Portland vs. Seattle (live, best, cost, better)

[californialove24]

Which city is better falling in the Category of Food, Coffee(I Think), Public Trans, Downtowns, Traffic, Weather, and Which place would be better for Living in ?

[Hoarfrost]

Portland has better PT. Seattle doesn't have LR yet, which surprised me. But they're adding a line this year with more to come. Don't know about food and coffee, though I imagine everyone in pretty much both cities stays wired, Seattle seems to be known more for it's coffee and Portland known for it's brew. Oregon's economy is terrible, but the major Seattle employers like Boeing, MS, Amazon, etc. aren't hiring.

Overall, I'd live in either, but would give the slight nod to Seattle for seeming a little larger and being conveniently centralised in the PNW.

[GDK94]

Food- Seattle
Coffee- Seattle
Public Trans- Portland
Downtowns- Seattle
Traffic- Portland
Weather- Portland
Which place would be better for Living in? IMO, Seattle.

[krudmonk]

Portland is a little more Californian so that automatically makes it better.

[californialove24]

Originally Posted by GDK94

Food- Seattle
Coffee- Seattle
Public Trans- Portland
Downtowns- Seattle
Traffic- Portland
Weather- Portland
Which place would be better for Living in? IMO, Seattle.

Good List, How about which city has better Scenery?

[GDK94]

Originally Posted by californialove24

Good List, How about which city has better Scenery?

for scenery? hard to say...but i'll give the nod to portland on that one.

[californialove24]

Northwest and North East have a lot in common except the Cities!

[JHG722]

Seattle, because it has a baseball team.

[irishimm]

I actually find Portland to be a lot more soulful, and the downtown is way more compact and easy to navigate (better for a night on the town drinking). It seems you can get anywhere in the NW and SW quadrant pretty easily, small blocks and many distinct areas...

Now Seattle is a way more international city with more of a "big city" feel in its downtown and a more varied economy, but its also feels more sprawled out. The neighborhoods themselves are walkable, but getting between neighborhoods is not convenient (e.g. say you want to go from Georgetown to Ballard or Greenwood, itll be at least a $25 cab ride, or at least 2 very long bus rides). Seattle also seems a lot more regulated and less free-spirited. Seattlites seem more self-important and cliquey. However, Seattle's neighborhoods also feel more distinct, and the "type of people" in Seattle seems to vary much more than in Portland.

Some pluses for Seattle are its more picturesque qualities and that it has a larger and more varied metropolitan area...

Both cities have great coffee and beer, IMO. Two of the best in the country.

Also, Seattle overall has more bars, but the ones in Portland tend to be more fun, IMO. Although Seattle does have many great music venues.

One last thing is that I find Seattle a much more difficult city to figure out. Portland has a much more traditional urban layout, while Seattle's urban character can be hard to pinpoint at times. Again, much harder to put your finger on the pulse of Seattle, which I think adds to its mystique.

[eskercurve]

Hmmm, this is difficult.

I live in Seattle and have to agree with ^^ that it can be a hard city to figure out. But that is just what makes it more interesting.

Seattle, on a clear day like today, you can see Mt. Rainier, Mt. Hood, Mt. St. Helens, the Cascades, and the Olympics.

But then again Portland has the Colombia River gorge and tons of natural beauty nearby too. Mountains to the north as well.

Cost of living ... I think Portland is more affordable. That's one reason why a lot of artists have moved out of Seattle, they can't afford it anymore.

I'll just go with what I know - Seattle. I have liked Portland but I'm uncertain whether I would want to live there.