Route comparison
Des Moines, IA vs Madison, WI: Cost of Living
Compare Des Moines, IA and Madison, WI using historical BEA 2024 price indexes and HUD FY2027 2-bedroom FMR benchmarks. Add your own salary, lease and moving quote to a budget summary.
Des Moines, IA
IA
- 2024 overall RPP (US=100)
- 91.701
- 2024 housing-rent RPP
- 84.741
- 2024 goods RPP
- 93.73
- HUD FY2027 2-BR FMR
- $1,360/mo
City name is shorthand for an area benchmark. This September 2026 review did not recheck this area's full BEA/HUD geographic mapping.
Income tax and payroll deductions are not calculated. Confirm take-home pay for your work and home addresses separately.
Madison, WI
WI
- 2024 overall RPP (US=100)
- 97.287
- 2024 housing-rent RPP
- 99.748
- 2024 goods RPP
- 93.787
- HUD FY2027 2-BR FMR
- $1,565/mo
City name is shorthand for an area benchmark. This September 2026 review did not recheck this area's full BEA/HUD geographic mapping.
Income tax and payroll deductions are not calculated. Confirm take-home pay for your work and home addresses separately.
Historical RPP salary illustration
In the BEA 2024 benchmark, Madison, WI has a higher overall price level than Des Moines, IA by about 6.1% (RPP 91.701 to 97.287).
$60,000 in Des Moines, IA
-> $63,655
in Madison, WI
$100,000 in Des Moines, IA
-> $106,092
in Madison, WI
$150,000 in Des Moines, IA
-> $159,137
in Madison, WI
Salary illustrations use BEA 2024 overall Regional Price Parities (RPP) only, before tax and household-specific adjustments. Overall RPP already includes housing. HUD FY2027 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent is a separate historical gross-rent benchmark, not a current lease or median rent. Do not add rent to the RPP salary figure. Your lease and moving quote belong in a separate budget. Not financial advice.
Step 2: what will the move itself cost?
Put your actual lease, deposit, overlap rent and mover quote beside the historical salary illustration. Leave amounts you do not yet know blank.
Migration signal: Des Moines, IA vs Madison, WI
IRS tax-return migration · 2022-2023Des Moines, IA
- Net people
- +2,250
- Net rank
- #24 of 65
- Top origin share
- 14%
- Top destination share
- 14%
Largest source: Story County, IA. Largest destination: Story County, IA.
Madison, WI
- Net people
- +455
- Net rank
- #32 of 65
- Top origin share
- 7%
- Top destination share
- 9%
Largest source: Rock County, WI. Largest destination: Rock County, WI.
Rent delta: Madison, WI is $205/mo higher for HUD FY2027 2-BR FMR than Des Moines, IA. Housing RPP moves from 84.741 to 99.748.
Migration figures are derived from IRS SOI county-to-county migration data for 2022-2023, mapped to metros via Census CBSA delineation. Small county-to-county flows are IRS-suppressed, so per-metro totals are lower bounds. Source: IRS SOI migration data.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Madison, WI cheaper or more expensive than Des Moines, IA?
- In the BEA 2024 benchmark, Madison, WI (RPP 97.287) has an overall price level about 6.1% higher than Des Moines, IA (RPP 91.701). This does not measure your current household costs.
- What salary do I need in Madison, WI if I earn $100,000 in Des Moines, IA?
- The historical RPP illustration is approximately $106,092 in Madison, WI, using $100,000 x (97.287 / 91.701). It uses BEA 2024 overall price indexes before tax and household adjustments; HUD rent is not added to this figure.
- Which metro had stronger net migration, Des Moines, IA or Madison, WI?
- For 2022-2023, Des Moines, IA had a net gain of 2,250 people, while Madison, WI had a net gain of 455 people. IRS small-flow suppression means these are lower-bound research signals, not complete population-change totals.