---
title: West Des Moines, Iowa
description: 'The quiet humor of West Des Moines, a town that neighbors Des Moines, manifests in the names of stores in its shopping district: Atomic Garage…'
authors:
  - name: christinelim
    url: https://money.com/author/christinelim/
    at_money_since: 2015
    former_staff: true
published: '2018-08-29T20:00:03.000Z'
modified: '2024-01-24T04:10:00.000Z'
tags:
  - Best Places to Live
  - Best Places to Live 2018
canonical: https://money.com/collection-post/west-des-moines-iowa-2/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
---

> **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/).

![West Des Moines, Iowa](https://img.money.com/2018/08/best-places-to-live-2018-37-west-des-moines-iowa.jpg)

The quiet humor of West Des Moines, a town that neighbors Des Moines, manifests in the names of stores in its shopping district: Atomic Garage (antiques), Let Them Eat Cake (baked goods), Whatta Dish (pottery), and Squiggles (gifts).

That shopping district, known as [Valley Junction](https://www.valleyjunction.com/), hosts a weekly farmer’s market as well as an annual chili festival and an Antique Jamboree, among other celebrations of flavor both literal and otherwise.

But don’t take West Des Moines for a groovy backwater. Wells Fargo has a corporate office in town, as does Hy-Vee, a chain of nearly 250 supermarkets spread across eight states. Unemployment is low, as are home prices, and the [school district](https://www.niche.com/k12/d/west-des-moines-community-school-district-ia/) ranks among the best in Iowa; West Des Moines graduates almost 95% of its students. Just be sure to have toothbrushes at the ready if, after school, the kids say they’re headed to Nan’s Nummies (sweets). — *Max Zahn*

<!-- omitted unsupported block: interactive -->

[**Find homes in West Des Moines, Iowa on**](https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/West-Des-Moines_IA/?cid=dsp_moneyBPL18_cons_Time_Money_rankings_textlink_srp)

![](https://img.money.com/2017/08/realtorlogofinal.png?w=300)

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "WebSite",
      "@id": "https://money.com/#website",
      "url": "https://money.com",
      "name": "Money",
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#organization"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://money.com/collection-post/west-des-moines-iowa-2/#webpage",
      "url": "https://money.com/collection-post/west-des-moines-iowa-2/",
      "name": "West Des Moines, Iowa",
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#website"
      },
      "datePublished": "2018-08-29T20:00:03.000Z",
      "mainEntity": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/collection-post/west-des-moines-iowa-2/"
      },
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "dateModified": "2024-01-24T04:10:00.000Z"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Article",
      "headline": "West Des Moines, Iowa",
      "articleSection": "",
      "image": [
        {
          "@type": "ImageObject",
          "url": "https://img.money.com/2018/08/best-places-to-live-2018-37-west-des-moines-iowa.jpg",
          "width": 2400,
          "height": 1600,
          "caption": "best-places-to-live-2018-37-west-des-moines-iowa"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ImageObject",
          "url": "https://img.money.com/2017/08/realtorlogofinal.png?w=300",
          "width": 90,
          "height": ""
        }
      ],
      "author": [
        {
          "@type": "Person",
          "name": "christinelim",
          "url": "https://money.com/author/christinelim/",
          "@id": "https://money.com/author/christinelim/#author"
        }
      ],
      "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization",
      "datePublished": "2018-08-29T20:00:03.000Z",
      "description": "The quiet humor of West Des Moines, a town that neighbors Des Moines, manifests in the names of stores in its shopping district: Atomic Garage&hellip;",
      "abstract": "The quiet humor of West Des Moines, a town that neighbors Des Moines, manifests in the names of stores in its shopping district: Atomic Garage&hellip;",
      "@id": "https://money.com/collection-post/west-des-moines-iowa-2/",
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "dateModified": "2024-01-24T04:10:00.000Z",
      "keywords": [
        "Best Places to Live",
        "Best Places to Live 2018"
      ]
    }
  ]
}
```