Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue → Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington is strongly favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 111.1 to 104.8 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $792/mo.

-$11,952
BLS median salary lower in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
329 to 259
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
17.7:1 to 13.9:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$4,265
DOL infant care lower / yr in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington

BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.

Verdict
Strongly Favorable
Cost Index: 111.1 → 104.8
Rent Delta: -$792/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + 6% lower cost of living
  • + $792/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
  • + Lower violent crime rate
  • + Better student-teacher ratios
  • + More affordable childcare
  • + Fewer environmental violations

Cons of Moving

  • - $12K lower median salary

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP falls from 111.1 to 104.8, so each dollar covers more in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington (ratio 0.94). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $792/mo ($9,504/yr) from $2,501 in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue to $1,709 in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington.

Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington leads on 6 of 7 federal dimensions, a destination-heavy ledger. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington sits #332 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue is #324/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Strongly Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $11,952 lower ($92,550 → $80,598). Labor-market size: 2,057,860 tracked jobs at origin vs 1,928,660 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors the destination: Minnesota scores 49 (F, #43/51) vs Washington at 38 (F, #51/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 111.1
RPP 104.8
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Rent (2BR)
$2,501/mo
$1,709/mo
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Wages
$92,550
$80,598
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
Crime
329 per 100K
259 per 100K
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Schools
17.7:1
13.9:1
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Childcare
$15,987/yr
$11,722/yr
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Environment
2879 violations
1033 violations
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington

State retirement friendliness

Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.

Origin state · Washington
38 F #51/51
Income tax
63
Property tax
63
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
18
Destination state · Minnesota
49 F #43/51
Income tax
60
Property tax
62
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
34

Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).

Salary Adjustment Calculator

Enter your current salary in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue to see what you'd need to earn in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
-

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026