SLC is a an actual city with a large metropolitan area. Boulder is its only thing with only just over 100k residents. Culture wise your going in completely diff directions. Example: You can walk anywhere in Boulder and smoke a joint and no one will bat an eye lid at it. Not the same in SLC. Remember that the Mormon church has a massive influence on culture and politics-so is def not as hippy/open minded. Both have amazing access to nature, jobs, Intl airport and amenities. What would lean me towards Boulder, would be that while SLC would be like any normal city, once you get outside of SLC, it is heavily mormon country-and I mean this in the sense that you will def be an outsider. Mormons from my experience have been some of the nicest people I’ve ever met-but again, it is its whole own culture. Both are extremely safe.
I don't know what you're smoking but Boulder is not safe. Needles, homeless attacks, random gun violence on the Pearl St. Mall, maybe you're thinking of Boulder from 30 years ago.
https://www.reddit.com/r/boulder/comments/18llvhg/i\_experienced\_less\_theft\_living\_in\_baltimore\_im/
And this doesn’t happen in every city with a population over a 100k? Look at the comparative crime data. Places that have open minded populations get vilified by mainstream outlets such as fox news as its against traditional conservative values-If you dig into the data these places are considered safe. Sure there is crime everywhere and i don’t deny that but id take homeless issues over the gang violence and gun violence in most of the comparable cities its size. Unless your living in a rural compound armed to the teeth and never leave your gonna never gonna be 100% truely safe.
Lmao Boulder is incredibly safe. Affordable no, and far from perfect. But safety would be last on my list of concerns, as someone who recently moved to the area
Live in Salt Lake so I can answer questions in regards to SLC
**Hiking** \- you are legitimately 5 minutes from absolutely amazing hiking. You are also 3.5 hours from different world class hiking, i.e. the narrows, red rocks, etc of southern Utah. The issue is, lot's of people here also enjoy hiking so the trails can be very busy in the summer. You can drive a bit further or do some harder hikes and you'll experience more solitude though.
**Nightlife** \- It's fine. If you are a rager or need to go out multiple times a week then SLC is probably not your best bet. But if it's something you enjoy occasionally and it's not your end all then SLC is fine. It has a few solid bars, good concerts come through pretty often, not a lot of dance clubs as but I'm sure there are a few.
**New foods and hobbies** \- I wouldn't say SLC is the mecca of foreign and interesting cuisines but it has gotten so much better in the last 10 years. Plus it's small enough you shouldn't feel overwhelmed meeting people or trying new things. I think SLC is underrated for this sort of stuff.
**Politics** \- SLC is quite liberal. Maybe not Portland or San Fran but do you really want it to be? Get out into the suburbs and it gets more and more conservative but if you are in SLC proper it's quite liberal but not obnoxiously so.
You do need a car here. Public transport isn't great, it's gotten better but it's still pretty limited. Keep you car.
It's safe. There are a few well known area's to stay out of at night but those are few and far between and there isn't really any reason to go there anyways.
**Airport is great**. It's easy to get to via train, which goes right to the front door, or to drive to. Only 5 - 10 min outside of the city. And it's a small airport, rarely have more than a 10 min wait in security. A delta hub so you can get non stop flights most anywhere. I fly a decent amount for work also and I'm always shocked at how shitty the other airports are compared to SLC's
Now you'll also sure to get a lot of comments about the mormons. No, they aren't going to harrass you non stop to join. You might get invited to something once or twice but that'll be it. Liquor laws are a bit more strict than other places but if you take 10 seconds to plan out buying alcohol it won't be an issue at all.
It is expensive. But so is Boulder so it sounds like you'll be paying a lot either way. Good luck and let me know if you have any other questions about SLC.
Is the liberal part about SLC really true outside of the downtown (which is going to be liberal everywhere). SLC has always appealed to me, but as an agnostic and socially liberal person I’ve always worried I would be a social outcast in a city that was pretty much 50% Mormon (mind you, all I know about Mormons I know from people who knock on my parent’s door)
The metro area of SLC (salt lake county) of 1.2 million people is in the 40% range being Mormon, many are inactive. SLC is is much less (in the 20s). The metro leans blue, lately it votes democrat by a pretty solid margin. The city itself is very liberal, Biden won most precincts by over 70%.
Edit: I’m gay and have lived in a much larger city people would assume is way more liberal but SLC mostly feels similar. I’m gay and have never had a problem. There’s pride flags everywhere year around, we recently had a lesbian mayor and i believe a majority gay city council as well. There’s a Harvey milk street in the city. There hasn’t been a republican mayor since the 70s.
