Seattle vs. Other Washington Cities: How Location Affects Home Prices

Seattle is expensive, but it’s not automatically the highest-priced option in every Washington or Seattle-metro comparison. In statewide rankings and even around the Seattle metro area, some cities come in well below Seattle while others exceed it, so buyers should use these comparisons to understand affordability bands rather than assume Seattle is always the top of the market.

This article uses Zillow typical home value data at the city level to help you compare those price ranges and narrow your search based on budget and lifestyle tradeoffs. It’s a practical way to screen locations, not a final buying decision, because neighborhood-level differences and total monthly housing costs still matter.

Home Price Comparison for Washington Cities

Let’s start with the state as a whole. Zillow data shows that home values in Washington vary considerably from one market to another.

But when we drill down to the individual cities, we find a much broader pricing spectrum.

As you can see, Bellevue home prices are some of the highest among the major cities, and by a fairly wide margin.

At the other end of the spectrum, the eastern Washington city of Spokane has some of the lowest home prices in the state. The neighboring city of Spokane Valley also has fairly low house values by Washington standards.

(Note: These numbers will likely change by the time you read this guide. But they’ll still help you understand how the different cities compare to one another in terms of affordability. Zillow values updated August 31, 2026.)

Seattle Metro Area Breakdown

Next, we zoom in on the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area to analyze the home-price spectrum among major cities in the region.

Home prices across the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area vary considerably from one city to the next. But here again, we can find a lot of diversity if we look at individual cities.

Key insights and conclusions we can draw from the above data:

1. Home prices cover a broad spectrum.

There’s a considerable spread in Zillow typical home values across cities located in the Seattle metro area. They range from $488,463 in Tacoma to $1,516,014 in Sammamish. Home buyers have diverse housing options and price points to choose from.

2. Seattle is not the most expensive city.

Many people who are exploring this area assume that Seattle is the most expensive city in terms of home prices. After all, it’s called the “Seattle metro area.” So it’s natural to think that the most prominent city would have the highest home prices.

But that’s not the case. Zillow’s typical home value for Seattle is $833,192 as of August 31, 2026, which is high relative to some nearby cities but not the highest in this metro-area comparison.

3. Some of the highest prices are in the Eastside.

For those who aren’t familiar with the term, the “Eastside” refers to the cluster of cities located east of Lake Washington, across the lake from the city of Seattle. The Eastside Seattle housing market includes the cities of Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Issaquah, Sammamish, and Bothell, among others.

Several Eastside cities have Zillow typical home values that exceed the $1 million mark. These include Bellevue ($1,418,231), Issaquah ($1,106,443), Kirkland ($1,178,291), Redmond ($1,315,884), and Sammamish ($1,516,014). For buyers, the practical takeaway is that many Eastside cities fall into a higher price tier than Seattle itself, so expanding a search east of Lake Washington may increase access to certain neighborhoods or commute patterns while also raising the budget needed to compete.

4. The south end is generally more affordable.

Some of the cities located south of Seattle offer more affordable options for home buyers who want to stay within the metro area. They include Auburn ($598,170), Federal Way ($586,172), Kent ($635,965), and Tacoma ($488,463).

Those price gaps can be useful when deciding where to search, but they should be treated as a starting point rather than a final answer. A lower city median might create a more manageable monthly payment range, while a higher-priced city might offer tradeoffs a buyer still values, such as a shorter commute, a different housing mix, or a preferred location. The main goal is to use these city-level comparisons to narrow your search into realistic budget bands and then evaluate neighborhoods, taxes, insurance, HOA dues, and commute-related costs before making a decision.

Have Questions About Mortgages?

Sammamish Mortgage can help. We serve clients across Washington, Idaho, Colorado, Oregon, and California. Since 1992, we’ve been providing several mortgage programs and products with flexible qualification criteria to borrowers across the Pacific Northwest. Visit our website to get an instant rate quote or to use our online mortgage calculator. Or, reach out to us if you are ready to get pre-approved for a mortgage.