Seattle vs Denver vs Raleigh (living, best, cost, state)
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Hello all, these three cities are currently grabbing my attention. in an attempt to learn more about them and their differences im making this poll! I suppose it could also be viewed as West Coast vs Midwest/Front Range vs East Coast. So out of the three which would you rather live in and why? If you'd like to know about me I'm a young guy coming out of college soon from the north east. I love nature and outdoor activites and im socially liberal yet fiscally conservative. Thanks!
Last edited by hello_im_sean; 04-26-2013 at 12:39 PM..
If you're socially liberal, Raleigh might not be the best place. It's a red state. I've been there and it's nice, but it's growing so rapidly that its infrastrcuture can't handle it...lots of traffic. Denver offers the best of both worlds - all the amentities of a city but in just a few minutes you can be in the country hiking, biking or even skiing.
Dont pick what you think is best for me per se.. i'm more curious about why you like one of these cities over the other for your own reasons. I don't let the political slant of a place deter me either. i agree though Denver seems like a good hybrid between the two! Personal issue i have with Denver is from what i hear the winters are kind of miserable and it isn't very green, and by that i mean little vegetation compared to the other two.
Personal issue i have with Denver is from what i hear the winters are kind of miserable and it isn't very green, and by that i mean little vegetation compared to the other two.
Coming from the north east, you will love the weather in Denver. I'm from southern New England and moved to Denver 9 years ago, and I think the weather is much better here. Yes, winters are technically longer, but there are far more warmer days and sunny days in the winter than in the north east. There is virtually no humidity, so the cold doesn't cause the same "bone chilling" pain that you experience there. It does get cold here, don't get me wrong, but we generally don't get those long stretches of frigid temperatures that I'm used to experiencing in New England.
The biggest drawback in the Denver area is the lack of vegetation. Yes, the grass along the highways will be brown most of the year. It's gorgeous right now after all of our recent snowfall, and it could potentially stay green through monsoon season (July), but then it starts to turn brown, and might stay that way until the following Spring.
Seattle is nice and green, but I'm not a fan of the weather. It technically gets less rain than some other cities in the north east, but it rains far more often.
Raleigh is a nice little city, but I don't think I could handle the weather there either. It's hot and humid for way too long, and there are lots of bugs. Plus, I'd miss the snow. A few inches a year is not enough for me; I love big snowstorms.
For me, I prefer Denver. I love the city itself and the weather here is great. It's certainly not perfect, but I like it well enough. I actually live in the foothills (at 8700 ft), so I don't have to deal with the summer heat. I'd rather stay inside if it's above 80 degrees outside , so it's great living in the foothills where it's rarely above 75. I also love how many parks and hiking area's there are here. I only had a few places where I could take a hike near my hometown in New England, but out here, there are easily 50-100 places to hike within an hour of my house. I pass multiple "open space parks" on my way to work, and that's just awesome.
Between Denver and Seattle, I actually found Seattle's winters to be much more miserable. Denver's winters are very capricious, it's not unusual for it to snow and then be near 60 F and sunny three days later, so it's actually not all that bad. Although, it's not exactly unusual for the opposite to happen either, and it can be below 0 for a week straight or something. Denver is just very random. Seattle is more temperate but it has a solid 4-5 months of almost nothing but overcast, and combined with the shorter sunlight hours being further north, it's a very dark place.
Also, the cost of living is much lower in Denver. My apartment in Capitol Hill would have probably been around 1.5 to 2 times more expensive in a comparable neighborhood in Seattle. Also, Denver's public transit is amazing, much better than Seattle's (unless Seattle has changed significantly since I lived there 8 years ago or so) and the flatness has the advantage of making the city much more bike-friendly.
I've never lived in Raleigh, so I can't comment on that.
I choose Raleigh.. NC is one of my favorite states, and with the exception certain places here and there, I dont really like the Western US.. soo it was quite obvious for me.
For me, I would rank them in order of desirability Denver, Seattle, Raleigh. I like Raleigh but the other two are just more desirable.
Between Denver and Seattle, that is very tough. I've looked at both cities and thought (dreamed?) of relocating to both. The advantages of Denver would be the cost of living, weather, and more centralized to visit my family. Speaking of traveling, rates out of Denver seem cheaper to everywhere. I'm not sure why. The weather in Seattle is fine. Everyone knows it is mild with frequent rainfall, predominately in the winter. Thinking about it specifically though it seems less attractive to me. Temps in the 40s with rain isn't that appealing to me. Cold temps when it is damp or humid seem to penetrate to your bones. Denver gets much colder but with the low humidity and plentiful sunshine, it's normally not bad. I kinda like snowfall too. I used to live in SLC and miss the snow so Denver is similar.
