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Travel budget

How much does a trip to Seattle cost?

What a trip to Seattle costs, worked out for your days and your party, with every price traced to where it comes from. And then the part most budgets skip: how to actually pay once you are there.

Food, getting around and sights in Seattle come to $150 – $180 per person per day. Accommodation, flights and the airport transfer are on top. Prices reviewed: November 2026.

Full Seattle guide

Your trip

How much money you still need

Days, people and how you like to travel decide almost everything. Flights are left out: they depend on where you start.

6 nights

Counted at the child fares each operator publishes.

Travel style

Set meals and the odd sit-down dinner, and one paid sight a day.

Accommodation

We have no sample of hotel prices for this city yet, so we will not guess one. Type what you have seen and the lodging tax is worked out from it.

Adjust accommodation, food and the rest

In local currency. We do not estimate this: nobody knows what you will buy.

Already paid for

You still need, flights aside

$2,100 – $2,500

$150 – $180 per person per day · 7 days and 2 people

Expected
$2,100 – $2,500
Most trips land in here
Set aside
$2,500
With this you are unlikely to run short
Cushion, kept apart
$230
10% of the trip
  • Food$1,100 – $1,400
  • Getting around$170 – $250
  • Airport, both ways$12
  • Sights and activities$490 – $770
  • Nights out$70 – $170
  • Lodging tax and odds and ends$86 – $120

Of that, in cash: $26 – $270

The cash share is our reading of how each kind of place takes payment, not a measurement. Your own bank may charge on top; this page cannot know that.

  • Accommodation is not in this figure. Add your price per night to include it.
  • Flights are not included.
  • You probably will not spend the cushion. Having it to hand covers a night you had not planned, a taxi, or a changed ticket.
Styles

What a day in Seattle costs, by how you travel

Per person per day, two travelling, without accommodation, flights or the airport transfer. A style is not a figure: it is a way of eating, getting around and seeing things, and each one is spelled out below.

Budget

$72 – $110 per person per day

Local food, public transport, the odd paid sight.

FoodLocal and cheap
$31 – $67
Getting aroundPublic transport
$12 – $18
Sights and activitiesThe odd paid sight
$18 – $28
Sundries: luggage storage, laundry, water
$3.00 – $5.60

Mid-range

$150 – $180 per person per day

Set meals and the odd sit-down dinner, and one paid sight a day.

FoodMixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner
$76 – $96
Getting aroundPublic transport
$12 – $18
Sights and activitiesOne paid sight a day
$35 – $55
Nights outNow and then
$5 – $12
Sundries: luggage storage, laundry, water
$6.10 – $8.50

Comfort

$240 – $300 per person per day

The best food level we can price, a taxi when it helps, two paid sights a day.

FoodRestaurants most of the time
$120 – $160
Getting aroundPublic transport, and a taxi now and then
$14 – $20
Sights and activitiesTwo paid sights a day
$70 – $110
Nights outNow and then
$5 – $12
Sundries: luggage storage, laundry, water
$10 – $15

A style's total is not the sum of the extremes of its lines: nobody has a trip where everything comes out cheap, or everything dear. “Sundries” is an assumption of ours, 5% of food, transport and sights, not a measurement.

By length of trip

How much money for 3, 5, 7, 10 and 14 days in Seattle

Per person, two travelling together, without accommodation or flights. It is not the daily figure times the days: airport transfers are paid once, so they weigh less the longer you stay.

DaysBudgetMid-rangeComfort
3$220 – $340
$74 – $110 a day		$450 – $540
$150 – $180 a day		$720 – $900
$240 – $300 a day
5$370 – $560
$74 – $110 a day		$730 – $880
$150 – $180 a day		$1,200 – $1,500
$240 – $300 a day
7$510 – $780
$73 – $110 a day		$1,000 – $1,200
$150 – $180 a day		$1,700 – $2,100
$240 – $300 a day
10$730 – $1,100
$73 – $110 a day		$1,500 – $1,800
$150 – $180 a day		$2,400 – $3,000
$240 – $300 a day
14$1,000 – $1,500
$73 – $110 a day		$2,100 – $2,500
$150 – $180 a day		$3,300 – $4,200
$240 – $300 a day

Add your accommodation in the calculator above: it is the largest line and the one we cannot source yet.

