San Francisco vs. Seattle
Software Developers. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 15-1252
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
San Francisco's median is 10.4% higher — but after local prices, San Francisco still leads by 6.8%.
San Francisco's median $186,640 buys $161,400 at national prices (price parity 115.6); Seattle's $167,280 buys $150,500 (111.1).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is Seattle against San Francisco.
| San Francisco | Seattle | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 69,030 | 92,770 | +34.4% |
| 10th percentile | $128,090 | $99,190 | −22.6% |
| 25th percentile | $163,500 | $132,800 | −18.8% |
| Median | $186,640 | $167,280 | −10.4% |
| 75th percentile | $219,670 | $211,860 | −3.6% |
| 90th percentile | $273,400 | $257,960 | −5.6% |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Price parity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
- Full pages
- Software Developers in San Francisco · Software Developers in Seattle
Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.