Is Grimes a good place to live? An honest local take.

What is Grimes like, by the numbers?

Grimes is young, fast-growing, and well-off. Here is the town in ten numbers.

Population and housing units are from the City of Grimes 2025 special census. Everything else is from the Census Bureau's 2020 to 2024 American Community Survey, which is a sample with margins of error.

What does Grimes have going for it?

• Rankings: Niche places Grimes among the top suburbs and family destinations in Iowa and the Des Moines area.
• Schools: the well-regarded Dallas Center-Grimes district.
• Growth and newness: new housing, retail, and amenities (see the growth story). The city expects the higher special-census count to bring about $1.75 million more over four years for snow removal, infrastructure, and roads.
• Commute: about 25 minutes to downtown Des Moines in light traffic, and the Census puts the average one-way commute at under 20 minutes.
• Higher incomes and high homeownership (see cost of living).
• Parks: the city's parks pages list more than a dozen parks and facilities, including Beaverbrooke, Glenstone, Heritage, Lions, and Wallace parks, the Waterworks Park splash pad, a skate park, North and South sports complexes, and the Hy-Vee Multiplex.

What are the downsides of living in Grimes?

You need a car, parts of town are still a construction zone, and the county and school lines take some homework.

• Car-dependent. There is no city bus; DART left in June 2025 (see our transit page). In the 2020 to 2024 survey, about 65% of Grimes workers drove alone, 11% carpooled, 22% worked from home, and the public transit estimate was zero. HIRTA on-demand rides run on weekdays only.
• Still under construction. The city's project list includes a new City Hall, the Highway 44 project, intersection work at E Gateway Dr and 1st St, and a long list of plats and site plans, so expect road work and the rooftops-first feel that comes with it.
• Two counties, three school districts. Most of Grimes is in Polk County and the west side is in Dallas County, and city addresses fall in Dallas Center-Grimes, Johnston, or Urbandale schools. For fiscal 2027, a DCG-district home pays a combined $39.79 per $1,000 of taxable value on the Polk side and $34.81 on the Dallas side. See neighborhoods.
• Fewer options for older residents. There is one senior campus in town (see senior living).
• A small rental market. About 71% of households own (see apartments).

Whether the building boom reads as exciting or unfinished is a matter of taste.

Who is Grimes a good fit for?

We think Grimes fits families who want DCG schools and a newer house, commuters headed downtown or to the west and northwest metro, and people who do not mind driving for most errands. If you want walkable streets, a bus line, or a big rental market, look at the older, closer-in parts of the metro instead.

Living in Grimes: FAQ

Is Grimes, Iowa a good place to live?

Grimes rates well on national ranking sites, which place it among the better suburbs and family destinations in Iowa and the Des Moines area, thanks to its schools, safety, and growth. The main tradeoffs are that it is car-dependent and still building out.

Why is Grimes growing so fast?

Grimes offers the Dallas Center-Grimes schools, new housing, a roughly 25-minute drive to downtown Des Moines, higher incomes, and high homeownership. The city's 2025 special census counted 17,809 residents, up 15.7% from 2020.

What is the population of Grimes, Iowa?

17,809, according to the city's 2025 special census, up 15.7% from 15,392 in the 2020 Census. The count found 7,578 housing units, up from 5,708.

What are the downsides of living in Grimes?

You need a car (DART service ended in June 2025 and there is no fixed-route bus), much of the city is still under construction, and the Polk and Dallas county line and school district boundaries mean taxes and school assignment vary by address.