City comparison
Alexandria, VA is about 2,300 miles (3,700 km) from Federal Way, WA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 2,900 miles, or about 48 hours (about 5 days at 10 h/day) behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Alexandria, VA to Federal Way, WA takes about 4 h 39 min, covering roughly 2,300 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Alexandria, VA is on Eastern Time and Federal Way, WA is on Pacific Time — a 3-hour difference. When it's noon in Alexandria, it's 9 a.m. in Federal Way, which puts Alexandria 3 hours ahead.
Standard-time offsets. Daylight saving applies in both cities for most of the year (exceptions: Hawaii and most of Arizona), and the gap between the two stays the same.
Alexandria has a population of 157,594, vs 99,614 in Federal Way — about 1.6× larger by population. By land area, Federal Way covers about 22 sq mi vs 15 sq mi for Alexandria.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Alexandria | Federal Way | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,983/mo | $1,660/mo | 19.5% higher in Alexandria |
| Median home value | $655,700 | $454,300 | 44.3% higher in Alexandria |
| Median household income | $113,179 | $80,360 | 40.8% higher in Alexandria |
| Groceries index | 104.6 | 104.0 | 0.6% higher in Alexandria |
| Utilities index | 105.0 | 95.7 | 9.7% higher in Alexandria |
| Transportation index | 101.2 | 106.6 | 5.4% higher in Federal Way |
| Healthcare index | 101.5 | 106.6 | 5.1% higher in Federal Way |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Alexandria, you'd need $99,903 in Federal Way to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Alexandria and Federal Way have nearly identical overall cost-of-living indices. Housing costs are roughly 1% higher in Alexandria than in Federal Way. If you earn $80,000 in Alexandria, you'd need about $79,922 in Federal Way to keep the same standard of living.