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Seattle- bigger city, more economic opportunities, arguably prettier location on the Sound, three major sports teams (if that's important to you), traffic is much worse than portland and it is a lot more expensive
Portland- smaller, less traffic, better public transit, fewer economic opportunities, less cosmopolitan.
Both offer great outdoor activities. Portland has closer proximity to different climates (the high desert of central oregon).
They are actually very similar- the biggest difference is size and the benefits/costs involved in being in a bigger city.
I live in the Midwest, about 10 of my co-workers went to Portland, and they went on and on and on. My guess, have been to neither, is that Portland is a little under appreciated, and Seattle gets the ..."cool place", but not as up and coming as Portland.
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