Boulder vs Seattle leftover
You'd keep $903 more a month in Seattle
$3,394/mo leftover in Seattle vs $2,491 in Boulder after tax and rent ($903 more). +$10,836 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Boulder leftover
$2,491
a month after tax and rent
Seattle leftover
$3,394
+$903 vs Boulder
Compare Boulder to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Boulder.
Monthly gap
Boulder → Seattle
$903
more / month in Seattle
$3,394 in Seattle · $2,491 in Boulder · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 194 households moved Boulder → Seattle (avg AGI $99,201). 158 went the other way. The whole move →
+$903 / mo
| Per month | Boulder | Seattle | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,792 | $9,359 | +$1,568 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,901 | $2,076 | +$176 |
| Take-home pay | $5,891 | $7,283 | +$1,392 |
| Rent | $1,647 | $1,758 | +$111 |
| Getting around | $342 | $493 | +$151 |
| Groceries | $389 | $452 | +$63 |
| Healthcare | $438 | $508 | +$70 |
| Utilities | $243 | $283 | +$40 |
| Everything else | $341 | $395 | +$54 |
| Left over | $2,491 | $3,394 | +$903 |
To break even in Seattle, you'd need to earn
$97,000
Household gross, versus $93,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Boulder does now.
The tax difference alone
+$3,472
A year, in state and local income tax. Washington has no wage income tax.
More about Seattle
Boulder, CO in full
A flat 4.4% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,961 and 250 sunny days; commutes average 23 minutes.
Seattle, WA in full
No state income tax and high wages, offset by home prices and 150 sunny days.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Seattle on Seattle wages.
Seattle → Boulder →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Seattle than Boulder?
A one-bedroom is about $1,647 in Boulder versus $1,758 in Seattle. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $903 a month higher in Seattle. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Seattle have state income tax?
Seattle is in Washington, which has no state income tax.
What changes if you move from Boulder to Seattle?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Washington tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Boulder and Seattle moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.