Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue New York-Newark-Jersey City

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue to New York-Newark-Jersey City is neutral, depends on priorities: BEA regional price parity goes from 111.1 to 112.6 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $177/mo.

-$5,402
BLS median salary lower in New York-Newark-Jersey City
329 to 380
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
17.6:1 to 11.8:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$2,118
DOL infant care lower / yr in New York-Newark-Jersey City

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
Neutral, depends on priorities
Cost Index: 111.1 → 112.6
Rent Delta: -$177/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + $177/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
  • + Better student-teacher ratios

Cons of Moving

  • - $5K lower median salary
  • - More environmental violations

Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 111.1 to 112.6 (ratio 1.01), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $177/mo ($2,124/yr) from $2,501 in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue to $2,324 in New York-Newark-Jersey City.

The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 4 origin wins); priorities decide this move. New York-Newark-Jersey City sits #344 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue is #324/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Neutral, depends on priorities. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $5,402 lower ($92,550 → $87,148). Labor-market size: 2,057,860 tracked jobs at origin vs 9,414,820 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors the destination: New York scores 46 (F, #46/51) vs Washington at 38 (F, #51/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
New York-Newark-Jersey City
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 111.1
RPP 112.6
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
Rent (2BR)
$2,501/mo
$2,324/mo
New York-Newark-Jersey City
Wages
$92,550
$87,148
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
Crime
329 per 100K
380 per 100K
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
Schools
17.6:1
11.8:1
New York-Newark-Jersey City
Childcare
$15,987/yr
$13,869/yr
New York-Newark-Jersey City
Environment
2879 violations
5536 violations
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue

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 · New York
46 F #46/51
Income tax
80
Property tax
48
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
96

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 New York-Newark-Jersey City to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in New York-Newark-Jersey City
-

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