A+
Overall Niche Grade
How are grades calculated?
  1. Public Schools
    A
  2. Crime & Safety
    B
  3. Housing
    A
  4. Nightlife
    B+
  5. Good for Families
    A+
  6. Diversity
    B-
  7. Jobs
    A
  8. Weather
    B-
  9. Cost of Living
    B+
  10. Health & Fitness
    B+
  11. Outdoor Activities
    B
  12. Commute
    A-
View Full Report Card
Population
51,489

Real Estate

Median Home Value
$175,700
National
$178,600
Median Rent
$837
National
$928
Area Feel
Suburban
Rent vs. Own
  • Rent
    27%
  • Own
    73%

Ankeny Rankings

Niche ranks thousands of places to live based on key statistics from the U.S. Census and and expert insights.

Crime & Safety

Crime & Safety
B
Based on violent and property crime rates.
Violent Crimes
  • Calculated annually per 100,000 residents
National
  • Assault
    188
    0
  • Murder
    0
    0
  • Rape
    30
    41
  • Robbery
    4
    0
Property Crimes
  • Calculated annually per 100,000 residents
National
  • Burglary
    361
    1
  • Theft
    752
    2,081
  • Motor Vehicle Theft
    77
    0

Residents

Diversity
B-
Based on ethnic and economic diversity.
Median Household Income
$75,465
National
$53,889
Children
24%
Education Levels
National
  • Master's degree or higher
    12%
    11%
  • Bachelor's degree
    33%
    19%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    34%
    29%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    18%
    28%
  • Less than high school diploma
    3%
    13%
  • Public Schools
  • Private Schools
  • Colleges

Ankeny Reviews

103 reviews
All Categories
Ankeny is a growing city - everything new and updated in most of the town. It is a fun place to live with shopping, great housing options for all income types, and great dining. There are many job opportunities and ways to better yourself through city educational programs, emphasis on physical wellness, and great people!
Review Ankeny
Ankeny overall is a great town! I moved to Ankeny, IA from Berwyn, IL which is a town about fifteen minutes from Chicago. Berwyn is not the best town, it's home for a lot of ethnic and racial minorities and the education system was decent. The elementary school were proficient and had good success with student learning however going into the middle school and high school level, it started to decline. The high school there had been suffering with overall student achievement for a while.I have not been to Berwyn in two years, so I cannot speak for it now, but I speak for the fifteen or so years I was there. Moving to Ankeny was a big change for me, it's a small town which is rapidly growing and just in the two years I've been here they've expanded a whole lot! There is a new high school, Ankeny Centennial High School, which was built the just before I moved and another high school, Ankeny High School, that was built three years before that one. The education is excellent and they have provided the learning resources for their students to excel. With that being said, this has caused many new families to move into the area, as the education system is one of the best in Iowa. Many new homes and shops are being built to match up to the incoming population. Ankeny, overall, is a great town for new families or couples looking to raise a family. The town is very welcoming and family oriented and all round a great place to live!
I go to school at DMACC in Ankeny and it has been the perfect college town! There is a plethora of food options and shopping near campus. As a suburb of Des Moines, you get the on so experience the safety of a small town while having the opportunities of a large city. Though the commute to the heart of Des Moines is longer than I was used to, having grown up in Cedar Rapids, the vibrant life of the city is within reach.