$100k salary, packing up from Charleston

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Seattle, WA cityscape

if you left charleston

Seattle

wa · metro 4.0M

photo: Thom Milkovic / unsplash

a dispatch from

seattle

WA

47.61°N

122.33°W

Seattle is coffee snobs, ferries crossing the sound, mountains in two directions, and misty mornings that make the espresso taste better. Pike Place still throws fish, the salmon is genuinely better here, and the Cascades sit right outside your window like a movie backdrop. The hippie greenmarket soul still runs through everything the tech money has built. Bring layers.

metro4.0M

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$335

less monthly outlay than Charleston

The gap is real. Seattle costs noticeably less than Charleston, every month.
landable, recorded on the seattle entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,193/mo

10% more expensive than Charleston(vs $1,987/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$542/mo less in state tax than Charleston

vs 6.5% in Charleston

03after rent

$6,140/mo

$335 more than Charleston

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

04a house here

$791k

83% more expensive than Charleston

vs $432k in Charleston

05metro size

4.0M

vs 849k in Charleston

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

182

pleasant days a year, in seattle.

Charleston edges ahead with 212 pleasant days.

A month here packs 6.2× the events of Charleston.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

93/100

39% higher than Charleston

vs 67/100 in Charleston

Closest outdoor draw: Mount Rainier National Park, 59.8 mi.

·walk score®

98/100

7% higher than Charleston

vs 92/100 in Charleston

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

90

350% more than Charleston

vs 20 nonstops in Charleston

04 · see also

in the same ballpark as seattle:

see also

portland

similar overall lifestyle

turn the page

see also

trenton

more flight options

turn the page

see also

salt lake city

$198/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare seattle with:

PortlandTrentonSalt Lake City