,312 left in a typical monthLouisiana: $2,486 left in a typical monthMaine: $1,949 left in a typical monthMaryland: $2,359 left in a typical monthMassachusetts: $2,076 left in a typical monthMichigan: $2,360 left in a typical monthMinnesota: $2,600 left in a typical monthMississippi: $2,011 left in a typical monthMissouri: $2,581 left in a typical monthMontana: $2,222 left in a typical monthNebraska: $2,541 left in a typical monthNevada: $2,296 left in a typical monthNew Hampshire: $2,794 left in a typical monthNew Jersey: $1,864 left in a typical monthNew Mexico: $2,037 left in a typical monthNew York: $2,320 left in a typical monthNorth Carolina: $2,194 left in a typical monthNorth Dakota: $3,238 left in a typical monthOhio: $2,583 left in a typical monthOklahoma: $2,455 left in a typical monthOregon: $1,624 left in a typical monthPennsylvania: $2,380 left in a typical monthRhode Island: $2,094 left in a typical monthSouth Carolina: $2,108 left in a typical monthSouth Dakota: $2,780 left in a typical monthTennessee: $2,530 left in a typical monthTexas: $2,620 left in a typical monthUtah: $1,822 left in a typical monthVermont: $2,118 left in a typical monthVirginia: $2,326 left in a typical monthWashington: $2,473 left in a typical monthWest Virginia: $2,277 left in a typical monthWisconsin: $2,642 left in a typical monthWyoming: $2,849 left in a typical month
Less leftMore left
  • Rent under 30% of pay
  • Real winters

From your Chicago paycheck, you'd keep +$484/mo versus Chicago.

Compare

Versus Chicago.

Take the quizRank metros from Des Moines

Left each month

$2,910

Versus Chicago

+$484/mo

+$5,808 a year

Local pay

$90,057

This job, this city

Top things to do in Des Moines

More in Des Moines
Paycheck to pocket
Monthly pay$7,505
Tax$1,765
Rent$991
Other bills$1,838
Left$2,910

Next

$2,910 / mo left

Alabama: $2,168 left in a typical monthArizona: $2,126 left in a typical monthArkansas: $2,400 left in a typical monthCalifornia: $1,645 left in a typical monthColorado: $2,458 left in a typical monthConnecticut: $2,294 left in a typical monthDelaware: $1,980 left in a typical monthDistrict of Columbia: $2,913 left in a typical monthFlorida: $2,204 left in a typical monthGeorgia: $1,988 left in a typical monthIdaho: $2,056 left in a typical monthIllinois: $2,569 left in a typical monthIndiana: $2,407 left in a typical monthIowa: $2,838 left in a typical monthKansas: $2,391 left in a typical monthKentucky: $2,312 left in a typical monthLouisiana: $2,486 left in a typical monthMaine: $1,949 left in a typical monthMaryland: $2,359 left in a typical monthMassachusetts: $2,076 left in a typical monthMichigan: $2,360 left in a typical monthMinnesota: $2,600 left in a typical monthMississippi: $2,011 left in a typical monthMissouri: $2,581 left in a typical monthMontana: $2,222 left in a typical monthNebraska: $2,541 left in a typical monthNevada: $2,296 left in a typical monthNew Hampshire: $2,794 left in a typical monthNew Jersey: $1,864 left in a typical monthNew Mexico: $2,037 left in a typical monthNew York: $2,320 left in a typical monthNorth Carolina: $2,194 left in a typical monthNorth Dakota: $3,238 left in a typical monthOhio: $2,583 left in a typical monthOklahoma: $2,455 left in a typical monthOregon: $1,624 left in a typical monthPennsylvania: $2,380 left in a typical monthRhode Island: $2,094 left in a typical monthSouth Carolina: $2,108 left in a typical monthSouth Dakota: $2,780 left in a typical monthTennessee: $2,530 left in a typical monthTexas: $2,620 left in a typical monthUtah: $1,822 left in a typical monthVermont: $2,118 left in a typical monthVirginia: $2,326 left in a typical monthWashington: $2,473 left in a typical monthWest Virginia: $2,277 left in a typical monthWisconsin: $2,642 left in a typical monthWyoming: $2,849 left in a typical monthChicagoDes Moines
Less leftMore left
Des Moines · this breakdownChicago · home

The month

One earner. 1 bd.

See full breakdown
  • Taxes$1,765
  • Rent$991
  • Other living costs$1,838
  • Left over$2,910

Pay and tax, per year

Gross household pay
$90,057
Federal income tax
−$11,427
Social Security and Medicare
−$6,889
State income tax (IA)
−$2,867
Take-home pay
$68,874
Effective tax rate
23.5%

Living costs, per month

Rent, 1br
$991
Groceries
$360
Getting around
$533
Healthcare
$405
Utilities and internet
$225
Everything else
$315
Total spending
$2,829

Left over each month

$7,505 gross, minus $1,765 in tax and $2,829 in living costs.

