Moving to Oregon from Iowa
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from Iowa to Oregon — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from Iowa to Oregon, you would find that Oregon is 17.8% more expensive than Iowa. A $75,000 salary in Iowa would need to be roughly $88,400 in Oregon to maintain the same lifestyle. Des Moines and Portland are about 1,450 mi apart.
Is Oregon cheaper than Iowa?
Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 2.8% more
Groceries
pay 10.0% more
Transportation
pay 27.8% more
Housing
pay 37.2% more
Childcare
pay 5.7% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 2.2% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
What salary do you need in Oregon?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $88,400
To maintain the same standard of living in Oregon
Calculate with your salary →Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Oregon cost about 10% more than cities in Iowa.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from Iowa to Oregon.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Iowa performs better than Oregon across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
Oregon generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Iowa leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Iowa performs better than Oregon across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Iowa generally does better on infrastructure, though Oregon leads in internet access.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
Iowa generally does better on employment & economy, though Oregon leads in median household income.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Oregon performs significantly better than Iowa across all family life metrics.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
Weather in Oregon vs Iowa
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Des Moines | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 39°/21°F (4°/-6°C) | 36°/18°F (2°/-8°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 72°/52°F (22°/11°C) | 63°/44°F (17°/7°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 82°/62°F (28°/17°C) | 76°/56°F (24°/13°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 48°/31°F (9°/-1°C) | 48°/30°F (9°/-1°C) |
View all months
| Month | Des Moines | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31°/14°F (-0.6°/-9.8°C) | 31°/13°F (-0.4°/-10.3°C) |
| Feb | 36°/19°F (2.3°/-7.3°C) | 35°/16°F (1.4°/-8.7°C) |
| Mar | 49°/30°F (9.4°/-1.3°C) | 42°/25°F (5.6°/-3.9°C) |
| Apr | 62°/41°F (16.8°/5.1°C) | 53°/35°F (11.8°/1.5°C) |
| May | 72°/52°F (22.4°/11.2°C) | 64°/44°F (17.5°/6.8°C) |
| Jun | 82°/62°F (27.6°/16.7°C) | 73°/54°F (22.9°/12.0°C) |
| Jul | 86°/67°F (29.8°/19.3°C) | 79°/59°F (26.0°/15.2°C) |
| Aug | 84°/65°F (28.8°/18.2°C) | 78°/58°F (25.4°/14.6°C) |
| Sep | 76°/55°F (24.5°/12.9°C) | 70°/50°F (21.1°/10.2°C) |
| Oct | 63°/43°F (17.3°/6.1°C) | 59°/39°F (14.8°/3.8°C) |
| Nov | 48°/31°F (8.8°/-0.8°C) | 48°/31°F (8.9°/-0.6°C) |
| Dec | 34°/18°F (1.1°/-7.8°C) | 37°/20°F (2.9°/-6.4°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Oregon than Iowa?
No — Oregon is on average about 18% more expensive than Iowa. City-level variation matters.
How much money do I need to move to Oregon?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $22,100 in Oregon on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Oregon safe?
Iowa performs better than Oregon across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Oregon compared to Iowa?
Oregon generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Iowa leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Oregon compared to Iowa?
The average high temperature in Portland is 56°F, compared to 60°F in Des Moines. Portland receives around 47.2 in of rainfall per year, while Des Moines gets 36.0 in.
