Anchorage, AK vs Seattle, WA
Moving from Anchorage to Seattle? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($422,103 → $750,279 median home) and taxes.
Anchorage vs Seattle at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Anchorage, AK, you'd need about $105,582 in Seattle, WA (+$5,582).
Livability — Anchorage, AK: 49 · Seattle, WA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,132 sqft in Anchorage vs 1,200 sqft in Seattle ($235 vs $417 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Anchorage, AK | Seattle, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,240 | $26,784 | +$5,544 |
| Groceries | $5,224 | $5,405 | +$182 |
| Transportation | $3,350 | $4,075 | +$725 |
| Utilities | $2,952 | $1,548 | −$1,404 |
| Insurance | $1,000 | $1,500 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $4,919 | $8,826 | +$3,907 |
| Total | $38,685 | $48,138 | +$9,454 |
Side by side
| Metric | Anchorage, AK | Seattle, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.8 | 112.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.62% | 4.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -0.0% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.08 | $6.41 |
| Median home price | $422,103 | $750,279 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 7.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 5.7% | -1.9% |
| Price per square foot | $235 | $417 |
| Median rent | $1,770 | $2,232 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 4.6% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 1.82% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.24% | 0.88% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $9,500 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,000 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $800 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 27.4 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.90 | 4.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $68 | $58 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $164 | $167 |
| Home internet / mo | $110 | $83 |
| Violent crime /100k | 760 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 65 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 5 | 37 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 16.6 | 39.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 74.0 | 6.3 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 41% | 47% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 5 |