$2,910

County by county

6 counties. Rent is what residents pay, not asking rent.

Population, rent, home value, income and commute by county in Des Moines, IA
CountyPeopleMedian rent2-bed rentHome valueIncomeCommute
Polk CountyIA497k69%$1,113$1,132$248,400$81,62120 min
Dallas CountyIA104k14%$1,239$1,319$333,400$102,34921 min
Warren CountyIA53k7%$975$942$252,800$92,99024 min
Jasper CountyIA38k5%$822$840$176,800$70,12824 min
Madison CountyIA17k2%$938$983$236,900$89,54227 min
Guthrie CountyIA11k1%$823$828$163,900$79,98127 min

Census ACS 2023. “—” is not published.

Working remotely

If the paycheck stays the same

One adult, one bedroom, $120,000 held flat in every city. That leaves $4,568 a month here after tax and rent. One-bedroom rent in that math is $991.

Work from home
13.6% of workers
ACS 2024 1-year
Home internet
74.4% of households
Cable, fiber optic, or DSL
Paid to move, remote job
No open remote grant on this metro

Worked-from-home share is Census B08006_017E divided by all workers (ACS 2024 1-year, or ACS 2023 5-year when the 1-year table has no metro). Internet is households with cable, fiber optic, or DSL, from ACS 2023 5-year.

Best cities for remote workersMoving from Iowa

USAJOBS

Federal jobs that pay relocation here

4 open postings marked relocation-eligible. Fetched October 10, 2026.

  • Interdisciplinary

    Omaha District - Transportation Systems Mandatory Center of Expertise (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) · $106,437–$154,682 a year

    Air Force Academy, CO · Buckley AFB, CO · Colorado Springs, CO · +17 more · Colorado Springs, CO, Denver, CO, Davenport, IA +10 · Closes October 22, 2026

  • Interdisciplinary

    Omaha District - Transportation Systems Mandatory Center of Expertise (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) · $89,508–$130,080 a year

    Air Force Academy, CO · Buckley AFB, CO · Colorado Springs, CO · +17 more · Colorado Springs, CO, Denver, CO, Davenport, IA +10 · Closes October 22, 2026

  • Heavy Mobile Equipment Repairer

    88th Readiness Division (USAR) (U.S. Army Reserve Command) · $26.61–$31.03 an hour

    Des Moines, IA · Des Moines, IA · Closes October 29, 2026

  • PUBLIC NOTICE- DEA Criminal Investigators

    Special Agent Recruitment (Drug Enforcement Administration) · $48,854–$82,938 a year

    Ponce, Puerto Rico · San Juan, Puerto Rico · Tyler, TX · +254 more · Tyler, TX, Waco, TX, St. George, UT +184 · Closes March 16, 2027

All federal jobs that pay relocation

The place

205 sunny days. July high 85°F. January nights 14°F. 20 min commute. A car per adult.

Weather
205 sunny days, 85°F in July, 14°F January nights
Getting around
A car per adult
Average commute
20 minutes each way
Size
720k people
Buying instead
Median home $252,400. About $1,808/mo with 20% down.
Taxes
Iowa income tax. Sales tax 6.9%, property tax 1.43%.

Fit

Money left over
79
Sun and mild weather
54
Being in a big city
52
Public school districts in Des Moines

12 largest districts, NCES 2024-2025. This is districts, not every school. Students, school count, and pupils per teacher.

Public school districts in Des Moines
DistrictCityStudentsSchoolsPupils / teacher
Des Moines Independent Comm School DistrictDes Moines30,0485914.5
Waukee Comm School DistrictWaukee13,9171916
Ankeny Comm School DistrictAnkeny12,7461815.5
West Des Moines Comm School DistrictWest Des Moines9,1101414.5
Southeast Polk Comm School DistrictAltoona7,5011115
Johnston Comm School DistrictJohnston7,373815.5
Urbandale Comm School DistrictUrbandale4,208614
Dallas Center-Grimes Comm School DistrictGrimes3,760715.1
Indianola Comm School DistrictIndianola3,599615.1
Norwalk Comm School DistrictNorwalk3,584515.4
Bondurant-Farrar Comm School DistrictBondurant2,824514.9
Newton Comm School DistrictNewton2,693614.6

Chicago vs Des Moines

Full comparison

More on this city

Explore more

Take-home by job in Des Moines

Pay and leftover for every job in Des Moines

Other Iowa metros

All Iowa metros

Questions

How is take-home pay in Des Moines calculated?

Des Moines is in Iowa, which taxes wage income. Take-home is a local salary minus federal tax, payroll tax, and that state tax. Leftover is what remains after rent.

What does rent cost in Des Moines?

About $991 for a one-bedroom and $1,180 for a two-bedroom in Des Moines, IA.

How do I compare Des Moines with another city?

Put Des Moines next to another city on the same job and household. The gap is the tax bill and the rent.

Also look at

Estimate, not a quote. How we figure this.

Compare Des Moines