01 · the cities
Allentown
Allentown is the heart of the Lehigh Valley, with old industrial bones turning into a quietly resilient mid-sized city. The Lehigh River runs past, the historic downtown has been steadily finding its footing with breweries and restaurants in the old buildings, and the surrounding farmland is gorgeous. It's an hour and change from both Philly and NYC. Cheaper than both, by a lot.
full dispatch→Spokane
Spokane is eastern Washington's anchor city, very different from Seattle: drier, sunnier, with the Spokane River tumbling through downtown in actual waterfalls. Riverfront Park (built for the 1974 World's Fair) is the city's living room. Bing Crosby was born here. Mt. Spokane and Coeur d'Alene Lake are nearby. The Bloomsday run every May draws around 40,000 people. Affordable and outdoorsy.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$1,809/mo
$1,520/mo
$289/mo less than Allentown (19%)
Median home price
Median home price
$359k
$420k
$61k more than Allentown
State income tax
State income tax
3.1%
0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$6,269/mo
$6,813/mo
Spokane has $544/mo more gross after rent at $100k
Gross left after rent reflects state income tax but not federal, based on $100k salary. Enter your salary to find your ideal city.
03 · the weather
Pleasant days/yr
Pleasant days/yr
157 days
164 days
7 more than Allentown
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
2 days
6 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
32 days
34 days
days below 20°F per year
Allentown and Spokane have remarkably similar weather profiles overall.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
73 / 100
81 / 100
8.0 pts ahead of Allentown
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
9 routes
10 routes
Metro size
Metro size
874k metro
600k metro
Allentown has 1.4x fewer events per month than Spokane.
the verdict
1
Allentown
categories won
5
Spokane
categories won
Spokane wins this comparison, leading on money and weather.
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