HomeMarketCap.comBoston vs Seattle: Where Housing Costs Less
Housing costs about the same in both on typical home value: $815,935 in Boston against $815,787 in Seattle. Typical rent is 31% lower in Seattle: $3,297 in Boston against $2,279 in Seattle per month. The ranges overlap: Boston runs $608,161 to $3,306,316 across its ZIPs and Seattle runs $544,576 to $1,362,281, so the cheaper metro on the median still contains neighborhoods dearer than parts of the other.
Key stats
- Typical home value is effectively the same in both: $815,935 in Boston and $815,787 in Seattle.
- Typical rent is 31% lower in Seattle: $3,297 in Boston against $2,279 in Seattle per month.
- The ranges overlap: Boston runs $608,161 to $3,306,316 across its ZIPs and Seattle runs $544,576 to $1,362,281, so the cheaper metro on the median still contains neighborhoods dearer than parts of the other.
- The income-needed indicator stands at $195,495 for Boston and $193,169 for Seattle, a difference of $2,326.
- Median ZIP home value
- $815,935 / $815,787
- Median ZIP rent
- $3,297 / $2,279
- Tracked ZIP markets
- 28 / 22
What housing costs in Boston and Seattle
Typical home value is effectively the same in both: $815,935 in Boston and $815,787 in Seattle.
Typical rent is 31% lower in Seattle: $3,297 in Boston against $2,279 in Seattle per month.
Where the two metros actually overlap
The ranges overlap: Boston runs $608,161 to $3,306,316 across its ZIPs and Seattle runs $544,576 to $1,362,281, so the cheaper metro on the median still contains neighborhoods dearer than parts of the other.
A metro median decides nothing on its own: a move lands in one neighborhood, not in the average of all of them, and the ranges above are what a shortlist has to sit inside.
What this comparison does not include
This page compares housing only. Groceries, transport, state and local taxes, insurance, and childcare are not measured here and can move the total either way — in particular, the two metros may sit in states with very different income-tax treatment.
The income-needed indicator stands at $195,495 for Boston and $193,169 for Seattle, a difference of $2,326.
Continue your market research
- Boston housing marketMetro overview and the full ZIP directory.
- Seattle housing marketMetro overview and the full ZIP directory.
- Moving to Boston: what housing costsThe same figures read from a mover’s side.
- Moving to Seattle: what housing costsThe same figures read from a mover’s side.
Sources and method
- HomeMarketCap.com data sources: ZIP and metro housing-market datasets
- HomeMarketCap.com methodology: Metric definitions and calculation rules