2025 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
Boulder, CO vs Scottsdale, AZ

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Scottsdale or is it cheaper to live in Boulder?
- Scottsdale is 20.0% less expensive than Boulder.

Which city has more affordable housing, Scottsdale or Boulder?
- Scottsdale housing costs are 28.4% less expensive than Boulder housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in Boulder or is Health Care more affordable in Scottsdale.
- Health related expenses are 8.2% more in Scottsdale.
 Boulder, COScottsdale, AZUnited States
 Overall  Unlock113.0100
 Food & Groceries106.5  Unlock100
 Health  Unlock92.5100
 Housing322.6  Unlock100
 Median Home Cost  Unlock$721,200$338,100
 Utilities93  Unlock100
 Transportation  Unlock109.2100
 Miscellaneous154.4  Unlock100
100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for Boulder    55 Reviews

Outside of the university, Boulder had a very distinctive "wealthy hippy" feel. A lot of alternative medicine and a matching ethos. This is changing some among my  More

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We moved here from Texas about 4 years ago and love it here! The amazing sense of community and high regard for the environment are two of the main reasons we love  More

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Over 5 years ago

Most people do much worse than Boulder. I'm the most critical person I've ever met who is never happy or satisfied -- so that's a pretty huge compliment.   More

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Reviews for Scottsdale    84 Reviews

It's been a long time since I visited Scottsdale after visiting a few times a decade ago. It used to be more of an area that deserved it's punchlines for being stuck up  More

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Over 1 years ago

My son went to ASU in '99 which is how we ended up here from Northern Illinois. Over the years we came out for vacations and bought a second home until we finally made  More

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I lived in San Jose for 30 years...in the late '50s. I walked thru cherry orchards to school. After college classes, I drove 20 minutes to the beach. San Francisco was  More

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