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Fort Collins, CO vs Seattle, WA

Moving from Fort Collins to Seattle? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($556,500 → $750,279 median home) and taxes.

Fort Collins vs Seattle at a glance

Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.

Fort Collins, CO Seattle, WA Cost-of-living index Fort Collins, CO — Cost-of-living index: 97 97 Seattle, WA — Cost-of-living index: 113 113 Median home price Fort Collins, CO — Median home price: $557k $557k Seattle, WA — Median home price: $750k $750k Price per sqft Fort Collins, CO — Price per sqft: $293 $293 Seattle, WA — Price per sqft: $417 $417 Median rent Fort Collins, CO — Median rent: $1,928 $1,928 Seattle, WA — Median rent: $2,232 $2,232 Combined sales tax Fort Collins, CO — Combined sales tax: 7.8% 7.8% Seattle, WA — Combined sales tax: 9.4% 9.4% Property tax rate Fort Collins, CO — Property tax rate: 0.52% 0.52% Seattle, WA — Property tax rate: 0.88% 0.88% Violent crime /100k Fort Collins, CO — Violent crime /100k: 490 490 Seattle, WA — Violent crime /100k: 375 375 Electricity ¢/kWh Fort Collins, CO — Electricity ¢/kWh: 16.5 16.5 Seattle, WA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 14.4 14.4 Avg commute (min) Fort Collins, CO — Avg commute (min): 23 23 Seattle, WA — Avg commute (min): 30 30 Avg summer high °F Fort Collins, CO — Avg summer high °F: 88° 88° Seattle, WA — Avg summer high °F: 76° 76° Avg winter low °F Fort Collins, CO — Avg winter low °F: 18° 18° Seattle, WA — Avg winter low °F: 37° 37°

To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Fort Collins, CO, you'd need about $115,850 in Seattle, WA (+$15,850).

Livability — Fort Collins, CO: 59 · Seattle, WA: 48 (0–100).

What your home budget buys

A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,707 sqft in Fort Collins vs 1,200 sqft in Seattle ($293 vs $417 per sqft).

Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)

CategoryFort Collins, COSeattle, WADifference
Housing $23,136 $26,784 +$3,648
Groceries $4,814 $5,405 +$591
Transportation $4,050 $4,075 +$25
Utilities $1,788 $1,548 −$240
Insurance $2,800 $1,500 −$1,300
Taxes $9,647 $8,826 −$820
Total $46,234 $48,138 +$1,904

Side by side

MetricFort Collins, COSeattle, WA
Cost-of-living index97.3112.7
Unemployment rate4.57%4.59%
Population growth (5-yr)8.6%7.1%
Air quality (median AQI)5447
Big Mac price (est.)$5.54$6.41
Median home price$556,500$750,279
Home price ÷ income6.4×7.0×
1-yr home appreciation-1.5%-1.9%
Price per square foot$293$417
Median rent$1,928$2,232
Total tax burden (% income)9.7%10.7%
Combined sales tax7.77%9.38%
Capital gains tax4.40%7.00%
Property tax rate0.52%0.88%
Healthcare (annual)$6,800$6,600
Childcare (annual, infant)$16,000$16,000
Vehicle property tax1.79%None
Avg commute (min)2330
Home insurance / yr$2,800$1,500
Auto insurance / yr$2,000$1,600
Flood insurance / yr$550$700
Earthquake insurance / yr$100$700
Electricity ¢/kWh16.514.4
Gas $/gal3.304.55
Violent crime /100k490375
Avg summer high °F8876
Avg winter low °F1837
Permit difficulty (1–5)35
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