Washington vs. Colorado (Seattle, Tacoma, Everett: smog, employment, diverse)

[sidburn]

Overall, which state do you think is a better/nicer/safer/more beautiful place to live between the two? In particular, the Denver/Boulder area vs. the Seattle/Tacoma/Everett area?

[mthomson]

Tough to call, as they're totally different. If you like the mountains, snow, and deep blue skies, Colorado. If you like green and tons of water, with incredible, unbeatable summers, Washington.
Cost of living (from what I know), safety, etc are pretty similar.

[janb]

I've done both, but try to avoid metropolis'...

If you can handle clouds and rain and like water sports and desire a more diverse culture, and left political leaning - WA

If you can handle the smog, and dust and brown winters and can stand to drive further for mountain recreation, - politically right leaning - CO

much more may depend on your employment situation - Colo has a lower overall tax burden

[sidburn]

Hmm...I've lived in CO my whole life and although the 300+ annual days of sunshine are nice, it does get repetitive. In the summer, it's sunny in the morning with thunderstorms in the afternoon almost every day, so a place with more clouds might be a refreshing change. As for political leanings, the towns I've lived in in CO seem to be pretty much split down the middle.