Cost of Living Comparison
Seattle, WA vs Austin, TX
A side-by-side look at what it actually costs to live in Seattle, WA compared to Austin, TX — housing, salary, tax, and family-of-living metrics powered by FuturePath City Intelligence.
Moving from
Seattle, WA
Pacific NW · United States
78FuturePath Score
Tech-heavy market with no state income tax.
Moving to
Austin, TX
South · United States
88FuturePath Score
Strong tech growth, no state income tax, rising rents.
Metric
Seattle, WA
Austin, TX
Change
Median rent (monthly)
$2,350
$1,700
-27.7%
Median home price
$780K
$545K
-30.1%
Median salary
$110,000
$92,000
-16.4%
Effective tax rate
25.1%
22.5%
-2.6 pts
Childcare (monthly)
$1,850
$1,450
-21.6%
Mortgage burden
44.1%
32.1%
-12.0 pts
Cost-of-living score
68
80
+12
Overall score
78
88
+10
Migration momentum
76
89
+13
The quick take
Austin, TX scores higher overall (+10).
- Rent: -27.7% vs Seattle, WA
- Salary: -16.4% vs Seattle, WA
- Cost-of-living score: +12 (higher = more affordable)
Should you make the move?
These numbers are city-wide averages. FuturePath simulates your income, savings, household, and career path against both cities to score affordability, life readiness, and decision confidence.
Run a personalized scenarioExplore city profiles: Seattle, WA · Austin, TX