What is the median rent in Seattle, WA?

Name: Median rent in Seattle, WA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Seattle, WA is $2,030 (±$22) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 200,611 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Seattle, the median gross rent went from $1,614 in 2015–2019 to $2,030 in 2020–2024 (+25.8%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $2,030 (±$22)
Rented homes: 200,611 (±2,782)
$2,000 or more: 51.3%
Since 2015–2019: +25.8%

How much rent costs in Seattle

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Seattle	King County	Washington	United States
Less than $500	4.6% (±0.5 points)	4.0%	4.6%	6.3%
$500 to $999	4.2% (±0.4 points)	3.8%	10.4%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	14.1% (±0.7 points)	12.8%	21.4%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	25.8% (±0.9 points)	25.0%	26.2%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	21.3% (±0.8 points)	23.6%	18.7%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	12.9% (±0.7 points)	13.6%	9.1%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	17.1% (±0.9 points)	17.2%	9.5%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,500 to $1,999, paid by 25.8% of renting households.

51.3% of rented homes in Seattle cost $2,000 or more a month.

Seattle against King County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Seattle	King County	Washington	United States
Median gross rent	$2,030 (±$22)	$2,092 (±$13)	$1,760 (±$7)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	200,611 (±2,782)	410,579 (±3,934)	1,070,508 (±7,137)	42,849,984

In Seattle, median gross rent is lower than in King County ($2,092).

It is also higher than in Washington ($1,760).

It is higher than the national figure ($1,413).

In King County, Seattle ranks 32 of 54 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 89 of 417.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Seattle has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$1,614 (±$17)	$2,030 (±$22)	+25.8%	Up after inflation
Households that rent	54.3% (±0.5 points)	56.3% (±0.6 points)	+2.0 percentage points	Measurable increase
Rental vacancy rate	3.1% (±0.4 points)	6.1% (±0.6 points)	+3.0 percentage points	Measurable increase

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Seattle

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Seattle
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Seattle	—	$2,030 (±$22)	—
Medina	5.1 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Clyde Hill	6.3 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Yarrow Point	6.4 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Mercer Island	6.8 mi	$2,502 (±$191)	Higher
Beaux Arts Village	7.3 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Bainbridge Island	7.4 mi	$2,194 (±$239)	Not measurably different
Boulevard Park	7.5 mi	$1,848 (±$252)	Not measurably different
White Center	7.6 mi	$1,595 (±$127)	Lower

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: White Center, WA ($1,595).

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Mercer Island, WA ($2,502).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across King County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
26	Fairwood (King County)	$2,233 (±$103)
27	Covington	$2,232 (±$272)
28	Carnation	$2,175 (±$935)
29	North Bend	$2,091 (±$405)
30	Mirrormont	$2,083 (±$1,012)
31	Duvall	$2,042 (±$1,129)
32	Seattle	$2,030 (±$22)
33	Lake Morton-Berrydale	$2,017 (±$775)
34	Renton	$1,998 (±$64)
35	Shoreline	$1,985 (±$75)
36	Enumclaw	$1,954 (±$215)
37	Kenmore	$1,949 (±$121)
38	Kent	$1,909 (±$48)

Showing 13 of 54 places in King County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Seattle

What is the average rent in Seattle, WA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Seattle is $2,030 (±$22) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Seattle?

In Seattle, the median gross rent went from $1,614 in 2015–2019 to $2,030 in 2020–2024 (+25.8%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

How many rentals in Seattle cost more than $2,000 a month?

51.3% of rented homes in Seattle have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 4.6% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Seattle higher than in King County?

In Seattle, median gross rent is lower than in King County ($2,092).

It is also higher than in Washington ($1,760).

It is higher than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Seattle city, Washington (place:63000, in state:53).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.