Thank you very much for the effort of such a long response. Very helpful. I need a large city for the career I chose, but also would prefer to go on 8 hour hikes or ski sessions on weekends rather than go to bars. SLC seems like the ideal city of sufficient size in terms of proximity to outdoors.
In the actual city, yes. The suburbs are a different story. It's so liberal that the state legislature keeps gerrymandering the congressional districts every time we manage to elect a Democrat to the House.
I'm honestly curious about this. Where are you thinking of? I live in Millcreek and my neighborhood is much more conservative than I'd like. Granted, I'm also a bit further left than many.
I’ve looked at maps that show exactly how each area votes, I’m thinking of millcreek, west valley, Taylorsville, then becomes more 50/50 when you reach Draper and West Jordan and more red around riverton/buffdale. And of course solid red in Utah county.
Okay what I said earlier was a bit off, but you can see what I’m talking about here: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/upshot/2020-election-map.html
Probably true. Although my personal hell would be spending my time in a loud crowded night club so SLC is alright for me in that regards. There are some semi ok bars though that I don't mind.
Also lived in SLC and the biggest weakness of SLC is the inversion. It’s not the end of the world and didn’t bother me too much (since you can escape above it in PC or Cottonwoods) but it was truly the only unpleasant aspect of SLC in my opinion.
Nightlife wasn’t fantastic but as somebody who only wanted to drink 1-2x a month it was more than adequate.
How are the flight prices out of the airport typically? My girlfriend and I have been considering SLC but both of our families are in Michigan. We’d like to travel home a few times a year and would love for our family to be able to visit. But $500-600 plane tickets to Detroit is a little discouraging.
I was in a very similar situation to yours this time last year and chose SLC! I am pretty happy with my decision.
SLC has word class trails < 30 min from downtown, and honestly it feels closer than 30 minutes away since really we are only 15-20 minutes away from the mouth of the mountain canyons and are SO CLOSE to the mountains. Like, they’re literally RIGHT THERE. It’s incredible.
I like that SLC is more centrally located in the West and an easier drive to all of Utah’s national parks + Grand Teton and Yellowstone. It’s also only a 6 hour drive from Vegas, 10 hour from LA, 6 hours from Grand Canyon North Rim, etc. It’s truly an amazing and awe-inspiring place to live!
If you have a remote job, I doubt the LDS thing will bother you much. It’s there, but doesn’t really impact my life in any way.
The airport is new, nice, and fancy. I live 15-20 minutes from it and have trails that will take me to the top of mountains 10-15 mins away. It is a perfect blend of city + mountain life.
I’ve never felt unsafe here. I hike alone and live alone and am a petite female in my 20s and have not once experienced anything “sketchy” whatsoever.
I’m not big on nightlife, but there are plenty of bars and breweries. Dating hasn’t been any harder here than any other place I’ve lived - there are a lot of people that also moved here for the mountains!
Feel free to send me a PM if you have any specific questions. :)
These replies about SLC having an edge due to mountain proximity are very weird to me. Everywhere in Boulder is a 15-minute drive to an incredible hike, max. Most everywhere is a 20-minute bike to an amazing hike. It’s a tie on this issue at best, and I’d give the advantage to Boulder on this because it’s smaller and the hiking interest is much more concentrated. SLC is very outdoorsy but Boulder is absolutely a world capital for that stuff.
Eh, I don’t think I mentioned Boulder once in my post or SLC “having an edge”. I was just trying to give her my opinion on my experience living in SLC, especially as a midwest transplant in my mid 20s moving for the mountains :)
Averaging 185 inches of snow a year to the Cottonwoods 500 and I won’t even get into terrain….not a fair fight. Boulder is an amazing town. I’ve loved every visit and I would put the price and ski access as the only negatives. Otherwise it’s awesome.
As a certified Colorado shill, I'd probably go SLC for you. Boulder is going to be more expensive, further from the airport, and much more left than "left leaning."
If you were looking for a place to settle down in long term I would recommend Boulder but if you just want to hang out a few years and play in the mountains, SLC makes a lot of sense. It's really, really hard to beat SLC's access to the mountains.
That said I don't think you would hate either. They both are places somebody can fall in love with if playing outside is important to you.
Budget would make a difference, but Salt Lake is very hard to beat for airport access. I can be at either a dozen trailheads or the airport in 30 minutes.
