For the second year in a row, a study by CoworkingCafe ranked Seattle among the top large cities for starting a career. This year, the Emerald City came in third, edged out only by Atlanta and San Francisco.
CoworkingCafe scored the cities across three broad categories — employment, financial and lifestyle — which were each comprised of three sub-categories, including jobs for recent graduates, median graduate income, leisure establishment density and coworking-space density.
A Pacific Northwest haven for recent graduates
Seattle had a lot of things going for it in the latest survey: Entry-level jobs increased 6.8%, while the cost of living decreased to just 11.1% more than the national average. Employer-provided health insurance coverage increased to 78%, while degree attainment was steady at 65%.
The city also boasted a median income of $93,717 for graduates — higher than nearly any other large city in the country — plus 477 leisure establishments and 9 coworking spaces for every 100,000 residents.
“Seattle climbed three places to third among large cities this year, and what stands out is how broad-based the improvement was. While several Bay Area markets showed signs of strain from the tech sector’s broader recalibration (including higher youth unemployment in Sunnyvale and Santa Clara, and weaker degree-attainment and insurance metrics in Santa Clara), Seattle moved in the opposite direction on several key measures,” Balazs Szekely, co-author of CoworkingCafe’s report, told Seattle Agent.
“The city increased its share of entry-level professional roles to 6.8% of local jobs, while also posting 65% degree attainment among young adults, 78% employer-based health insurance coverage and regional price levels that eased to about 11% above the national average,” Szekely continued. “Youth unemployment did tick up to 6%, in line with other West Coast metros, but Seattle’s overall profile still looks unusually balanced for a high-cost tech market.”
Big-city opportunity, small-town scale
Among mid-size cities, Bellevue ranked No. 3: Nearly 7% of local jobs are suitable for recent grads, and employer health insurance coverage is near 85%. New grads in the city also outearn their Seattle counterparts, bringing in a median income of $102,000.
“Seattle isn’t the only Washington market rewarding new graduates, either,” Szekely added. “Bellevue, sitting at No. 3 among mid-sized cities, and Kirkland — a newcomer at No. 6 among small cities — give grads a foothold in the Pacific Northwest tech economy … Bellevue stands out for its bracket-leading benefits and 6.8% share of grad-suited jobs, while Kirkland offers similar upside with a smaller-city feel — though costs in both cities reflect the broader Seattle-area premium, running about 11% above the national average.”