Moving to Iowa from Montana
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Montana to Iowa — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Montana to Iowa, you would find that Iowa is 11.7% cheaper than Montana. A $75,000 salary in Montana would need to be roughly $63,078 in Iowa to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Montana to Iowa.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $63,078
To maintain the same standard of living in Iowa
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 10.2% less
Groceries
pay 12.0% less
Transportation
pay 7.2% less
Housing
pay 22.5% less
Childcare
pay 17.5% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 0.5% more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
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 Iowa cost about 14% less than cities in Montana.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Montana and Iowa stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Iowa performs significantly better than Montana 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
Montana 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 significantly better than Montana across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Montana performs better than Iowa across all infrastructure metrics.
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 performs significantly better than Montana across all employment & economy metrics.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Montana generally does better on family life, though Iowa leads in life expectancy.
Data: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, OECD Regional Demography, US Census Bureau (American Community Survey)
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Helena | Des Moines |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 40°/18°F (4°/-8°C) | 39°/21°F (4°/-6°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 67°/41°F (19°/5°C) | 72°/52°F (22°/11°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 81°/50°F (27°/10°C) | 82°/62°F (28°/17°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 45°/22°F (7°/-6°C) | 48°/31°F (9°/-1°C) |
View all months
| Month | Helena | Des Moines |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33°/13°F (0.7°/-10.6°C) | 31°/14°F (-0.6°/-9.8°C) |
| Feb | 39°/17°F (3.7°/-8.4°C) | 36°/19°F (2.3°/-7.3°C) |
| Mar | 48°/24°F (9.0°/-4.3°C) | 49°/30°F (9.4°/-1.3°C) |
| Apr | 58°/32°F (14.3°/0.1°C) | 62°/41°F (16.8°/5.1°C) |
| May | 67°/41°F (19.5°/4.9°C) | 72°/52°F (22.4°/11.2°C) |
| Jun | 76°/49°F (24.3°/9.2°C) | 82°/62°F (27.6°/16.7°C) |
| Jul | 86°/54°F (29.8°/12.4°C) | 86°/67°F (29.8°/19.3°C) |
| Aug | 85°/52°F (29.2°/11.2°C) | 84°/65°F (28.8°/18.2°C) |
| Sep | 73°/43°F (22.6°/6.2°C) | 76°/55°F (24.5°/12.9°C) |
| Oct | 59°/33°F (14.8°/0.3°C) | 63°/43°F (17.3°/6.1°C) |
| Nov | 43°/22°F (6.2°/-5.6°C) | 48°/31°F (8.8°/-0.8°C) |
| Dec | 32°/12°F (-0.2°/-11.2°C) | 34°/18°F (1.1°/-7.8°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Iowa than Montana?
Generally yes: Iowa runs about 16% cheaper than Montana on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Iowa?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $15,770 in Iowa for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Iowa safe?
Iowa performs significantly better than Montana across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Iowa compared to Montana?
Montana generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Iowa leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Iowa compared to Montana?
The average high temperature in Des Moines is 60°F, compared to 58°F in Helena. Des Moines receives around 36.0 in of rainfall per year, while Helena gets 11.2 in.