Cost of living is huge though. I'm gay and both Seattle and Denver both have very gay friendly neighborhoods named Capitol Hill. I can search craigslist for apartments and find many for less than 800. To get the same level of choices in apartments in Seattle, You need to up the price to around 1200 or higher.
Traffic is much better in Denver as well. Seattle is well known as a traffic nightmare. Denver is fairly logically laid out and easy to get around.
I find the area around Denver beautiful but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I like the variety of plains meeting the mountains. I actually even love the plains all by themselves which isn't something everyone likes. There is no contest though in that Seattle is much prettier. The green hills, the water, the distant mountains. It is a location tough for anyone to beat. On a negative note, when you look at streets in Seattle on google maps street view, it appears to be the power line capital of the world. Power lines are fugly but I wouldn't let that be a determining factor. I only find it surprising.
Denver is a little faster growing too (than Seattle) and I like that. I like the newness and the feeling of it being a city of the future. Seattle and Raleigh but fit this too with Raleigh growing faster than Denver. I think all three have bright futures.
People in Denver are very friendly, nicer than Seattle. Seattle has the infamous Seattle freeze thing going on. Never been to Raleigh but I would think people would be friendly there.
If the cost of living between Denver and Seattle were then same, I'd probably pick Seattle. The COL isn't the same and I don't feel the pluses of Seattle are worth the price over Denver. Denver has the Broncos too. I love NFL and the Denver Broncos have always been my team. Even people who don't like football can like the Broncos since Eric Decker is the hottest man on earth.
Between Denver and Seattle, I actually found Seattle's winters to be much more miserable. Denver's winters are very capricious, it's not unusual for it to snow and then be near 60 F and sunny three days later, so it's actually not all that bad. Although, it's not exactly unusual for the opposite to happen either, and it can be below 0 for a week straight or something. Denver is just very random. Seattle is more temperate but it has a solid 4-5 months of almost nothing but overcast, and combined with the shorter sunlight hours being further north, it's a very dark place.
Also, the cost of living is much lower in Denver. My apartment in Capitol Hill would have probably been around 1.5 to 2 times more expensive in a comparable neighborhood in Seattle. Also, Denver's public transit is amazing, much better than Seattle's (unless Seattle has changed significantly since I lived there 8 years ago or so) and the flatness has the advantage of making the city much more bike-friendly.
I've never lived in Raleigh, so I can't comment on that.
Seattle's transit has improved in the last 8 years and several new lines are under construction. Unlike Denver, Seattle's Light Rail is mostly underground or grade-separated, which is a big plus. Seattle also has a much better bus system (and twice the bus ridership), and I would argue it is a much more pedestrian friendly city than Denver. All that said, currently Denver's light rail has better coverage and is superior. But I don't think that will last for long.
Between Denver and Seattle, I actually found Seattle's winters to be much more miserable. Denver's winters are very capricious, it's not unusual for it to snow and then be near 60 F and sunny three days later, so it's actually not all that bad. Although, it's not exactly unusual for the opposite to happen either, and it can be below 0 for a week straight or something. Denver is just very random. Seattle is more temperate but it has a solid 4-5 months of almost nothing but overcast, and combined with the shorter sunlight hours being further north, it's a very dark place.
Also, the cost of living is much lower in Denver. My apartment in Capitol Hill would have probably been around 1.5 to 2 times more expensive in a comparable neighborhood in Seattle. Also, Denver's public transit is amazing, much better than Seattle's (unless Seattle has changed significantly since I lived there 8 years ago or so) and the flatness has the advantage of making the city much more bike-friendly.
I've never lived in Raleigh, so I can't comment on that.
The light rail in Denver is great for getting you to downtown. However, for travel in and near the core, it is pretty much useless.
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, so it's great living in the foothills where it's rarely above 75. I also love how many parks and hiking area's there are here. I only had a few places where I could take a hike near my hometown in New England, but out here, there are easily 50-100 places to hike within an hour of my house. I pass multiple "open space parks" on my way to work, and that's just awesome.