Prices

What things cost in Seattle

Eating and drinking: no official statistic measures what eating out costs here, so these are prices from the menu each place publishes on its own website, and each row says where it comes from. It is a sample, not an average: there are cheaper and dearer places, and tourist areas cost more.

WhatPriceSource
Eating and drinking
Coffee, 12 oz, Dick's Drive-In (counter)$2.00From the source Nov 2026
Drip coffee, Lowell's$4.50From the source Nov 2026
Classic breakfast: two eggs, hash browns and toast, Lowell's$15.00From the source Nov 2026
Deluxe burger (two 1/8-lb patties), Dick's Drive-In (counter)$5.75From the source Nov 2026
Fries, Dick's Drive-In (counter)$2.95From the source Nov 2026
Milkshake, 12 oz, Dick's Drive-In (counter)$4.05From the source Nov 2026
Clam chowder, bowl, Lowell's$16.00From the source Nov 2026
Clam chowder, small bowl, Duke's Seafood$16.90From the source Nov 2026
Fish and chips, Old Stove Brewing$24.50From the source Nov 2026
Fish and chips, Lowell's$25.00From the source Nov 2026
Fish and chips, one piece, Duke's Seafood$29.90From the source Nov 2026
Grilled king salmon, Lowell's$38.00From the source Nov 2026
Colonel Mustard wild salmon, Duke's Seafood$43.90From the source Nov 2026
Draught pilsner, 12 oz, Old Stove Brewing$7.00From the source Nov 2026
Draught pilsner, 16 oz, Old Stove Brewing$8.50From the source Nov 2026
Glass of wine, Lowell's$10.00From the source Nov 2026
Glass of wine, 6 oz, Old Stove Brewing$12.00From the source Nov 2026
Glass of riesling, 6 oz, Duke's Seafood$13.90From the source Nov 2026
Getting around
King County Metro bus, single fare$3.00From the source Nov 2026
Link light rail, single fare$3.00From the source Nov 2026
Regional Day Pass (ORCA card only; the card costs $3)$6.00From the source Nov 2026
Taxi, 4 km by day, not counting waiting time$8.90From the source Nov 2026
Link light rail, airport–downtown$3.00From the source Nov 2026
Sights
Space Needle, general admission, adult$35.00 – $55.00From the source Nov 2026
Chihuly Garden and Glass, adult$40.00 – $45.00From the source Nov 2026

Menu prices here exclude tax and tip: the budget adds the 10.55% sales tax to everything, plus a 15%–20% tip on what you eat or drink sitting down, the range the tourism office gives. The tip is a custom, not a measured price.

From the source means we read it where it is set: the operator, the bank, the city or the statistics office. Reported means a guide or the press says so and we have not seen the original. Where sources disagree we show both figures and leave the price out of every sum.

What each food level is made of

A food level is not a number we chose. It is two lists of dishes from the table above, a cheap day and a dear one, and the price is the sum.

