Population
Ames
66,112
Harrisonburg
51,492
Median Income
Ames
$60,102
Harrisonburg
$59,752
Home Value
Ames
$263,800
Harrisonburg
$278,200
Rent
Ames
$1,040
Harrisonburg
$1,120
Crime Rate
Ames
1.48
Harrisonburg
2.67
Cost of Living
Ames
104.8
Harrisonburg
104.6
Avg Temp
Ames
N/A
Harrisonburg
N/A
Unemployment
Ames
6.4%
Harrisonburg
7.1%
How Similar Are Ames & Harrisonburg?
Harrisonburg is Ames's #18 most similar city
4 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Ames
66,112
Harrisonburg
51,492
Ames has a 22% larger population than Harrisonburg.
Violent Crime
Ames
1.48
Harrisonburg
2.67
Harrisonburg has a 45% higher violent crime than Ames.
Property Crime
Ames
15.06
Harrisonburg
16.93
Harrisonburg has a 11% higher property crime than Ames.
Political Leaning
Ames
44.0%
Harrisonburg
36.3%
Both cities lean Democratic, but Ames has a stronger Democratic lean (17% difference).
Unemployment
Ames
6.4%
Harrisonburg
7.1%
Both cities have similar unemployment — just a 10% difference.
Median Income
Ames
$60,102
Harrisonburg
$59,752
Both cities have similar median income — just a 1% difference.
Home Values
Ames
$263,800
Harrisonburg
$278,200
Both cities have similar home values — just a 5% difference.
Education
Ames
29.0%
Harrisonburg
18.7%
Ames has a 36% higher education than Harrisonburg.
Demographics
Ames
79.0%
Harrisonburg
66.5%
Ames has a 16% higher demographics than Harrisonburg.
Cost of Living
Ames
104.8
Harrisonburg
104.6
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 0% difference.
4 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Ames and Harrisonburg share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Ames
0
Harrisonburg
Ames leads in 5 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Ames leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDAmes has a fair market rent (2br) of $1,153 vs $1,322 in Harrisonburg (13% lower). Ames scores 75.1 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 78.7 in Harrisonburg. Ames has a fair market rent (1br) of $1,026 vs $1,057 in Harrisonburg.
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market — Harrisonburg leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSHarrisonburg has a median property tax of $2,172 vs $3,838 in Ames (77% lower). Harrisonburg has a single-family homes of 60.0% compared to 46.6% in Ames. Harrisonburg has a vacancy rate of 7.1% compared to 8.2% in Ames.
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Ames leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSAmes: 38,289 vs Harrisonburg: 26,774 for labor force. Ames has a work from home of 11.3% compared to 8.6% in Harrisonburg. Ames has a per capita income of $33,314 vs $27,957 in Harrisonburg (19% higher).
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Ames leads
Source: FBI UCRAmes has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.08 compared to 0.21 in Harrisonburg. Ames has a assault rate (per 1k) of 0.70 compared to 1.89 in Harrisonburg. Harrisonburg has a violent crime clearance of 73.7% compared to 32.0% in Ames.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education — Ames leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauAmes has a bachelor's degree or higher of 29.0% compared to 18.7% in Harrisonburg. Ames has a high school diploma or higher of 34.2% compared to 30.5% in Harrisonburg.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSAmes has a population of 66,112, about 1.3x the size of Harrisonburg (51,492). Ames skews younger with a median age of 23.3 vs 25.4.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Ames
Harrisonburg
Healthcare — Harrisonburg leads
Source: CMS Hospital CompareHarrisonburg: 4.3 vs Ames: 4.0 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Ames leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSAmes has a public transit of 5.8% compared to 1.3% in Harrisonburg. Ames has a work from home of 11.3% compared to 8.6% in Harrisonburg. Harrisonburg has a bicycle of 1.9% compared to 1.6% in Ames.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Ames, IA
Compare Ames against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.