$100k salary, packing up from Washington

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Seattle, WA cityscape

if you left washington

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

$867

under Washington, every month

Seattle runs on a fraction of Washington's budget. Same paycheck, real lifestyle upgrade.
landable, recorded on the seattle entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,193/mo

7% cheaper than Washington(vs $2,352/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$708/mo less in state tax than Washington

vs 8.5% in Washington

03after rent

$6,140/mo

$867 more than Washington

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

04a house here

$791k

26% more expensive than Washington

vs $626k in Washington

05metro size

4.0M

vs 6.3M in Washington

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

182

pleasant days a year, in seattle.

Washington only logs 177 pleasant days.

A month here packs 1.6× the events of Washington.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

93/100

7% higher than Washington

vs 87/100 in Washington

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

·walk score®

98/100

0% lower than Washington

vs 98/100 in Washington

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

90

44% fewer than Washington

vs 160 nonstops in Washington

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