Minneapolis vs Chicago vs Seattle vs New York vs San Francisco PROS and CONS (living, best)
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So I want to move to one of these cities but not sure which on yet. I just want peoples impressions of these cities, from people who have visited any of them. Some pros and cons from your experiences in this city would be nice, not just saying NYC has high rent because anyone could tell me that. What did you hate or love about any of these cities
I can help a bit, as I've lived in 2, have family in 2, and have visited all of them (I'll list one major PRO and CON for each):
Minneapolis PRO: the water/outdoors culture of the city, which seeps into just about every aspect of the city/region
Minneapolis CON: surprisingly not the weather, but the sense of provincialism or holding back from being big/great
Chicago PRO: the culture of the city and its people. Chicago feels big, fun, exciting, fulfilling, edgy, and great, all in one
Chicago CON: the rudeness of people. Whether it's prejudice or just plain rudeness, it's almost everywhere and pervasive
Seattle PRO: how progressive the city is, from politics to legalization (weed, gay marriage) to the people
Seattle CON: how snotty people seem to be. Seattlites seem overly content with where they live and act like they're in love with their own little corner of the country
NYC PRO: the sheer size and awesomeness of everything, which is on a scale so massive it's hard to take in
NYC CON: the sheer size and awesomeness of everything, which is on a scale so massive it's hard to take in
SF PRO: the beauty is remarkable, from the weather to the architecture to the people to the food. It's stunning
SF CON: So liberal it sometimes makes me want to gag (and I'm a Liberal). People like to shove their ideals down your throat sometimes
I can help a bit, as I've lived in 2, have family in 2, and have visited all of them (I'll list one major PRO and CON for each):
Minneapolis PRO: the water/outdoors culture of the city, which seeps into just about every aspect of the city/region
Minneapolis CON: surprisingly not the weather, but the sense of provincialism or holding back from being big/great
Chicago PRO: the culture of the city and its people. Chicago feels big, fun, exciting, fulfilling, edgy, and great, all in one
Chicago CON: the rudeness of people. Whether it's prejudice or just plain rudeness, it's almost everywhere and pervasive
Seattle PRO: how progressive the city is, from politics to legalization (weed, gay marriage) to the people
Seattle CON: how snotty people seem to be. Seattlites seem overly content with where they live and act like they're in love with their own little corner of the country
NYC PRO: the sheer size and awesomeness of everything, which is on a scale so massive it's hard to take in
NYC CON: the sheer size and awesomeness of everything, which is on a scale so massive it's hard to take in
SF PRO: the beauty is remarkable, from the weather to the architecture to the people to the food. It's stunning
SF CON: So liberal it sometimes makes me want to gag (and I'm a Liberal). People like to shove their ideals down your throat sometimes
Interesting topic. I left out Minneapolis because it is not in the same league as the other cities! I've visited all the these cities multiple times.
Here's how I would rank them:
1) Chicago: this is what I would call a "complete city". Great public transport, lots of outdoor and indoor activities and surprisingly affordable for a BIG city. I never get bored here, there is always something happening in this city.
2) NYC: what can I say about this city that has not been said 100s of times? I've been overawed every-time I have visited the city.
3) Seattle: definitely one of the more scenic big cities. You could be hiking in the wilderness within minutes of being downtown. Great seafood in the city! Bonus: ever-beautiful Vancouver is a short drive away.
4) SFO: in one word: over-hyped! Don't get me wrong, it is still a great city, but as a tourist, I didn't feel that SFO lived up to all the hoopla I had been hearing. Food is great and the city is scenic in parts. But I got the feeling that the city over-sells it's attractions.
^Minneapolis and Seattle are the same size in both population and economy, they have similar transit infrastructure and amenities and Minneapolis has twice as many Fortune 500 companies, more professional sports, and a lower cost of living. There may not be two more evenly-matched cities in the country.
If anything, Minneapolis and Seattle are not in the same league as Chicago, NYC, and San Francisco, but I reject that line of thinking out of hand, because bigger is not the same as better and because everyone wants something different from a city.
All are great cities. I'd say Chicago you get the most bang for your buck there. Minneapolis has the cheapest COL, and Seattle and Chicago are very similar next, and then San Francisco followed by NYC being most expensive (though San Fran and NYC may very well be close now).