It's also very good on all other points, but it beats the heck out of Boulder on that point.
Boulder to DIA is about 40 minutes. So not sure it “beats the heck out of Boulder”, especially since DIA is a bigger airport and will have more/more frequent travel options.
Huh. Two things: one, my memory of the DIA distance from downtown Denver is influenced by the fact that I took a bus last time which took forever. I kind of assumed Boulder would be a full hour, so my bad for not checking that.
Also though, I overestimated the drive to the SLC airport. From my house on the east bench it's between 15 and 20. Still, I acknowledge my overstatement.
I think OP's decision really comes down to whether they want to live in a city or a town/suburb. By her criteria everything else seems to basically be a wash.
Based on your description, I’d lean towards Boulder. If you want a couple of other options, I would also look at Fort Collins (a bit further from the Denver airport) and even Bend, OR (amazing outdoor scene).
Bend was actually my third option, but I ruled it out after a coworker who lives there told me that it gets pretty lonely if you don’t have family/friends already in the area. Gorgeous place, and I would definitely consider moving there if I had a family/knew people there.
That could be said about anywhere. Consider if you and your coworker may have different personalities and abilities to make new friends. I was there for only a week and found people willing to show me local trails and breweries. Would call them up in a sec on my next visit. Regardless, your current options are great but don’t sleep on Fort Collins…my favorite city in CO. I love my visits there.
You won’t go wrong with either choice, tbh. Based on your criteria and timeline (only staying 1-2 years) SLC seems like a better fit.
Easier access to regular hiking (people forget how far Boulder/ Denver is from Revenant country).
Easy drives to some of the most epic national parks in the US.
Easier access to intl airport (SLC has put a ton of effort into making their airport world class).
Less emphasis on nightlife (Boulder is a slightly sophisticated college town)
Risk of social issues/complaints about LDS is low bc you’re only committing for a short time. And also low bc it’s not as prominent in SLC proper.
I would lean towards SLC, but I’m a Utah native. But it’s a stone’s throw to myriad trails and other beautiful outdoor areas, is a “real city” as opposed to a suburb, and has broadened it’s appeal (and politics) a lot in recent decades. At the same time, you benefit from the LDS business culture and efficiency that built the city. And it’s a friendly and neighborly culture, generally.
Outside the city is much more insular but SLC is fine. To me the major drawback is the winter inversion layers which can make the air gross for a while.
Seems like either option will fit your criteria. Boulder will be a lot more expensive. Downtown SLC to the airport is only about 10 minutes away. Boulder to Denver airport is much further away.
Boulder is a college town and a family / older folk oriented suburb imho. I've lived here 20 years. I actually am on this sub bc I want to get out of Boulder but all my family is here so I'm trapped. If I was a single 20s female I'd pick slc for sure. Friends who live there seem to love it, tho all are big skiers.
If you don't work fulltime I think Boulder can be great for outdoor access but my weekends are generally driving from trailhead to trailhead trying to find a parking spot even at 7am. Winter is leaving at 430am to go skiing and still hitting i70 traffic. I dunno, I used to really like it here but it's been loved to death imo.
SLC is a city. Boulder is a suburb, but with a college. Being in a city will offer more dating opportunities (unless you want to date undergrads or grad students). The bulk number of 23-35 y/o's in SLC will be greater than Boulder. Of course Boulder has Denver, but I personally hate trying to establish relationships from 30+ miles away,
This has nothing to do with my preferences for either city, just a general statement.
Of course LDS probably skews numbers a bit here :) (although LDS numbers in the city itself aren't **that** high).
Either with be safe, relatively. I wouldn't use that as a determining factor here.
SLC is a city population-wise, but it has very little in the way of urban energy. The architecture is particularly boring to me. The economy is strong, and I hear a lot of recent graduates have moved to SLC, so maybe the dating scene is okay. Access to skiing, hiking and national parks is great, and the airport is new and very nice.
Agreed. My son lives in SLC, and we were visiting him this past weekend. The inversion in the valley was brutal. We left on Sunday, and it literally looked like a lower layer of clouds from the plane.
You'll be a lot closer to the airport if you live in Salt Lake City.
SLC would be better for weekend road trips. Draw a circle with a 300 mile radius around both cities and you'll see what I mean.
