Nashville vs. Seattle (living, best, cost, better)
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In my time in Seattle, I loved the city and the scenery but those earthquakes are a deal breaker for myself. Seattle is far larger and more well rounded than Nashville in general but Nashville does have some seriously polished areas/suburbs (even by big city standards).
Two very different cities. I'm a native Nashvillian, but have visited Seattle several times (and enjoyed my trips).
I don't think you'll get a good apples to apples comparison out of the categories you listed. It really becomes a more preferential thing.
Other than cost of living (where Nashville is a clear winner) and crime (where Seattle is a clear winner), a lot of it will depend on your personal preferences.
What activities do YOU like? Bars/clubs? Concerts/festivals? Outdoor activities? Museum/symphony/theatre or other high arts?
Culture is very different as well. The right fit would depend on what you look for in terms of culture.
Do you wish to live in an urban or suburban environment?
Are politics/religion important in choosing where you live?
Do you have or plan to have children?
Sports -- both cities have 2 major pro sports teams (Seattle: NFL, MLB; Nashville: NFL, NHL -- Seattle also has an MLS team that may as well be major). Nashville has an edge in college sports. While Univ of Washington has a better overall program, Nashville has a larger collection of D1 schools (4 in the city, 5 in the metro) with Vanderbilt leading the pack.
Seattle is a considerably larger city, but Nashville is better situated in terms of travel to other US cities.
You don't have to answer all of these, but I think getting a better idea of what type of person you are will help determine which city is the better fit.
Cost of Living - Nashville and it's not even close
Culture - Depends on whether you prefer the south or the Pacific Northwest cultures. I'm not sure where you are from originally, but there will be a culture shock if you've never been to either.
Crime - Seattle is definitely safer, but that doesn't mean Nashville doesn't offer safe places.
Economy - Both economies are very stable and growing. Nashville has a very bright future ahead.
Education - "CreekSitter"
Sports - Subjective. Both offer many professional sports teams, and both are sports towns.
Weather - Nashville experiences all four seasons with summer being the longest starting in May and ending in late October. Seattle has cooler temperatures and is less humid year round, and no it doesn't rain everyday like the stereotype would have you to believe.
Categories you left off that will be important: Mass Transit, Infrastructure, Political Environment, Shopping, Where to raise a family.
Mass Transit: Seattle and it will probably never be close. If you choose to live in Nashville's suburbs, be prepared to sit in traffic every morning and evening. No light rail and few buses. There is one leg of commuter rail from Nashville to Lebanon, if that helps.
Infrastructure: Seattle offers amenities within easy proximity of all of its residents. The road network experiences congestion at times, but nothing like a Nashville or Atlanta. You can catch a train, bus, ride share program, or walk in many parts of the city which is very nice. Nashville's core is getting much better, but it still hasn't learned the mistakes larger cities have made in the past.
Political Environment: Both cities are solidly blue. However, Nashville's metro makes up a large percentage of its population which is solidly red. Seattle's liberalism is definitely in your face at all times. Nashville, not so much.
Shopping: Seattle has world class shopping and dining.
Lived in Seattle for a long long time, currently now live not too far from Nashville. Personally I'd choose Nashville over Seattle.
Activities - Honestly, overall I'd give it a tie-- hard to get bored in either If you are the outdoorsy type, then Seattle gets the edge.
Cost of Living - Nashville... Duh
Culture - depends on what you mean by "culture"
Crime - Seattle
Economy - tie
Education - K12? I'd give Seattle a slight edge. College level? Slight edge to Nashville
Sports - I love hockey (Nashville), soccer (Seattle) and Baseball (Seattle). Don't care about football (both). Otherwise, both offer wonderful recreational opportunities, so tie.
Weather - Personal preference, but I take Nashville over Seattle. Though Seattle is very temperate, the grey weather really wears down and the damp makes it annoying. Not really much of a traditional 4 season. Summer is nice, though short and doesn't really get hot except for a few days.
Other things to note:
Public transit is much better in Seattle... but the traffic is.SO.SO.BAD. Nashville comparitively is a breeze. Though being stuck in traffic sucks everywhere.
Social... You'll hear much about the notorious Seattle Freeze... There is some truth to that. If I was to generalize, Seattleites are quiet, reticent, non confrontational (almost to a point of being passive-aggressive). A lot of people complain that is harder to make friends there. Nashville folks are pretty much the opposite (loud/very talkative, assertive and pretty social).
If you like urbanity, Seattle is it. Nashville has a long ways to go before they catch up.
Great food can be found in both, though Nashville is a lot more affordable; you get more for what you pay.
Nashville is better positioned for the road trips, a lot of other cities are accessible. Seattle you have Portland, Vancouver BC..... And Spokane.
Two very different cities. I'm a native Nashvillian, but have visited Seattle several times (and enjoyed my trips).
I don't think you'll get a good apples to apples comparison out of the categories you listed. It really becomes a more preferential thing.
Other than cost of living (where Nashville is a clear winner) and crime (where Seattle is a clear winner), a lot of it will depend on your personal preferences.
