Moving to Iowa from New Mexico
If you moved from New Mexico to Iowa, you would find that Iowa is 11.2% cheaper than New Mexico. A $75,000 salary in New Mexico would need to be roughly $66,600 in Iowa to maintain the same lifestyle. Albuquerque and Des Moines are about 840 mi apart.
Is Iowa cheaper than New Mexico?
The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 4.3% more
Groceries
pay 11.5% less
Transportation
pay 6.5% more
Housing
pay 25.6% less
Childcare
pay 10.0% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 0.2% 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 Iowa?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $66,600
To maintain the same standard of living in Iowa
Calculate with your salary →Key Indicator Comparison
How New Mexico 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 New Mexico 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
New Mexico 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 New Mexico across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Iowa performs significantly better than New Mexico 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 New Mexico 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
New Mexico generally does better on family life, though Iowa leads in life expectancy.
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 Iowa vs New Mexico
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Albuquerque | Des Moines |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 53°/31°F (12°/-1°C) | 39°/21°F (4°/-6°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 79°/53°F (26°/11°C) | 72°/52°F (22°/11°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/63°F (30°/17°C) | 82°/62°F (28°/17°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 57°/35°F (14°/2°C) | 48°/31°F (9°/-1°C) |
View all months
| Month | Albuquerque | Des Moines |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47°/26°F (8.2°/-3.3°C) | 31°/14°F (-0.6°/-9.8°C) |
| Feb | 53°/30°F (11.4°/-0.9°C) | 36°/19°F (2.3°/-7.3°C) |
| Mar | 60°/36°F (15.8°/2.1°C) | 49°/30°F (9.4°/-1.3°C) |
| Apr | 69°/43°F (20.6°/6.1°C) | 62°/41°F (16.8°/5.1°C) |
| May | 79°/53°F (26.0°/11.4°C) | 72°/52°F (22.4°/11.2°C) |
| Jun | 88°/62°F (31.3°/16.4°C) | 82°/62°F (27.6°/16.7°C) |
| Jul | 90°/66°F (32.3°/19.1°C) | 86°/67°F (29.8°/19.3°C) |
| Aug | 87°/65°F (30.7°/18.4°C) | 84°/65°F (28.8°/18.2°C) |
| Sep | 81°/58°F (27.1°/14.4°C) | 76°/55°F (24.5°/12.9°C) |
| Oct | 69°/46°F (20.6°/7.8°C) | 63°/43°F (17.3°/6.1°C) |
| Nov | 56°/34°F (13.2°/1.2°C) | 48°/31°F (8.8°/-0.8°C) |
| Dec | 46°/26°F (7.8°/-3.1°C) | 34°/18°F (1.1°/-7.8°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Iowa than New Mexico?
Generally yes: Iowa runs about 11% cheaper than New Mexico 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 $16,650 in Iowa for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Iowa safe?
Iowa performs significantly better than New Mexico across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Iowa compared to New Mexico?
New Mexico generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Iowa leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Iowa compared to New Mexico?
The average high temperature in Des Moines is 60°F, compared to 69°F in Albuquerque. Des Moines receives around 36.0 in of rainfall per year, while Albuquerque gets 9.4 in.
