Movers Ames
Movers in Ames, Iowa
Des Moines 30 mi north I-35 Story County
Local movers serving Ames — home of Iowa State University and the 9th-largest city in Iowa. From the historic Old Town district to Campustown and the newer subdivisions north of campus. Hourly pricing, real itemized quotes, same crew start to finish.
66,427
Residents (2020)
9th
Largest city in Iowa
30,177
ISU students (Fall 2023)
1869
Year incorporated
A college town that’s also a city in its own right
Ames sits about 30 miles north of Des Moines via Interstate 35. It’s the largest city in Story County (though the county seat is in nearby Nevada, 8 miles east of Ames) and the 9th-largest city in Iowa overall. The 2020 Census put the population at 66,427. Ames is its own metropolitan statistical area — not part of the Des Moines MSA — and forms the larger Ames-Boone combined statistical area together with neighboring Boone County.
The city motto is “Smart Choice.” The town was first established in 1865 as “College Farm” and renamed the following year for Oakes Ames, a Massachusetts legislator and railroad financier. More settlers arrived after the railroad came through in 1864, and the new Iowa Agricultural College (now Iowa State University) was located here, cementing the city’s identity from the start. Ames was formally incorporated as a city on December 20, 1869.
Iowa State University defines the city today. The university enrolled 30,177 students in fall 2023, which is approximately half of the city’s entire population. ISU is a public research institution with leading colleges in Agriculture, Design, Engineering, and Veterinary Medicine. The campus, athletics facilities, research labs, and cultural institutions are woven through the city — the unique ZIP codes 50011, 50012, and 50013 are reserved for ISU addresses alone. The city is also home to Ames National Laboratory, a federal U.S. Department of Energy research facility.
Ames is served by the Ames Community School District, which operates Ames High School and roughly twenty public and private schools across the city. The city is connected to the metro and beyond by Interstate 35, U.S. Route 30, and U.S. Route 69. CyRide, the local bus system, runs more than 2 million rides per year, mostly serving ISU.
Midwest Moving Pros now serves Ames as part of our expanded service area. We’re a family-owned local moving company based in Des Moines. The crew that loads in Ames is the crew that unloads at the new place. The price on the quote is the price on the invoice. No brokers, no consolidated shipments.
A city and a university, one place
Ames is unusual because the population of Iowa State University is roughly equal to half the population of the city itself. This shapes housing patterns, traffic, the academic calendar, and the rhythms of move days here.
The City
66,427
Residents (2020 Census)
Ames, Iowa
27.92 square miles, 9th largest city in Iowa. Incorporated December 20, 1869. Story County, central Iowa. Includes a wide range of neighborhoods, the Main Street Cultural District downtown, parks, and the Ada Hayden Heritage Park on the north side.
The University
30,177
ISU students (Fall 2023)
Iowa State University
Public research institution founded as the Iowa Agricultural College. Leading colleges in Agriculture, Design, Engineering, and Veterinary Medicine. ISU has its own ZIP codes (50011, 50012, 50013) reserved for university addresses. Cyclones athletics in the Big 12.
Campus and city anchors
Most of Ames’s landmarks reflect either ISU’s presence or the city’s long history. A handful define the place.
Jack Trice Stadium
Home of Iowa State Cyclones football. Opened September 20, 1975. Capacity 61,500 — the third-largest stadium in the Big 12 Conference.
Reiman Gardens
A 17-acre public garden owned by ISU, opened September 16, 1995. Year-round destination with 20+ distinct garden areas, an indoor conservatory, and an indoor butterfly wing.
Brunnier Art Museum
Iowa’s only accredited museum focused on decorative arts collection, housed in the Scheman Building on the ISU campus.
Main Street Cultural District
Downtown Ames — the historic commercial district with restaurants, bars, shops, and the Octagon Center for the Arts.
Ames National Laboratory
U.S. Department of Energy federal research lab on the ISU campus, focused on materials science.
