Seattle, Washington

Life in Seattle, Washington, explained by people who’ve lived in Seattle:



*Click here to share your experience living in Seattle*

*Response format = Answer (Your name, How long you’ve lived in Seattle)


Seattle Favorites

What’s your favorite thing about living in Seattle?

  • All the shops. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • Easy access to everything. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Culture. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Rich culture, seafood, Seahawks/Mariners spirit, so many things to see and do, it’s ridiculous. (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Quick access to hiking places. (Heather, 19 years)
  • Liberals. (Susan, 30 years)
  • Nature. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • Summer days. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • No bugs. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle Least Favorites

What’s your least favorite thing about living in Seattle?

  • How dirty it is. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • The over population and high prices of rent. And bad traffic. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Traffic. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Arrogant, naive liberals: politics in general are screwed up. Traffic. Homeless (Although it has gotten a bit better recently). (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Traffic downtown. (Heather, 19 years)
  • Traffic. (Susan, 30 years)
  • Traffic. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • Cost of living. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • People complaining about the weather. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle Things To Do

What are fun things to do in Seattle?

  • Space needle. Crab pot. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • Pacific place, pike place, Nectar lounge. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Happy hours, shows, hiking. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Ride the Ducks, ride one of the many ferries, go to a Seahawks or Mariners game, visit a plethora of historical sites, go fishing, eat at any Ivars (the best but most expensive is the Salmon House), go up the Columbia Tower but be prepared to pay a criminal amount to go to the observatory deck (which USED to be free…), the gum wall, Pike Place market (if you wanna be labeled a tourist, call it “Pike’s Place” market), Seattle Science Center, the Chihuly exhibit, there’s so freaking much to do. (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Catch a ferry ride. (Heather, 19 years)
  • Pike Place Market. (Susan, 30 years)
  • Pike place, Seahawks games, space needle, Fremont troll. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • Take a ferry, discover nature, get out of Seattle. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • Hike, bike, boat, veg out. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle’s Reputation

What’s Seattle known for?

  • Starbucks. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • Space needle, pike place. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Art. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Rain, Seahawks, coffee. (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Rain. (Heather, 19 years)
  • Kurt Cobain. (Susan, 30 years)
  • Coffee. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • Amazon and Starbucks. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • Rain, unfortunately. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle Crime

What’s the crime like in Seattle? (hot spot areas, etc.)

  • Downtown Aurora Ave. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • Moderate to low. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Bell town most dangerous neighborhood. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • It’s ok. Better than the more populated cities in the US, but worse than almost everywhere else in the state (whatever you do, STAY AWAY from Tacoma!!!). (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Belltown, feels unsafe at night. (Heather, 19 years)
  • Nothing special. (Susan, 30 years)
  • Some bad areas some not. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • Depends on where you live. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • Like any big city; no better, no worse. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle Advice

Any advice for people moving to Seattle?

  • Keep your head up and purses close. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • Don’t! It’s over populated and way too expensive. Move to a smaller town. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Live in the suburbs and take a bus into the city. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Don’t, unless you can afford it, and unless you can tolerate the crazy backwards liberals, drunks, and druggies. Be safe, don’t be alone at night. (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Live near public transport access or else you have to drive everywhere. (Heather, 19 years)
  • It’s expensive. (Susan, 30 years)
  • It costs a lot and be prepared for the crazy weather. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • Don’t do it – it’s too expensive. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • Bring money or plan a long commute. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle Stories

Share an experience you’ve had in Seattle (fun, crazy, dangerous, etc.).

  • Going to a Seahawks game, best fans around. Wear ear plugs cause we get loud, Go Haaaawwwwwkkssss! (Joseph, 3 years)
  • New Year’s Eve and 4th of July at the needle. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • Seeing famous people every once in a while. I’ve seen Dave Matthews, and I’ve met John Popper. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Going to Mariners games with my dad and family in the old Kingdome, I remember the live tv event when they blew it down. Went to the Seahawks/Cardinals game on December 31st, 2017, and had a BLAST despite the unfortunate anti-climactic ending. Grew up going to the Seattle Science Center, once won an essay contest at my school and got to attend an exclusive science event there. SO many memories in Seattle, it’s a great place. (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Was part of a photoshoot downtown, on a scavenger hunt, and the No Pant’s Subway day. (Heather, 19 years)
  • I moved here to try it out & never left. (Susan, 30 years)
  • Any Seahawks game. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • I saw Nirvana open for Sonic Youth and I also watched Pearl Jam play live together for the first time. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • Flying in the PNW for 20 years. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle’s Future

How do you think Seattle will change over the next 10 years?

  • Hopefully it will get better. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • There won’t be anywhere to live anymore. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • More condos and expensive apartment buildings. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Get more expensive and crowded. (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Difficult to find a reasonable rental cost. (Heather, 19 years)
  • More traffic. (Susan, 30 years)
  • People will move because of the cost. (Chrissy, 32 years)
  • It’ll get too pricey for most natives and the only people who will be able to stay will have to have high paying jobs. Neighborhoods will become riddled with overpriced restaurants and diversity will go away. Seattle is doomed. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • Become more congested and expensive. (Bob, 58 years)

Seattle Facts

Any other interesting facts about Seattle?

  • Yup, Jimmy hendricks is from Seattle. (Joseph, 3 years)
  • The old city of Seattle burnt down and they built the new Seattle right on top of the old city. (Whitney, 3 years)
  • The origin of grunge music and so many bands and musicians. (Hannah, 4 years)
  • Bill Nye got his start in an SNL-like show filmed in Seattle called “Almost Live,” strictly for folks familiar with Seattle (lots of Seattle jokes). I loved his “Speed Walker” bit lol. Seattle was also the first city in the world to have a floating bridge (yes, it floats on the water). (Anonymous, 19 years)
  • Rains more there than in Dublin. (Heather, 19 years)
  • Take The Underground Tour and find out about the history of the city. (Susan, 30 years)
  • There’s no tax on groceries. (Rachel, 36 years)
  • The common wisdom about the weather is wrong. (Bob, 58 years)