San Francisco vs Seattle - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

San Francisco Seattle
🚶 Cost of living one person
$3905
$3015
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$8537
$7449
🏠 One person rent
$2719
$1896
🏘️ Family rent
$4421
$3549
🍽️ Food expenses
$804
$746
🚐 Transport expenses
$177
$160
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$7528
$6742
😷 Air quality
Excellent
Excellent
✈️ Airport proximity
18 km
9 km
🎓 Higher education
97
80
😀 Quality of life
96
91
🏙️ Population
874K
737K

The cost of living in San Francisco is 29% more expensive than in Seattle. Cities ranked 7th and 158th ($3905 vs $3015) in the list of the most expensive cities in the world and ranked 5th and 140th in the United States.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.9 months in San Francisco compared to 2.2 months in Seattle. Ranked 1st vs 15th best cities to live in the United States, and 16th vs 98th among the best cities to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in San Francisco vs Seattle infographic

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Prices in San Francisco vs Seattle

Prices for goods and services in San Francisco and Seattle are partly crowdsourced by our visitors, just like yourself. Please consider telling us about your city.

San Francisco Seattle
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$22.3
$21.9
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$102
$90.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$11.9
$13.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$8.59
$7.98
 Cappuccino
$5.83
$5.55
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.07
$2.97
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$2797
$2086
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$2467
$1567
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$4615
$3947
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$4053
$3067
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$128
$157
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$198
$237
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$57.6
$68.8
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
6.52%
6.44%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$11255
$6966
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$10091
$5351
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.71
$2.73
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$92.8
$96.7
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$20.5
$18
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.32
$1.16
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.7
$1.18
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$4.48
$4.03
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.7
$4.44
🥚 Eggs, x12
$6.5
$4.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$24.9
$20.3
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.4
$14.6
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$22.2
$20.4
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.33
$5.19
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.03
$2.38
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$5.48
$5.37
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$6.96
$5.76
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.47
$2.64
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.28
$3.47
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.82
$1.56
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$3.61
$2.91
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$19.2
$17.8
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.32
$3.15
🚬 Cigarette pack
$14
$12
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.5
$10.4
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$7.95
$5.95
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$5.91
$6.98
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.92
$2.49
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$87.8
$65.6
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$17.5
$16
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$148
$183
💇 Haircut, simple
$26.2
$25.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$64.4
$68.9
👟 Brand Sneakers
$109
$101
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$2824
$2185
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$20590
$29407

Cost of living in other countries

San FranciscoSeattle

Cost of living

$349

$907

$6.64K

More cities to compare

Cost of Living in the nearest cities

Cities near San Francisco

Distance City Cost of living
11 km or 6.9 mi Daly
$3190
14 km or 8.4 mi South San Francisco
$3185
14 km or 8.8 mi Alameda
$3364
15 km or 9.2 mi Oakland
$2968
16 km or 10 mi Albany
$2888
17 km or 10 mi Berkeley
$2974
17 km or 11 mi San Bruno
$3195
18 km or 11 mi El Cerrito
$2929
18 km or 11 mi Pacifica
$3183
19 km or 12 mi Richmond
$3004
20 km or 12 mi Millbrae
$3226
21 km or 13 mi San Pablo
$2999
22 km or 14 mi Burlingame
$3269
24 km or 15 mi San Leandro
$2963
24 km or 15 mi San Rafael
$3997
26 km or 16 mi San Mateo
$3678
28 km or 17 mi San Lorenzo
$2747
28 km or 18 mi Foster
$3466
29 km or 18 mi Lafayette
$2888
29 km or 18 mi Hercules
$2840
31 km or 19 mi Belmont
$3657
32 km or 20 mi Hayward
$2811
32 km or 20 mi Castro Valley
$3041
34 km or 21 mi San Carlos
$3344
34 km or 21 mi Walnut Creek
$2932
36 km or 23 mi Redwood
$3649
37 km or 23 mi Martinez
$2780
37 km or 23 mi Danville
$3785
37 km or 23 mi Pleasant Hill
$2816
38 km or 24 mi Union
$3002
39 km or 24 mi San Ramon
$3045
39 km or 24 mi Vallejo
$2412
39 km or 24 mi Novato
$3115
39 km or 24 mi Benicia
$2767
41 km or 25 mi Concord
$2778
42 km or 26 mi Menlo Park
$3326
42 km or 26 mi East Palo Alto
$3286
43 km or 27 mi Newark
$3060
45 km or 28 mi Dublin
$3059
46 km or 28 mi Palo Alto
$3752

Cities near Seattle

Distance City Cost of living
9.1 km or 5.7 mi Mercer Island
$2826
11 km or 6.5 mi Bellevue
$3273
14 km or 8.5 mi Kirkland
$2882
15 km or 9.2 mi Tukwila
$2624
15 km or 9.5 mi Burien
$2642
16 km or 10 mi Bainbridge Island
$2810
17 km or 10 mi Shoreline
$2973
17 km or 10 mi Renton
$2595
17 km or 11 mi Redmond
$3239
17 km or 11 mi Kenmore
$2718
19 km or 12 mi SeaTac
$2741
21 km or 13 mi Bothell
$2625
22 km or 14 mi Sammamish
$2759
22 km or 14 mi Edmonds
$2785
23 km or 14 mi Issaquah
$2606
24 km or 15 mi Des Moines
$2623
24 km or 15 mi Lynnwood
$2726
24 km or 15 mi Bremerton
$2462
26 km or 16 mi Kent
$2784
30 km or 19 mi Mill Creek
$2642
33 km or 20 mi Federal Way
$2532
34 km or 21 mi Maple Valley
$2579
35 km or 21 mi Mukilteo
$2637
35 km or 22 mi Auburn
$2338
41 km or 25 mi Everett
$2589
42 km or 26 mi Tacoma
$2517
46 km or 28 mi University Place
$2604
48 km or 30 mi Puyallup
$2644
50 km or 31 mi Lake Stevens
$2604
51 km or 32 mi Lakewood
$2449
52 km or 33 mi Marysville
$2598
57 km or 35 mi Spanaway
$2460
74 km or 46 mi Lacey
$2571
76 km or 47 mi Olympia
$2406
78 km or 48 mi Sequim
$2692
80 km or 50 mi Oak Harbor
$2751
90 km or 56 mi Mount Vernon
$2542
100 km or 62 mi Port Angeles
$2527
109 km or 68 mi Centralia
$2523
119 km or 74 mi Victoria
$2093