Bellevue vs San Jose
The short version
- Overall prices are about the same in both metro areas (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $1,233,200 in San Jose and $1,340,300 in Bellevue.
- Households earn more in Bellevue ($165,576 vs $146,427 median).
- San Jose has the warmer winter: January highs of 60°F vs 47°F.
- Bellevue is growing faster: +1.5% since 2020 vs -2.3%.
- Commutes are shorter in Bellevue (24 vs 27 minutes each way).
- Washington has no state income tax on wages; California's top rate is 13.3%.
Side by side
| Bellevue, WA | San Jose, CA | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 154,193 | 989,814 |
| Growth since 2020 | +1.5% | -2.3% |
| People per square mile | 4,607 | 5,563 |
| Median age | 38.5 | 38.2 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 72% | 47% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $165,576 | $146,427 |
| Median home value | $1,340,300 | $1,233,200 |
| Home value to income | 8.1× | 8.4× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $2,572 | $2,669 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 111.1 | 110.4 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 151.3 | 211.9 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $83,300 | $82,800 |
| Homeowners | 52% | 56% |
| Top state income tax | None | 13.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.57% | 9.03% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 23.6 | 27.3 |
| Work from home | 36% | 20% |
| Take public transit | 5% | 2% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 4.2% | 5.1% |
| Poverty rate | 7.2% | 8.1% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 47° / 37° | 60° / 42° |
| July high / low | 77° / 57° | 81° / 58° |
| Precipitation per year | 38 in | 14 in |
| Snowfall per year | 4 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 2 | 16 |
| Nights below freezing | 25 | 3 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 10 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Very High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 99.7 | 99.7 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 56% | 92% |
| Home prices, past year | +0.3% | -1% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +24.6% | +27.4% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Bellevue: May to September. San Jose: February to November.
Full monthly tables: Bellevue weather by month and San Jose weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $83,300 in Bellevue and $82,800 in San Jose. Moving from Bellevue to San Jose, you would need about $74,500 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Bellevue and San Jose
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Bellevue and San Jose.
Which would you pick?
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