Washington-Arlington-Alexandria → Denver-Aurora-Centennial
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Washington-Arlington-Alexandria to Denver-Aurora-Centennial is favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 108.9 to 105.8 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $157/mo.
- -$4,225
- BLS median salary lower in Denver-Aurora-Centennial
- 1015 to 481
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 11:1 to 15.7:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $12,659
- DOL infant care lower / yr in Denver-Aurora-Centennial
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.
Pros of Moving
- + 3% lower cost of living
- + $157/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
- + Lower violent crime rate
- + More affordable childcare
Cons of Moving
- - $4K lower median salary
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 108.9 to 105.8 (ratio 0.97), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $157/mo ($1,884/yr) from $2,246 in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria to $2,089 in Denver-Aurora-Centennial.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (4 destination wins · 3 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Denver-Aurora-Centennial sits #377 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is #110/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $4,225 lower ($82,744 → $78,519). Labor-market size: 3,082,600 tracked jobs at origin vs 1,580,940 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: District of Columbia scores 61 (C, #26/51) vs Colorado at 46 (F, #44/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 70
- Property tax
- 72
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 90
- Income tax
- 80
- Property tax
- 90
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 26
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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria to see what you'd need to earn in Denver-Aurora-Centennial to maintain the same purchasing power.
Denver-Aurora-Centennial metro profile · Livability rankings · Methodology
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