City comparison
Houston, TX is about 800 miles (1,300 km) from West Des Moines, IA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 1,000 miles, or about 17 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 Houston, TX to West Des Moines, IA takes about 1 h 38 min, covering roughly 800 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.
Houston has a population of 2,296,253, vs 68,744 in West Des Moines — about 33.4× larger by population. By land area, Houston covers about 640 sq mi vs 47 sq mi for West Des Moines.
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 | Houston | West Des Moines | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,235/mo | $1,153/mo | 7.1% higher in Houston |
| Median home value | $235,000 | $266,700 | 13.5% higher in West Des Moines |
| Median household income | $60,440 | $82,345 | 36.2% higher in West Des Moines |
| Groceries index | 100.4 | 94.0 | 6.8% higher in Houston |
| Utilities index | 96.3 | 85.2 | 13.0% higher in Houston |
| Transportation index | 95.8 | 93.3 | 2.6% higher in Houston |
| Healthcare index | 95.2 | 93.5 | 1.8% higher in Houston |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Houston, you'd need $89,365 in West Des Moines to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
West Des Moines, IA is about 10.6% cheaper overall than Houston, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 22% higher in Houston than in West Des Moines. If you earn $80,000 in Houston, you'd need about $71,492 in West Des Moines to keep the same standard of living.