Provo, UT vs Seattle, WA
Moving from Provo to Seattle? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($546,641 → $750,279 median home) and taxes.
Provo 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 Provo, UT, you'd need about $117,746 in Seattle, WA (+$17,746).
Livability — Provo, UT: 65 · Seattle, WA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,921 sqft in Provo vs 1,200 sqft in Seattle ($260 vs $417 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Provo, UT | Seattle, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,900 | $26,784 | +$4,884 |
| Groceries | $4,736 | $5,405 | +$669 |
| Transportation | $3,450 | $4,075 | +$625 |
| Utilities | $1,440 | $1,548 | +$108 |
| Insurance | $1,200 | $1,500 | +$300 |
| Taxes | $9,160 | $8,826 | −$333 |
| Total | $41,885 | $48,138 | +$6,253 |
Side by side
| Metric | Provo, UT | Seattle, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.7 | 112.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.41% | 4.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 15.5% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 47 | 47 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.45 | $6.41 |
| Median home price | $546,641 | $750,279 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.0× | 7.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.9% | -1.9% |
| Price per square foot | $260 | $417 |
| Median rent | $1,825 | $2,232 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.1% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.19% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.65% | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.45% | 0.88% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,000 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,200 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $500 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $450 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 13.3 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.60 | 4.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 260 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 24 | 37 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 5 |