Should I Move To
Roughly 734,603 people live in Seattle, Washington. Living here costs expensive relative to the rest of the country, 24% above the national average. Median rent runs about $1,945/mo; the typical household pulls in $116,068. On the UrbRank Score it pulls a 59/100 — a C, putting it at #172 nationally.
UrbRank Score · General
Each dimension scored 0-100 against every other US city.
Based on overall cost of living vs. other US cities.
Inverse of violent + property crime rate per 100,000 residents.
Temperate summers & winters, moderate precipitation.
Walk Score — how feasible daily errands are on foot.
Unemployment rate plus household income vs. national median.
Air quality index (EPA AQS data).
Share of residents 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher.
By the composite index, Seattle sits at 124 — expensive when stacked against the rest of the country. Running the rent-to-income math ($1,945/mo against $116,068 median household income), housing eats roughly 20% of a typical paycheck — right inside the standard 30%-of-income guideline. Buying-side, the median home value is $879,900.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →The weather here is four-season: roughly 75°F in summer, 38°F in winter. Annual precipitation lands near 39 inches. A walker's paradise by US standards. Many people here genuinely skip car ownership. Crime runs notably high by national standards. As always, neighborhood-level data tells a more nuanced story than the citywide figure. AQI runs about 43 — a "good" reading.
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
For families, Seattle isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 51/100 — a C-. Its standout dimension is walkability (98/100); the soft spot is safety (3/100).
For retirees, Seattle isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 54/100 — a C-. Its standout dimension is walkability (98/100); the soft spot is safety (3/100).
For remote workers, Seattle isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 48/100 — a D. Its standout dimension is walkability (98/100); the soft spot is safety (3/100).
For young professionals, Seattle is workable — not standout, not weak. The profile-weighted score is 69/100 — a B-. Its standout dimension is walkability (98/100); the soft spot is safety (3/100).
Our overall score for Seattle is 59/100 — a C, sitting at #172 in the national ranking. It's a weighted average across the seven UrbRank dimensions.
By the composite index, Seattle sits at 124 — expensive, 24% above the national average. Median renter pays around $1,945 a month.
Seattle runs four-season on the weather. Summer's near 75°F, winter's near 38°F; 39 inches of precipitation annually.
Walk Score: 98/100. A walker's paradise by US standards. Many people here genuinely skip car ownership.
Roughly 734,603 people live here, with 67% college-educated (bachelor's or higher) among adults 25+ with a median age of 35.
Drop Seattle into the comparison tool with any other US city and you'll get housing costs, salaries, demographics, and quality-of-life data lined up side by side. Profile-specific leaderboards (families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals) are linked from the navigation.
Every US city is scored 0-100 on seven dimensions using public data from the US Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, FBI Crime Data Explorer, EPA Air Quality System, NOAA NCEI, and Walk Score. Each dimension is a percentile rank against every other city — so a score of 80 means the city is in the top 20% nationally on that dimension.
The overall score is a weighted average. Five lifestyle profiles — general, families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals — weight the dimensions differently to reflect what each cares about. Families get more weight on safety and schools; young professionals get more weight on jobs and walkability; retirees get more weight on climate.
Compare Seattle with other Washington cities scored on UrbRank.
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