Seattle, WA vs Los Angeles, CA
Moving from Seattle to Los Angeles? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($750,279 → $968,608 median home) and taxes.
Seattle vs Los Angeles 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 Seattle, WA, you'd need about $119,108 in Los Angeles, CA (+$19,108).
Livability — Seattle, WA: 48 · Los Angeles, CA: 42 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,200 sqft in Seattle vs 774 sqft in Los Angeles ($417 vs $646 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Seattle, WA | Los Angeles, CA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $26,784 | $34,908 | +$8,124 |
| Groceries | $5,405 | $5,354 | −$51 |
| Transportation | $4,075 | $5,125 | +$1,050 |
| Utilities | $5,244 | $7,320 | +$2,076 |
| Insurance | $180 | $180 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $3,283 | $8,826 | +$5,543 |
| Total | $44,971 | $61,713 | +$16,741 |
Effective state & local tax rate on $100,000 — Seattle, WA: 3.3% · Los Angeles, CA: 8.8% (income + local + sales + property tax where applicable ÷ income)
Assumptions: 500 gal gasoline/yr · $5000 base annual grocery · 35% of income sales-taxable. Renter: housing = median rent, renter's insurance, no property tax.
Side by side
| Metric | Seattle, WA | Los Angeles, CA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 112.7 | 114.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.59% | 6.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 7.1% | -1.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 47 | 80 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.41 | $6.53 |
| Median home price | $750,279 | $968,608 |
| Home price ÷ income | 7.0× | 10.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.9% | 0.3% |
| Price per square foot | $417 | $646 |
| Median rent | $2,232 | $2,909 |
| Total tax burden (state avg, Tax Foundation) | 10.7% | 13.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.38% | 8.82% |
| Capital gains tax | 7.00% | 13.30% |
| Property tax rate | 0.88% | 0.69% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 79.8 yrs | 79.9 yrs |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,200 |
| Uninsured (share of residents) | 6.2% | 8.9% |
| Primary care providers / 100k | 95 | 81 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $19,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 0.65% |
| Days per year ≥ 90°F | 2 | 21 |
| Days per year ≥ 100°F | 0 | 1 |
| Homes with air conditioning (state) | 53% | 72% |
| Avg commute (min) | 30 | 30 |
| Commute by driving alone | 59.5% | 67.1% |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $2,400 |
| FEMA risk index (0–100, higher = more risk) | 99.0 — Relatively High | 100.0 — Very High |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $700 | $950 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 35.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.55 | 4.85 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $167 | $138 |
| Home internet / mo | $83 | $83 |
| Violent crime /100k (state avg) | 375 | 500 |
| Avg summer high °F | 76 | 84 |
| Avg winter low °F | 37 | 45 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 39.3 | 14.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 6.3 | 0.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 47% | 73% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 5 |
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