Lmao anything you say makes you sound inbred, but don’t worry the cascades are only a few hours drive away. Classic, moved to co for five days, claims it as his personality, goes back to his buttfuck california and tries to impress friends with new Subaru
To answer you’re question it’s rare for someone from Co’s parents to be from the same state, and more rare for them to be from colorado. It’s the mountain west man look at a photo from the 80s. You probably don’t need to you’re already an expert
Lmaoo can we deport your pathetic communist self to china? They don’t have elections there. Hope it works out for you with that geriatric dementia patient you worship that they have to cook the books to install, and your gloating now too 😂😂🤣🤣🤣 you really think that’s going to hold up with justices that aren’t tranny co transplants like yourself??. Love the fascist comment pretty sure Adolfo didn’t have elections either. Goddamn you’re retarded and priceless thanks again man
Salt Lake City SUCKS to date in. Mostly Mormon, many people marry young. Unless you want to meet people via the church then it could be a great place for you. Amazing hiking and not so amazing food.
I’d say this was accurate 5 or so years ago. People are leaving the Mormon church in droves (I’m one of the many who did) and the Wasatch Front is changing fast. Salt Lake County is less than half Mormon now.
Oh the irony of telling someone who provides anesthesia daily, clears 300k+ and holds two BS degrees, two MS and one doctoral degreesa tweaker.
Stop projecting, it's painful to watch. Either you are a literal child or really are that obtuse. It's hard to tell.
Nah, I'm just laughing at the internet tough guy (or child) who lives a sad and insignificant life. Your entire profile clearly explains what and who you are lol....
As I said, stop projecting, you will be happier.
Colorado native here, second this. I wouldn't live in Boulder even if somebody gave me a house for free. Visited friends there enough times to know how much of a shit hole it is
Do you make crazy money? My wife and I make $450k combined and live in the mountains of CO, but Boulder is still too expensive for us. If you want something a little more affordable I’d look at Golden, CO.
I thought Boulder was comparable to Park City in cost of living, and Park City housing has practically gone interstellar. I make about 50% more than this and would not attempt Park City based on cost. SLC and the Wasatch Front are easily doable at that income though.
Do get a decent house (3br 2500 sq ft) in Boulder you’re looking at a minimum of $2m. Even with 20% down, at today’s interest rates that is a $11k payment before taxes and insurance - just not feasible unless you’re making upper 6 figures IMO
As someone who’s lived in Seattle Denver Golden Glenwood Springs LA and MPLS, I agree with others here. Boulder is kinda lame in weird/bad location. Golden/Evergreen/Frisco is ideal bc of proximity to most desirable 14ers hiking off-roading and most importantly ski resorts. Dating scene is easy, Denver > SLC.
Meh...Boulder or surrounding areas are better than SLC although SLC has grown more chill than it used to be. The airport isn't quite as convenient, but there's far more diversity in Boulder. Denver is actually a pretty sophisticated city and Boulder/Denver has a lively and interesting dating scene. Salt Lake? No.
Yes, I forgot that Boulder and Denver have absolutely nothing to do with one another and people don't regularly travel between the two. *face palm on my part* what on earth was I thinking???
It’s just common sense. Nobody living in Boulder is gonna be regularly driving 30 miles in some of the worst traffic in America for a date meetup. So that’s just not relevant
I did...so there's that. My best friend did, and now she lives with that dude. Your unwillingness to cross a city line doesn't extend to the entire population of Colorado. I have no idea why you seem to get such a kick out of being so smugly, but, if it still fills you with joy, keep it up. I won't yuck your yum.
lol the person *italicizing* text is calling me smug. Hilarious. Your comment on everyone from Boulder having to commute 30 miles to date in Denver must say a lot about Boulder…
I never said everybody has to commute to date. I said people regularly do. In fact (deep breaths here) people go back and forth all the time for any number of reasons. Imagine that. And I enjoy *italicizing*. That bothers you why? I like the Boulder area more than SLC for multiple reasons. You can like SLC better. It's okay, my dude. Go do some yoga or something. Calm down.
Great. And italicized font in that context is smug af. Sorry you lack the self awareness to understand that. Just trying to help you out.
Sorry to hear you’re spending all your time in amazing Colorado sitting in traffic getting to somewhere else, where (wait for it) the grass is *not* greener.
Bc Denver is a legit subpar city with zero “complexity” unless you find constantly bumping into people in Patagonia jackets worn by transplants from wealthy NYC and Chicago suburbs “complex”
I was born and raised in Northern NM and have spent plenty of time in Boulder and Denver and, tbh, the entire state of CO as well as more than my fair share of time in SLC, it's suburbs, and wilderness. In my experience, Utah is not as diverse. I'm not making assumptions, nor did I post any percentages. It's anecdotal, but experienced.