The weather pros to for Seattle and San Fran is that it never really gets cold. However, it never really gets very warm either (usually under 80 degrees at the year's height). They're both very temperate, though San Francisco is definitely the least changing year round of the bunch. NYC, Minneapolis, and Chicago have varied climates with Minneapolis being coldest in the winter, then Chicago, then NYC. Chicago and NYC have very similar weather between about April and October and Minneapolis isn't terribly far behind. Chicago, San Fran, NYC, and Seattle all have beaches and Chicago's in the middle of summer is not that cold in reality (may very well be warmer than all on the list). Minneapolis has a lot of lakes in the area too and Seattle and San Fran have mountains not far away (though Chicago and Minneapolis have ski areas within short drives). Minneapolis gets the most snow, followed by Chicago, NYC, Seattle, and then San Fran (Seattle and San Fran don't really get a ton of snow).
NYC has by far the most extensive public transit in the US, but second is Chicago (and 2nd in the US ), and then Seattle/San Fran, followed by Minneapolis. Food I would say NYC and Chicago are close at the top, though NYC may edge it out, followed by San Fran, then Seattle, then Minneapolis...although I'd say San Fran and NYC probably have the best Asian food of the bunch with Seattle not far behind, and Chicago not far behind that..and then Minneapolis not terribly far behind that.
What else? NYC and Chicago are big nightlife/drinking cities. Drinking establishments don't have to close until 4am in both NYC and Chicago, although on Saturday's Chicago places can stay open until 5am. San Francisco is 3am while Minneapolis and Seattle are 2am. NYC and Chicago have the most varied nightlife, although NYC has the most of it for virtue of being the largest city.
Museum types of stuff, I'd probably put NYC on top with Chicago/San Fran in second, and then Seattle/Minneapolis in 3rd (though Minneapolis has the most theaters per capita of any larger city I believe, but out of this group it's actually the smallest city by a few hundred thousand).
^Minneapolis and Seattle are the same size in both population and economy, they have similar transit infrastructure and amenities and Minneapolis has twice as many Fortune 500 companies, more professional sports, and a lower cost of living. There may not be two more evenly-matched cities in the country.
For MSA, yes the populations are similar (Seattle larger by about 500,000 people) but actually for cities, Seattle has over 250,000 more people than Minneapolis does. I wouldn't say their transit infrastructure is the same. Perhaps for highway/interstate stuff, but Seattle has superior public transit IMO.
Why would city population mean anything? That's a totally arbitrary measurement. And what are you talking about, King County is hardly "superior" to MetroTransit.
There's already a Minneapolis vs. Seattle thread. If you want to bash MSP, do it there.
Interesting topic. I left out Minneapolis because it is not in the same league as the other cities! I've visited all the these cities multiple times.
Here's how I would rank them:
1) Chicago: this is what I would call a "complete city". Great public transport, lots of outdoor and indoor activities and surprisingly affordable for a BIG city. I never get bored here, there is always something happening in this city.
2) NYC: what can I say about this city that has not been said 100s of times? I've been overawed every-time I have visited the city.
3) Seattle: definitely one of the more scenic big cities. You could be hiking in the wilderness within minutes of being downtown. Great seafood in the city! Bonus: ever-beautiful Vancouver is a short drive away.
4) SFO: in one word: over-hyped! Don't get me wrong, it is still a great city, but as a tourist, I didn't feel that SFO lived up to all the hoopla I had been hearing. Food is great and the city is scenic in parts. But I got the feeling that the city over-sells it's attractions.
It's hard to imagine that anyone who has frequently visited all five of these cities (or at least has taken the time to explore the available urban amenities) would exclude Minneapolis while keeping Seattle in the company of the other three cities--yet alone place Seattle above San Francisco! I've lived in Seattle, and I currently live in Minneapolis. I prefer the latter for its advantages in fine arts, professional sports (you'll need that trip to Vancouver for an NHL game and one to Portland for the NBA.) and seasonal changes. However, Seattle is a wonderful city with one of the most beautiful natural settings in the world.
The simple fact is that, from virtually any objective perspective, San Francisco and Chicago are not in the same league with New York; and Minneapolis and Seattle are not in the same league with any of the other three.
How did you gather that from what I wrote? Try answering the post next time instead of implanting your own ideals onto somebody else.
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