City comparison
Ames, IA is about 650 miles (1,100 km) from Dallas, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 850 miles, or about 14 hours behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Ames, IA to Dallas, TX takes about 1 h 19 min, covering roughly 650 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Dallas has a population of 1,300,642, vs 66,265 in Ames — about 19.6× larger by population. By land area, Dallas covers about 340 sq mi vs 28 sq mi for Ames.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Ames | Dallas | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,011/mo | $1,305/mo | 29.1% higher in Dallas |
| Median home value | $247,500 | $270,700 | 9.4% higher in Dallas |
| Median household income | $57,428 | $63,985 | 11.4% higher in Dallas |
| Groceries index | 94.0 | 101.7 | 8.3% higher in Dallas |
| Utilities index | 83.8 | 89.3 | 6.5% higher in Dallas |
| Transportation index | 93.3 | 98.5 | 5.6% higher in Dallas |
| Healthcare index | 93.5 | 99.7 | 6.6% higher in Dallas |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Ames, you'd need $128,033 in Dallas to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Ames, IA is about 21.9% cheaper overall than Dallas, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 66% higher in Dallas than in Ames. If you earn $80,000 in Ames, you'd need about $102,426 in Dallas to keep the same standard of living.