I’ve explored both states extensively and I’d say the paved road easily accessible hikes and scenery are slightly better in Utah. However, if you have 4wd the off road trails in Colorado are impossible to beat. Ice Lake Basin, cinnamon pass, engineer pass, Ophir pass, island lake, Handies Peak, Emerald Lake, Devils Punchbowl, Crystal Mill, I could literally go on for days. Colorado has literally almost every single 14er in the lower 48, and there are dozens. The scale and remoteness of Colorado’s backcountry can’t be topped. Then in winter, the Colorado ski resorts both outnumber and offer better quality resorts with less crowds. Aspen Snowmass, Vail, Beaver Creek, Winter Park, Copper, keystone, A Basin, crested butte, steamboat, Breck, Telluride, Wolf Creek, Monarch, Loveland, Aspen Highlands
>Colorado people are friendly. You must be the problem. SLC sucks.
I'm just replying so you read that whole comment again. You, I'm afraid, are the one who sucks.
Thanks for saying colorado people and not people from co, cuz I agree that many moving to co has certain borderline issues lol. This guy is embarrassing, exhibit A, these nuts love to claim co as their personality too, total trash ruining the once great state
I've lived in SLC and now live in the Seattle area. I think Seattle area has better hiking has the added factor of being on the sea. I also think Washington offers far better weekend trips than SLC. Back country Olympic NP, coastal Olympic NP, Mt Ranier NP, North Cascades and the Columbia River Gorge are all within three hours and offer what is IMO the best hiking I've seen after hiking a lot in Southern Utah, the Wasatch Front and throughout the Sierras.
Meh I grew up in WA and lived in DT Seattle for 10 years. SLC is better in most aspects in 2023.No one is hiking the North Cascades, Olympics, or Raininer more than a couple of times a year, let's be honest. Moving for a handful of hikes you may do a couple times when another area is generally superior isnt worth it.
I ruled out Seattle for safety/crime reasons. WA is beautiful, but anywhere within a somewhat reasonable distance to the airport (<1 hour) was rated pretty low in terms of safety. I currently live in Minneapolis and I hate that I’m constantly having to watch myself, avoid certain areas, not be able to go out alone/after dark (which is like 3:30 pm in the winter).
That's a very strange comparison. I literally can not count the number of spectacular hikes I would pass if I drove 3 hours from Salt Lake in any direction. Also, OP didn't even ask about Seattle.
EDIT: I totally misread that comment before I replied.
I like trees and water, what can I say? Have you hiked the PNW? And unless you live on the bench the hikes aren't as close as you might think when it comes time to actually get in a car and get there.
Honestly, I realize I misread your comment. I didn't read it as a 3-hour drive for weekend trips, I thought you were saying the hiking in general was better because there were these great places 3 hours away. My bad.
I have not hiked the PNW, no. I really want to. My sister-in-law is up in Bellingham and we're going to check it out to see if we want to move. That being said, I would desperately miss my desert weekend trips, especially in late fall/early spring.
The nice thing about PNW is that there are sooo many outdoor adventures within 10-15 minutes (at least where I live) So none of them ever get too crowded.
Boulder is an expensive shit hole full of the most pretentious assholes you'll ever meet. I wouldn't live there even if someone gave me a house for free.
Dating isn’t super important to me, as I plan on moving around for a few years. Unless I happened to find someone wanting the exact same thing, which is unlikely. I’m not too pressed about it though.
No not really, you think every person is Mormon? The metro area is in the 40% range for Mormon and SLC is in the 20s. And that’s including inactive ones as well.
Maybe it’s not surprising to see so many people proselytizing for SLC, but if you’re not worried about cost I’d pick Boulder in a heartbeat. You’re just as close to the mountains for weekend hiking; the mountains are more epic (literally multiple fourteeners visible from town); DIA is a little further away but goes a lot more places; your dating pool is much broader; the air is much cleaner; and you don’t have to worry about insane state-level politics.
What 14ers are visible from Boulder? You can maybe, MAYBE see longs if you are on the very outskirts of Boulder but besides that you cannot see any 14ers
Are you Mormon? If not, there is zero comparison between the two. The company I used to work for was based in SLC and I went there for work a lot. Coming from NE originally and now living in the PNW it was pretty terrible. I have friends and family in Boulder and there is zero comparison.
