$100k salary, packing up from Reno

change
Denver, CO cityscape

if you left reno

Denver

co · metro 3.0M

photo: Noel Aph / pexels

a dispatch from

denver

CO

39.74°N

104.98°W

Denver is a mile above sea level, an hour from a dozen ski resorts, and surrounded by mountains that make every west-facing window feel like a vacation. The air is dry, the sun shows up roughly 300 days a year, and craft beer is taken seriously enough to have its own annual pilgrimage (the Great American Beer Festival). Green chile is a hill people will die on. The patio season is essentially eternal.

metro3.0M

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$321

the monthly cost of moving past Reno

Denver costs meaningfully more. Whether it earns that back in the day-to-day is the actual question.
landable, recorded on the denver entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,863/mo

2% cheaper than Reno(vs $1,908/mo)

02state income tax

4.4%

$367/mo more in state tax than Reno

vs 0% in Reno

03after rent

$6,104/mo

$321 less than Reno

gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.

04a house here

$599k

4% more expensive than Reno

vs $574k in Reno

05metro size

3.0M

vs 565k in Reno

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

174

pleasant days a year, in denver.

Reno actually gets more: 201 pleasant days a year. The trade is winter: 66 days below 20°, vs 28 in Reno.

A month here packs 4.4× the events of Reno.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

85/100

20% higher than Reno

vs 71/100 in Reno

Closest outdoor draw: Rocky Mountain National Park, 47.3 mi.

·walk score®

97/100

2% higher than Reno

vs 95/100 in Reno

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

169

1200% more than Reno

vs 13 nonstops in Reno

04 · see also

neighbors of denver on the map of tradeoffs:

see also

boulder

better weather

turn the page

see also

las vegas

$498/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

washington

better weather

turn the page

compare denver with:

BoulderLas VegasWashington