Local and cheap
From Coffee, 12 oz, Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Deluxe burger (two 1/8-lb patties), Dick's Drive-In (counter) × 2 + Fries, Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Milkshake, 12 oz, Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Draught pilsner, 12 oz, Old Stove Brewing ($27.50 on the menu; $31.45 with tax and tip) to Classic breakfast: two eggs, hash browns and toast, Lowell's + Drip coffee, Lowell's + Deluxe burger (two 1/8-lb patties), Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Fries, Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Clam chowder, bowl, Lowell's + Draught pilsner, 16 oz, Old Stove Brewing ($52.70 on the menu; $67.06 with tax and tip).
Mixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner
From Classic breakfast: two eggs, hash browns and toast, Lowell's + Drip coffee, Lowell's + Deluxe burger (two 1/8-lb patties), Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Fries, Dick's Drive-In (counter) + Fish and chips, Old Stove Brewing + Draught pilsner, 16 oz, Old Stove Brewing ($61.20 on the menu; $75.53 with tax and tip) to Classic breakfast: two eggs, hash browns and toast, Lowell's + Drip coffee, Lowell's + Clam chowder, bowl, Lowell's + Fish and chips, one piece, Duke's Seafood + Draught pilsner, 16 oz, Old Stove Brewing ($73.90 on the menu; $96.48 with tax and tip).
Restaurants most of the time
From Classic breakfast: two eggs, hash browns and toast, Lowell's + Drip coffee, Lowell's + Fish and chips, Lowell's + Grilled king salmon, Lowell's + Glass of wine, Lowell's ($92.50 on the menu; $116 with tax and tip) to Classic breakfast: two eggs, hash browns and toast, Lowell's + Drip coffee, Lowell's + Clam chowder, small bowl, Duke's Seafood + Fish and chips, one piece, Duke's Seafood + Colonel Mustard wild salmon, Duke's Seafood + Glass of riesling, 6 oz, Duke's Seafood ($124 on the menu; $162 with tax and tip).
Accommodation

What the night costs, and the tax on top

There is no open source of hotel prices, and we have not sampled this city yet. So the calculator asks you for the price you have seen instead of printing one that looks plausible.

Lodging tax

    • 15.7% of the room price
Saving

What saves money in Seattle

Each line is a subtraction done with the prices on this page. No tricks: just the sum.

What saves

  • Eating “Mixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner” instead of “Restaurants most of the time”: $41 – $66 less per person per day.
  • Eating “Local and cheap” instead of “Mixed: set meals and one sit-down dinner”: $29 – $44 less per person per day.
  • “Coffee, 12 oz, Dick's Drive-In (counter)” ($2.00) instead of “Drip coffee, Lowell's” ($4.50): $2.50 less each time.
  • “Fish and chips, Old Stove Brewing” ($24.50) instead of “Fish and chips, one piece, Duke's Seafood” ($29.90): $5.40 less each time.
Paying

Payments and tipping in the United States

What holds for the whole country: whether to tip.

Tipping

RestaurantsCustomary
Bars and cafésCustomary
HotelsCustomary
TaxisCustomary

If something goes wrong

The numbers and where to go, as the official source publishes them.

Police
911
Fire and ambulance
911

What applies to any trip: before you go, and if you lose your card

Questions

Questions about money in Seattle

How much money do you need for a week in Seattle?

For seven days, $1,000 – $1,200 per person on the “Mid-range” style with two travelling. Accommodation and flights are not included. The airport transfer, there and back, is included.

How much money do you need for 3 days in Seattle?

For 3 days, $450 – $540 per person on the “Mid-range” style with two travelling. Accommodation and flights are not included. The airport transfer, there and back, is included.

What is a realistic daily budget in Seattle?

Per person per day, without accommodation or flights: $72 – $110 on the “Budget” style, $150 – $180 on the “Mid-range” style, and $240 – $300 on the “Comfort” style.

Can you travel to Seattle on a budget?

The cheapest style we work out is “Budget”: $72 – $110 per person per day, without accommodation or flights. Local food, public transport, the odd paid sight.

How much does food cost in Seattle?

From $31 per person per day (“Local and cheap”) to $160 (“Restaurants most of the time”). The price table has what each dish costs.

How much does transport cost in Seattle?

A ride on public transport costs $3.00. “Taxi, 4 km by day, not counting waiting time”: $8.90.

Is there a lodging tax in Seattle?

Yes: 15.7% of the room price.

How much cash should you carry in Seattle?

For a week on the “Mid-range” style, about $13 – $130 per person, two travelling. It is our reading of how each kind of place takes payment, not a measurement.

Do you tip in Seattle?

Restaurants: customary. Bars and cafés: customary. Hotels: customary. Taxis: customary.

Sources

Where every figure comes from

Each price on this page carries its source. These are all of them. Prices reviewed: November 2026.

The rest of Seattle

In the app

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