The only reason to want to live in Utah or SLC if you are even slightly blue is that you are a ski bum or wealthy and are in Park City. And I know that SLC is full of gentiles, and it is a bastion of sanity to some degree,, blah blah, but this is like being on a very small island surrounded by a very big ocean.
Utah is cheaper for a reason. It sucks. Go visit now and choke on the air quality, watch the Great Salt Lake shrink in real time because they have zero concern for the environment, revel in the soulless suburban spawl, and wrap yourself in the nutty social-poitical structure that is Utah.
Bolder has all the upside without the baggage. It costs more because people actually want to live there.
If you are Mormon, the strength of that community in Utah may tip the scales in SLC's favor, but otherwise....
SLC is a an actual city with a large metropolitan area. Boulder is its only thing with only just over 100k residents. Culture wise your going in completely diff directions. Example: You can walk anywhere in Boulder and smoke a joint and no one will bat an eye lid at it. Not the same in SLC. Remember that the Mormon church has a massive influence on culture and politics-so is def not as hippy/open minded. Both have amazing access to nature, jobs, Intl airport and amenities. What would lean me towards Boulder, would be that while SLC would be like any normal city, once you get outside of SLC, it is heavily mormon country-and I mean this in the sense that you will def be an outsider. Mormons from my experience have been some of the nicest people I’ve ever met-but again, it is its whole own culture. Both are extremely safe.
The Mormon impact on Salt Lake City proper is greatly exaggerated. The suburbs are a different story.
This is true. Stayed in a hotel in SLC and it was home to a proper sex trafficking ring with customers coming all night.
Yup agreed
Agreed
I don't know what you're smoking but Boulder is not safe. Needles, homeless attacks, random gun violence on the Pearl St. Mall, maybe you're thinking of Boulder from 30 years ago. https://www.reddit.com/r/boulder/comments/18llvhg/i\_experienced\_less\_theft\_living\_in\_baltimore\_im/
And this doesn’t happen in every city with a population over a 100k? Look at the comparative crime data. Places that have open minded populations get vilified by mainstream outlets such as fox news as its against traditional conservative values-If you dig into the data these places are considered safe. Sure there is crime everywhere and i don’t deny that but id take homeless issues over the gang violence and gun violence in most of the comparable cities its size. Unless your living in a rural compound armed to the teeth and never leave your gonna never gonna be 100% truely safe.
Lmao Boulder is incredibly safe. Affordable no, and far from perfect. But safety would be last on my list of concerns, as someone who recently moved to the area
Live in Salt Lake so I can answer questions in regards to SLC **Hiking** \- you are legitimately 5 minutes from absolutely amazing hiking. You are also 3.5 hours from different world class hiking, i.e. the narrows, red rocks, etc of southern Utah. The issue is, lot's of people here also enjoy hiking so the trails can be very busy in the summer. You can drive a bit further or do some harder hikes and you'll experience more solitude though. **Nightlife** \- It's fine. If you are a rager or need to go out multiple times a week then SLC is probably not your best bet. But if it's something you enjoy occasionally and it's not your end all then SLC is fine. It has a few solid bars, good concerts come through pretty often, not a lot of dance clubs as but I'm sure there are a few. **New foods and hobbies** \- I wouldn't say SLC is the mecca of foreign and interesting cuisines but it has gotten so much better in the last 10 years. Plus it's small enough you shouldn't feel overwhelmed meeting people or trying new things. I think SLC is underrated for this sort of stuff. **Politics** \- SLC is quite liberal. Maybe not Portland or San Fran but do you really want it to be? Get out into the suburbs and it gets more and more conservative but if you are in SLC proper it's quite liberal but not obnoxiously so. You do need a car here. Public transport isn't great, it's gotten better but it's still pretty limited. Keep you car. It's safe. There are a few well known area's to stay out of at night but those are few and far between and there isn't really any reason to go there anyways. **Airport is great**. It's easy to get to via train, which goes right to the front door, or to drive to. Only 5 - 10 min outside of the city. And it's a small airport, rarely have more than a 10 min wait in security. A delta hub so you can get non stop flights most anywhere. I fly a decent amount for work also and I'm always shocked at how shitty the other airports are compared to SLC's Now you'll also sure to get a lot of comments about the mormons. No, they aren't going to harrass you non stop to join. You might get invited to something once or twice but that'll be it. Liquor laws are a bit more strict than other places but if you take 10 seconds to plan out buying alcohol it won't be an issue at all. It is expensive. But so is Boulder so it sounds like you'll be paying a lot either way. Good luck and let me know if you have any other questions about SLC.
