Cost of Living Comparison Between San Francisco, CA and Seattle, WA 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in Seattle, WA is 7.5% lower than in San Francisco, CA (excluding rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in Seattle, WA is 14.5% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Rent Prices in Seattle, WA are 24.7% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Restaurant Prices in Seattle, WA are 7.4% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Groceries Prices in Seattle, WA are 7.5% lower than in San Francisco, CA
Local Purchasing Power in Seattle, WA is 10.7% higher than in San Francisco, CA
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 25.00 $ 25.00 $      0.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 122.50 $ 100.00 $      -18.4 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 14.00 $ 14.00 $      0.0 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 8.00 $ 7.75 $      -3.1 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 8.15 $ 8.00 $      -1.8 %
Cappuccino (regular) 5.84 $ 5.58 $      -4.5 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 3.18 $ 2.99 $      -6.1 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 2.43 $ 2.40 $      -1.3 %
Markets
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 5.72 $ 4.96 $      -13.3 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 4.59 $ 4.39 $      -4.4 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 3.05 $ 2.40 $      -21.4 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 5.91 $ 6.07 $      +2.8 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 10.76 $ 9.59 $      -10.9 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 6.68 $ 7.51 $      +12.3 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 10.59 $ 9.31 $      -12.1 %
Apples (1 lb) 3.24 $ 2.67 $      -17.5 %
Banana (1 lb) 1.30 $ 1.16 $      -10.4 %
Oranges (1 lb) 2.37 $ 2.44 $      +2.8 %
Tomato (1 lb) 3.42 $ 2.94 $      -14.0 %
Potato (1 lb) 1.73 $ 1.44 $      -16.6 %
Onion (1 lb) 1.77 $ 1.63 $      -8.2 %
Lettuce (1 head) 2.87 $ 2.81 $      -1.9 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 2.78 $ 2.61 $      -6.3 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 18.00 $ 20.00 $      +11.1 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 2.57 $ 2.92 $      +13.4 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 3.27 $ 4.27 $      +30.6 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 14.00 $ 11.50 $      -17.9 %
Transportation
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 3.00 $ 2.75 $      -8.3 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 92.50 $ 99.00 $      +7.0 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 4.15 $ 2.65 $      -36.1 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 3.25 $ 2.70 $      -16.9 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 39.00 $ 30.00 $      -23.1 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 5.15 $ 4.51 $      -12.4 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 35,000.00 $ 33,000.00 $      -5.7 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 25,954.72 $ 26,031.68 $      +0.3 %
Utilities (Monthly)
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 234.55 $ 250.22 $      +6.7 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 62.91 $ 60.15 $      -4.4 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 66.62 $ 76.11 $      +14.2 %
Sports And Leisure
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 98.42 $ 78.35 $      -20.4 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 12.67 $ 40.44 $      +219.3 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 17.00 $ 16.00 $      -5.9 %
Childcare
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 2,870.83 $ 2,200.00 $      -23.4 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 38,000.00 $ 29,375.00 $      -22.7 %
Clothing And Shoes
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 64.76 $ 67.15 $      +3.7 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 43.79 $ 52.44 $      +19.8 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 102.60 $ 107.26 $      +4.5 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 145.62 $ 138.76 $      -4.7 %
Rent Per Month
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 3,277.38 $ 2,293.82 $      -30.0 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 2,804.17 $ 1,844.64 $      -34.2 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 5,517.39 $ 4,614.29 $      -16.4 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 4,584.21 $ 3,438.24 $      -25.0 %
Buy Apartment Price
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 1,026.28 $ 665.42 $      -35.2 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 923.92 $ 486.59 $      -47.3 %
Salaries And Financing
San Francisco, CA Edit Seattle, WA Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 7,158.95 $ 6,774.85 $      -5.4 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 6.36 6.42      +1.0 %
Last update: May 2025May 2025
Contributors in the past 12 months:172225