Iowa City, IA vs West Des Moines, IA
Side-by-side fiscal comparison · U.S. Census Bureau data (2023)
Summary
Iowa City spends 11.3% more per capita than West Des Moines ($1,670/person difference). Iowa City, IA has the stronger Fiscal Health Score (C, 62/100).
Fiscal Health Score
C
62/100
Budget Balance2
Debt Burden100
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency73
Revenue Diversity100
Trend Direction50
C
53/100
Budget Balance51
Debt Burden0
Pension Funding76
Spending Efficiency84
Revenue Diversity71
Trend Direction50
Key Metrics
Metric
Iowa City
West Des Moines
Total Spending
$1.2B
$1.0B
Spending / Capita
$16,449
$14,779
Total Revenue
$751.1M
$2.4B
Revenue / Capita
$10,031
$35,361
Total Debt
$13.7M
$140.9M
Debt / Capita
$183
$2,050
Population
74,878
68,744
Gov Employees / 10K
0.0
0.0
Avg Gov Salary
$0
$0
Per Capita Spending by Department
Fire Protection
Iowa City$461
West Des Moines$240
Highways & Roads
Iowa City$112
West Des Moines$49
Parks & Recreation
Iowa City$1,165
West Des Moines$1,257
Education
Iowa City$57
West Des Moines$3
Health
Iowa City$965
West Des Moines$615
Revenue Breakdown (Per Capita)
Iowa CityWest Des Moines
| Property Tax | $14 | $24 |
| Sales Tax | $833 | $677 |
| Income Tax | $1,549 | $355 |
| Intergovernmental | $1,216 | $16,920 |
| Charges & Fees | $1,499 | $2,669 |
| Other | $2,188 | $3,239 |
Spending Breakdown (Per Capita)
Iowa CityWest Des Moines
| Fire Protection | $461 | $240 |
| Highways & Roads | $112 | $49 |
| Education | $57 | $3 |
| Public Welfare | $1,285 | $1,500 |
| Health | $965 | $615 |
| Hospitals | $2,408 | $290 |
| Parks & Recreation | $1,165 | $1,257 |
| Housing | $1,963 | $2,213 |
| Sewerage | $270 | $194 |
| Utilities | $2,351 | $669 |
| Interest on Debt | $1,144 | $0 |
| Other | $4,268 | $7,750 |
C
Iowa City, IA
Fiscal Health Score: 62/100
Average fiscal health
C
West Des Moines, IA
Fiscal Health Score: 53/100
Average fiscal health