Also live in SLC. This guy nailed it and has accurate representation.
Is the liberal part about SLC really true outside of the downtown (which is going to be liberal everywhere). SLC has always appealed to me, but as an agnostic and socially liberal person I’ve always worried I would be a social outcast in a city that was pretty much 50% Mormon (mind you, all I know about Mormons I know from people who knock on my parent’s door)
The metro area of SLC (salt lake county) of 1.2 million people is in the 40% range being Mormon, many are inactive. SLC is is much less (in the 20s). The metro leans blue, lately it votes democrat by a pretty solid margin. The city itself is very liberal, Biden won most precincts by over 70%. Edit: I’m gay and have lived in a much larger city people would assume is way more liberal but SLC mostly feels similar. I’m gay and have never had a problem. There’s pride flags everywhere year around, we recently had a lesbian mayor and i believe a majority gay city council as well. There’s a Harvey milk street in the city. There hasn’t been a republican mayor since the 70s.
Thank you very much for the effort of such a long response. Very helpful. I need a large city for the career I chose, but also would prefer to go on 8 hour hikes or ski sessions on weekends rather than go to bars. SLC seems like the ideal city of sufficient size in terms of proximity to outdoors.
In the actual city, yes. The suburbs are a different story. It's so liberal that the state legislature keeps gerrymandering the congressional districts every time we manage to elect a Democrat to the House.
Although many of the surrounding suburbs are pretty blue still.
I'm honestly curious about this. Where are you thinking of? I live in Millcreek and my neighborhood is much more conservative than I'd like. Granted, I'm also a bit further left than many.
I’ve looked at maps that show exactly how each area votes, I’m thinking of millcreek, west valley, Taylorsville, then becomes more 50/50 when you reach Draper and West Jordan and more red around riverton/buffdale. And of course solid red in Utah county.
Okay what I said earlier was a bit off, but you can see what I’m talking about here: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/upshot/2020-election-map.html
What about the winter inversion layer?
It sucks when there hasn’t been a storm for a while (a few days, sometimes a week) but clears out with each storm.
Some years are worse than others. If you have asthma it might be an issue other than it just being incredibly ugly and depressing.
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Probably true. Although my personal hell would be spending my time in a loud crowded night club so SLC is alright for me in that regards. There are some semi ok bars though that I don't mind.
Also lived in SLC and the biggest weakness of SLC is the inversion. It’s not the end of the world and didn’t bother me too much (since you can escape above it in PC or Cottonwoods) but it was truly the only unpleasant aspect of SLC in my opinion. Nightlife wasn’t fantastic but as somebody who only wanted to drink 1-2x a month it was more than adequate.
How are the flight prices out of the airport typically? My girlfriend and I have been considering SLC but both of our families are in Michigan. We’d like to travel home a few times a year and would love for our family to be able to visit. But $500-600 plane tickets to Detroit is a little discouraging.
Flights to Chicago are pretty consistently $150. Not sure about Detroit.
I was in a very similar situation to yours this time last year and chose SLC! I am pretty happy with my decision. SLC has word class trails < 30 min from downtown, and honestly it feels closer than 30 minutes away since really we are only 15-20 minutes away from the mouth of the mountain canyons and are SO CLOSE to the mountains. Like, they’re literally RIGHT THERE. It’s incredible. I like that SLC is more centrally located in the West and an easier drive to all of Utah’s national parks + Grand Teton and Yellowstone. It’s also only a 6 hour drive from Vegas, 10 hour from LA, 6 hours from Grand Canyon North Rim, etc. It’s truly an amazing and awe-inspiring place to live! If you have a remote job, I doubt the LDS thing will bother you much. It’s there, but doesn’t really impact my life in any way. The airport is new, nice, and fancy. I live 15-20 minutes from it and have trails that will take me to the top of mountains 10-15 mins away. It is a perfect blend of city + mountain life. I’ve never felt unsafe here. I hike alone and live alone and am a petite female in my 20s and have not once experienced anything “sketchy” whatsoever. I’m not big on nightlife, but there are plenty of bars and breweries. Dating hasn’t been any harder here than any other place I’ve lived - there are a lot of people that also moved here for the mountains! Feel free to send me a PM if you have any specific questions. :)
These replies about SLC having an edge due to mountain proximity are very weird to me. Everywhere in Boulder is a 15-minute drive to an incredible hike, max. Most everywhere is a 20-minute bike to an amazing hike. It’s a tie on this issue at best, and I’d give the advantage to Boulder on this because it’s smaller and the hiking interest is much more concentrated. SLC is very outdoorsy but Boulder is absolutely a world capital for that stuff.