Ada Hayden Heritage Park
A multi-use park on the north side of Ames with walking trails, a large lake, and natural prairie restoration.
Neighborhoods we move across in Ames
Ames has more named neighborhoods than any other city in our service area — the consequence of growing in distinct phases around the university. A handful of areas matter most for move planning.
Campustown
The high-density mixed-use neighborhood directly south of ISU’s central campus, bordered by Lincoln Way on the north. Mostly student apartments, restaurants, and nightlife venues. End-of-semester turnover (May and August) makes this the busiest moving area in the city.
Old Town Historic Preservation District
The original Ames downtown neighborhood, with the city’s oldest housing stock. Tighter doorways, narrow stairwells, original woodwork. The Main Street Cultural District is the nearby commercial heart of historic Ames.
Colonial Village
Ames’s first modern housing development, dating to 1939. Established post-Depression homes with mature trees and lasting community identity.
Northridge Heights & Northridge Parkway
Family-oriented residential neighborhoods on the north side of the city, near Ada Hayden Heritage Park. Newer construction with wider doorways and attached garages. A common destination for faculty families.
Somerset, Stone Brooke, Sunset Ridge
Established 1990s-2000s subdivisions on the west and north sides of the city. Two-story family homes, attached garages, finished basements. The bread-and-butter family moves of Ames.
South Gateway, South Fork & West Ames
Newer subdivisions on the south and west sides, with continued construction in recent years. Modern floor plans, attached two- and three-car garages, full basements. Loads faster than older Ames homes.
What moves look like in Ames
A few things about Ames specifically shape how the work runs.
The drive from Des Moines is real
Our trucks come from Des Moines, and the 30-mile drive to Ames via I-35 takes about 35 to 45 minutes each way. The hourly rate covers that — truck-on-road time counts the same as truck-on-job time. No trip charges, no distance surcharges. The total ends up higher than a metro-only move because the truck is on the clock longer, but the hourly rate stays the same.
Academic calendar drives move volume
With 30,000+ ISU students, the academic calendar shapes move demand. The two busiest windows are late August (move-in week) and early-to-mid May (move-out week). Campustown sees the most concentrated turnover, with student apartments coordinating leases on overlapping dates. Book ahead for these windows — we work fast but they fill up.
Game day Saturdays
Jack Trice Stadium holds 61,500 fans. On home football Saturdays in the fall, traffic on University Boulevard, S 16th Street, and the surrounding roads slows significantly. If your move falls on a home game day, send us the game time and we’ll plan the truck approach to avoid stadium traffic.
Older homes around Old Town and ISU
Homes around the Old Town Historic Preservation District and the streets directly adjacent to ISU’s central campus have some of the oldest construction in the city. Narrow stairwells, original woodwork, and pre-1939 doorways are common. We bring disassembly tools to every move.
Newer construction loads faster
The post-1990 subdivisions on the north, south, and west sides have wider doorways, attached garages, and modern floor plans — the standard advantages of newer construction. The truck loads efficiently and there’s less furniture disassembly required than in the older Old Town or Campustown homes.
What an Ames move costs
Our pricing is the same for Ames as for the rest of our service area. The longer drive from Des Moines adds time, but the hourly rate captures that — no trip charges or distance surcharges.
$160/hr
Hourly rate
Crew, truck, fuel, pads, dollies, basic moving insurance.
+$100
Heavy-item add
Only for items too heavy for the standard crew (large safes, pianos).
$50
Local deposit
Holds your move date. Applies to the final invoice.
$300
Long-distance deposit
For cross-country and out-of-state moves only.
Most Ames moves end up higher than metro-suburb totals because of the drive time, but the hourly rate doesn’t change. Your written quote after the walkthrough is more specific than this range.
Moving in or out of Ames?
Itemized written quote within 24 hours. Same crew start to finish. The price on the quote matches the price on the invoice.
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