Duluth, MN vs Seattle, WA
Moving from Duluth to Seattle? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($264,350 → $750,279 median home) and taxes.
Duluth 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 Duluth, MN, you'd need about $129,307 in Seattle, WA (+$29,307).
Livability — Duluth, MN: 68 · Seattle, WA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,404 sqft in Duluth vs 1,200 sqft in Seattle ($147 vs $417 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Duluth, MN | Seattle, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,572 | $26,784 | +$10,212 |
| Groceries | $4,846 | $5,405 | +$559 |
| Transportation | $3,375 | $4,075 | +$700 |
| Utilities | $1,776 | $1,548 | −$228 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $1,500 | −$700 |
| Taxes | $14,852 | $8,826 | −$6,026 |
| Total | $43,621 | $48,138 | +$4,517 |
Side by side
| Metric | Duluth, MN | Seattle, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 87.2 | 112.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.41% | 4.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.4% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $4.96 | $6.41 |
| Median home price | $264,350 | $750,279 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 7.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 6.6% | -1.9% |
| Price per square foot | $147 | $417 |
| Median rent | $1,381 | $2,232 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.1% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.10% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.85% | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.12% | 0.88% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.58% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 20 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.4 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.15 | 4.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $76 | $58 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $77 | $167 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $83 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 4 | 37 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 31.6 | 39.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 51.2 | 6.3 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 47% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 5 |