What activities do YOU like? Bars/clubs? Concerts/festivals? Outdoor activities? Museum/symphony/theatre or other high arts? Not into high arts at all. I like music, bars (hate nightclubs), not into outdoor activities but enjoy jogging, going hiking (very very rarely), like museums, not the symphony or theatre though.
Culture is very different as well. The right fit would depend on what you look for in terms of culture. I like typical US culture; BBQs in the summer, sports games, high school ball games, nothing too fancy!
Do you wish to live in an urban or suburban environment? Suburban every time.
Are politics/religion important in choosing where you live? I am agnostic and a liberal but not overtly so. I would consider myself more centrist than anything but I would rather watch CNN and Jon Stewart than Fox and Hannity.
Do you have or plan to have children? Trying for kids at the moment.
Sports -- both cities have 2 major pro sports teams (Seattle: NFL, MLB; Nashville: NFL, NHL -- Seattle also has an MLS team that may as well be major). Nashville has an edge in college sports. While Univ of Washington has a better overall program, Nashville has a larger collection of D1 schools (4 in the city, 5 in the metro) with Vanderbilt leading the pack.
Seattle is a considerably larger city, but Nashville is better situated in terms of travel to other US cities.
You don't have to answer all of these, but I think getting a better idea of what type of person you are will help determine which city is the better fit.
Activities - Seattle
Cost of Living - Nash
Culture - Tie if you love Country Music (I do)
Crime -Seattle
Economy - Seattle
Education - Seattle
Sports - Tie
Weather- Nash
I lived and worked a short time in nash when I was younger but have lived in Seattle/Portland areas for most of my adult life. I really liked Nashville and would probably choose it if the jobs were equal other than now I have kids in Seattle.
Can't go wrong here. If you're working for a software job or in IT I would encourage Seattle.
One thing that I think you'd really like about Nashville is there is serious lack of a club scene; it's one of the best aspects of the city if you enjoy going to a dive bar or checking out a band. There are no lines to get into clubs, no 'VIP' sections and it's an overall down to earth city. Other activities are probably about equal but if you enjoy hiking I think Seattle is a bit better in that category. Nashville is cheaper, and if you're looking to live in the suburbs you can definitely find a good deal. Seattle is better for crime and although Nashville is growing I still think the economic outlook for Seattle is better.
Education - Seattle has better educated residents for sure. Sports - I would give Seattle the slight edge but both have great sports options.
Weather - Tough call. I like the hot summers but I actually could be happy with either city.
Politically you might get annoyed with the teapartiers that are in the outlying areas of Nashville but there are some nice neighborhoods that lean to the left.
Lived in Seattle for a long long time, currently now live not too far from Nashville. Personally I'd choose Nashville over Seattle.
Activities - Honestly, overall I'd give it a tie-- hard to get bored in either If you are the outdoorsy type, then Seattle gets the edge.
Cost of Living - Nashville... Duh
Culture - depends on what you mean by "culture"
Crime - Seattle
Economy - tie
Education - K12? I'd give Seattle a slight edge. College level? Slight edge to Nashville
Sports - I love hockey (Nashville), soccer (Seattle) and Baseball (Seattle). Don't care about football (both). Otherwise, both offer wonderful recreational opportunities, so tie.
Weather - Personal preference, but I take Nashville over Seattle. Though Seattle is very temperate, the grey weather really wears down and the damp makes it annoying. Not really much of a traditional 4 season. Summer is nice, though short and doesn't really get hot except for a few days.
Other things to note:
Public transit is much better in Seattle... but the traffic is.SO.SO.BAD. Nashville comparitively is a breeze. Though being stuck in traffic sucks everywhere.
Social... You'll hear much about the notorious Seattle Freeze... There is some truth to that. If I was to generalize, Seattleites are quiet, reticent, non confrontational (almost to a point of being passive-aggressive). A lot of people complain that is harder to make friends there. Nashville folks are pretty much the opposite (loud/very talkative, assertive and pretty social).
If you like urbanity, Seattle is it. Nashville has a long ways to go before they catch up.
Great food can be found in both, though Nashville is a lot more affordable; you get more for what you pay.
Nashville is better positioned for the road trips, a lot of other cities are accessible. Seattle you have Portland, Vancouver BC..... And Spokane.
Regarding road trips, it depends on what type of road trip someone is making. If it is just to go visit other cities, sure Nashville has more cities one can get to over a long weekend. But if it's a road trip to explore scenery as many do, then Seattle is the winner due to the jaw dropping dramatic scenery all around the area beginning directly in the metro area. Road trips to glacier-laden volcanic peaks like Mount Rainier or Mount Baker, through the jagged mountains known as the American Alps in the North Cascades National Park, through the mountainous rain forests of the Olympic peninsula, along the dramatic pacific coastlines of Washington and Oregon, among countless others. One just won't find anything like that anywhere near Nashville- so again I can't say which is "better" as that is all up to the OP's personal preference, but I am just stating that many people take road trips to explore places like these, not just to visit other cities, so Seattle is a road trip heavy weight in that regard.
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