Mountain View vs Seattle
The short version
- Overall prices are about the same in both metro areas (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $938,600 in Seattle and $1,927,000 in Mountain View.
- Households earn more in Mountain View ($189,917 vs $123,860 median).
- Mountain View has the warmer winter: January highs of 59°F vs 47°F.
- Seattle is growing faster: +6.5% since 2020 vs +3.5%.
- Washington has no state income tax on wages; California's top rate is 13.3%.
Side by side
| Mountain View, CA | Seattle, WA | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 85,438 | 784,777 |
| Growth since 2020 | +3.5% | +6.5% |
| People per square mile | 7,145 | 9,343 |
| Median age | 35.5 | 35.6 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 75% | 68% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $189,917 | $123,860 |
| Median home value | $1,927,000 | $938,600 |
| Home value to income | 10.1× | 7.6× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $3,062 | $2,030 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 110.4 | 111.1 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 211.9 | 151.3 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $82,800 | $83,300 |
| Homeowners | 39% | 44% |
| Top state income tax | 13.3% | None |
| Combined sales tax | 9.03% | 9.57% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 23.3 | 26.0 |
| Work from home | 31% | 35% |
| Take public transit | 4% | 12% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 3.7% | 4.6% |
| Poverty rate | 6% | 9.9% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 59° / 42° | 47° / 37° |
| July high / low | 77° / 59° | 77° / 57° |
| Precipitation per year | 13 in | 38 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 4 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 9 | 2 |
| Nights below freezing | 2 | 25 |
| Comfortable months | 9 | 5 |
| 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 | 92% | 56% |
| Home prices, past year | -1% | +0.3% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +27.4% | +24.6% |
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: Mountain View: March to November. Seattle: May to September.
Full monthly tables: Mountain View weather by month and Seattle weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $82,800 in Mountain View and $83,300 in Seattle. Moving from Mountain View to Seattle, you would need about $75,500 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Mountain View and Seattle
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Mountain View and Seattle.
Which would you pick?
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