Omaha, NE vs Seattle, WA
Moving from Omaha to Seattle? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($310,337 → $750,279 median home) and taxes.
Omaha 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 Omaha, NE, you'd need about $121,904 in Seattle, WA (+$21,904).
Livability — Omaha, NE: 69 · Seattle, WA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,738 sqft in Omaha vs 1,200 sqft in Seattle ($183 vs $417 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Omaha, NE | Seattle, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,328 | $26,784 | +$9,456 |
| Groceries | $4,828 | $5,405 | +$577 |
| Transportation | $3,300 | $4,075 | +$775 |
| Utilities | $1,440 | $1,548 | +$108 |
| Insurance | $3,600 | $1,500 | −$2,100 |
| Taxes | $11,575 | $8,826 | −$2,748 |
| Total | $42,070 | $48,138 | +$6,068 |
Side by side
| Metric | Omaha, NE | Seattle, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 92.5 | 112.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.42% | 4.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.7% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.26 | $6.41 |
| Median home price | $310,337 | $750,279 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 7.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.2% | -1.9% |
| Price per square foot | $183 | $417 |
| Median rent | $1,444 | $2,232 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.97% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.20% | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.71% | 0.88% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.27% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 21 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,600 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 13.3 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.10 | 4.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $79 | $58 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $108 | $167 |
| Home internet / mo | $75 | $83 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 14 | 37 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 28.0 | 39.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 25.0 | 6.3 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 62% | 47% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 5 |