Cost of Living
per year
per month
How Burien's prices compare to the US city average across major spending categories.
How far does your salary go in Burien?
Your $100,000 in Burien has the same purchasing power as $81,103 in the average US city. You'd need $18,897 more here to maintain that standard of living.
Demographics and workforce data from the US Census ACS 5-Year.
bachelor's or higher
Climate, safety, and walkability indicators.
See a side-by-side breakdown of cost of living, housing, and salaries.
Popular comparisons
Sorted by affordability — most affordable first.
Within 10 points of Burien's cost index of 123, sorted by closest match.
Wondering whether you should move to Burien? It depends on what you're optimizing for, but the city has real arguments in its favor: washington doesn't tax your paycheck and solidly above-average earnings, plus 2 more things worth knowing. The data behind each is below.
Living in Burien means no state income tax on your salary — Washington is one of nine states that simply doesn't have one. On a $100k income that's typically thousands of dollars a year that stay in your account instead of going to a state revenue department. (Washington taxes some long-term capital gains over a high threshold, but ordinary wages and salaries are not taxed.)
Median household income in Burien is $84,583, a step above the national median of about $75k. The local job market leans toward industries that pay better than average, and that shows up in the take-home for most working households here.
Burien earns a Walk Score of 78/100 — above the US median, with denser neighborhoods scoring higher than the citywide aggregate suggests. A car is still useful for longer trips, but everyday life works on foot for a lot of residents. Transit Score comes in at 54/100 too, so even the trips that are too far to walk are usually doable on a bus or train.
Burien's Bike Score is 64/100 — the kind of number you only get when a city has built real bike infrastructure (protected lanes, connected routes, drivers who expect cyclists). For commuting or just for getting around, the bike is a serious option here, not a hobby.
Reasons are pulled from Burien's actual data — Census ACS, BLS, BEA, NOAA, EPA AQS, FBI, and Walk Score. We don't list positives that aren't supported by the numbers, which is why different cities show different sections.
Now and then. Burien's winters are cool rather than truly cold — about 38°F on average — so most of the precipitation falls as rain. A snowy morning happens a few times a season; sustained accumulation is rare.
Mild on the cold side. Burien's winter average of about 38°F is the kind of weather where you want a jacket but the heating bill is manageable. Snow is rare, frost is occasional, and the lawn never really browns out.
Pleasantly warm. Burien's summer averages around 75°F — comfortable for outdoor evenings, hot enough on peak days to warrant AC but mild compared to the Sun Belt.
Burien falls in roughly USDA Zone 9. The zone classification is based on average annual minimum temperatures, so it's the right lookup for whether perennials and trees will overwinter here. Note that this is approximate from our winter-temperature data — check the USDA map for the exact zone before betting an expensive plant on it.
Burien sits at about 390 feet (119 m) above sea level — low-lying, but with enough cushion that day-to-day life isn't affected by ocean levels.
Higher than average. Burien reports about 4,671 incidents per 100,000 residents, above the US average of around 3,500. Citywide numbers are often dragged up by a few hotspots; specific neighborhoods can be very safe in cities that don't look great on paper, and vice versa.
Yes, noticeably. Burien's cost-of-living index runs 123, about 23% above the US baseline. Housing usually accounts for most of the markup; groceries and services run higher too but with less drama.
Yes — Burien is one of the more walkable US cities. A Walk Score of 78/100 means most daily errands can be done on foot in most neighborhoods. Transit Score is 54 out of 100. Many residents go car-free comfortably.
Roughly $86,310 a year would match the lifestyle of someone earning $70,000 in an average US city. That's a starting point, not a target — negotiate higher when you can. Median rent in Burien runs about $1,649/mo — keeping housing under 30% of gross income points to a similar floor on what you'd want to earn.