Residents of Ames may be biased when it comes to comparing the town to others across the United States. Citizens as well as Students and Staff at Iowa State University certainly believe that the campus and environment is the best. 

Freshman Business Marketing Major, Ally Becker, is originally from small town Highland, Illinois. She chose Iowa State because of the amazing atmosphere of the community in Ames. 

“The first week I started living [in Ames] I was already referring to it as my home,” Becker said, “I came to school here on a whim, and now I can see myself living here for the rest of my life.” 

Though Ally is just one student, many others feel the same way. 

That being said, it does not come to a surprise that Ames was recently ranked number two on Livability’s “10 Best College Towns.” 

Mayor of Ames, Ann Campbell says she is thrilled that Ames received the number two ranking by Livability.

Campbell attributed this ranking to the numerous amenities in Ames that serve both students at Iowa State as well as lifelong residents. For example, the Cyride not only helps students arrive to classes on time, but also is a ride that citizens of Ames can utilize each day.

“I think that Iowa State brings a diverse student group because of its specialties. We have people from small towns and farms, big cities and also a significant international population of students,” Campbell stated.

Though Ames is considered the second best college town in the nation by one organization, there is a question of how accurate this list is compared to different rankings of similar names.

For example, Forbes comes out with their own list of “The Best College Towns in the U.S.” each year and on their most recent, Ames did not make the cut. This can be misleading, however, because Forbes uses the rankings of a different site, WalletHub, to create their top ten list. On Wallet Hub’s list, Ames was ranked 14th out of 415 college towns.

College Values Online ranks Ames as 26 on their “50 Best Small College Towns in America.” Another list, “The 50 Best College Towns to Live in Forever,” by College Ranker has Ames at a solid number five slot.

Each of these sites uses different methodologies when coming up with their lists. Livability’s ranking criteria includes salaries of citizens, job opportunities, as well as population of those ages 20-29 and number of jobs in the education sector.  

Forbes or WalletHub takes into account the finances of citizens, social environment, and academic and economic opportunities.

College Ranker looks at community and neighborhood environments as well as the performance of the town’s schools.

The criteria for College Values Online includes cost of living, unemployment rate, crime rate, and any unique or outstanding features of the town.

Though each report had a different set of criteria, they were very similar. In the end, it is difficult to compare each list and determine which is the most accurate and valid.

 Although the town is ranked differently on each site, one thing that every one can agree on is that Ames is one of the best college towns in the nation.