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Ames scored a nice victory last week by ranking No. 53 on Money magazine’s list of America’s best small cities to live in; unfortunately, Des Moines and its suburbs weren’t able to crack the top 100.

Greater Des Moines has been spoiled lately, with frequent praise from rankings such as this one. When we don’t win, we want to know why. Money’s overall database included figures for Des Moines, Ankeny, Urbandale and West Des Moines, so let’s see how they compare with one another and with Ames.

The median family income in Ames is $70,482; that’s well above the $59,724 figure for Des Moines but well below Urbandale’s $90,539.

Ames’ median home price is $148,000. The comparable number in Des Moines is $105,000 (a surprisingly low amount), and in Urbandale it’s $187,250.

In the education category, Ames stands 20.4 percent above the state average in reading test scores and 8.1 percent above the average in math. The disappointing comparison here is that Des Moines ranks about 13 percent below the state average on both measures. The suburbs are strong, with double-digit positives all down the line.

Ames’ quality of life results look like those of the suburbs; all of them easily beat Des Moines when it comes to personal crime and property crime.

Ames residents suffer less from diabetes and hypertension than Greater Des Moines residents. And the people of Ames show up as younger, better educated, less likely to be married and less likely to be divorced in comparison with its four nearby competitors.

Choosing a place in which to live goes beyond any of these factors, of course. A small city with a large university has unique advantages that add a lot to the quality of life, all within a short drive or walk.

However, a more urban area has an overwhelming advantage if you’re interested in a variety of restaurants, shopping and movie theaters. It just takes more time to get around.