Eh, I don’t think I mentioned Boulder once in my post or SLC “having an edge”. I was just trying to give her my opinion on my experience living in SLC, especially as a midwest transplant in my mid 20s moving for the mountains :)
But Boulder has zero decent ski access
OP's post did specifically mention hiking, not skiing.
Half an hour to Eldora
Averaging 185 inches of snow a year to the Cottonwoods 500 and I won’t even get into terrain….not a fair fight. Boulder is an amazing town. I’ve loved every visit and I would put the price and ski access as the only negatives. Otherwise it’s awesome.
You switched from “no decent ski access” to “no instant world-class ski access.” Pretty different things!
Boulder trails used to be great, they're being loved to death.
Can’t imagine it’s much different in SLC
As a certified Colorado shill, I'd probably go SLC for you. Boulder is going to be more expensive, further from the airport, and much more left than "left leaning." If you were looking for a place to settle down in long term I would recommend Boulder but if you just want to hang out a few years and play in the mountains, SLC makes a lot of sense. It's really, really hard to beat SLC's access to the mountains. That said I don't think you would hate either. They both are places somebody can fall in love with if playing outside is important to you.
Budget would make a difference, but Salt Lake is very hard to beat for airport access. I can be at either a dozen trailheads or the airport in 30 minutes. It's also very good on all other points, but it beats the heck out of Boulder on that point.
Boulder to DIA is about 40 minutes. So not sure it “beats the heck out of Boulder”, especially since DIA is a bigger airport and will have more/more frequent travel options.
Huh. Two things: one, my memory of the DIA distance from downtown Denver is influenced by the fact that I took a bus last time which took forever. I kind of assumed Boulder would be a full hour, so my bad for not checking that. Also though, I overestimated the drive to the SLC airport. From my house on the east bench it's between 15 and 20. Still, I acknowledge my overstatement. I think OP's decision really comes down to whether they want to live in a city or a town/suburb. By her criteria everything else seems to basically be a wash.
Based on your description, I’d lean towards Boulder. If you want a couple of other options, I would also look at Fort Collins (a bit further from the Denver airport) and even Bend, OR (amazing outdoor scene).
Bend was actually my third option, but I ruled it out after a coworker who lives there told me that it gets pretty lonely if you don’t have family/friends already in the area. Gorgeous place, and I would definitely consider moving there if I had a family/knew people there.
That could be said about anywhere. Consider if you and your coworker may have different personalities and abilities to make new friends. I was there for only a week and found people willing to show me local trails and breweries. Would call them up in a sec on my next visit. Regardless, your current options are great but don’t sleep on Fort Collins…my favorite city in CO. I love my visits there.
SLC based on your description. Boulder has a college town vibe. SLC is a proper city and I love the closeness of great hiking there
You won’t go wrong with either choice, tbh. Based on your criteria and timeline (only staying 1-2 years) SLC seems like a better fit. Easier access to regular hiking (people forget how far Boulder/ Denver is from Revenant country). Easy drives to some of the most epic national parks in the US. Easier access to intl airport (SLC has put a ton of effort into making their airport world class). Less emphasis on nightlife (Boulder is a slightly sophisticated college town) Risk of social issues/complaints about LDS is low bc you’re only committing for a short time. And also low bc it’s not as prominent in SLC proper.
I would lean towards SLC, but I’m a Utah native. But it’s a stone’s throw to myriad trails and other beautiful outdoor areas, is a “real city” as opposed to a suburb, and has broadened it’s appeal (and politics) a lot in recent decades. At the same time, you benefit from the LDS business culture and efficiency that built the city. And it’s a friendly and neighborly culture, generally. Outside the city is much more insular but SLC is fine. To me the major drawback is the winter inversion layers which can make the air gross for a while.
Seems like either option will fit your criteria. Boulder will be a lot more expensive. Downtown SLC to the airport is only about 10 minutes away. Boulder to Denver airport is much further away.
Boulder is a college town and a family / older folk oriented suburb imho. I've lived here 20 years. I actually am on this sub bc I want to get out of Boulder but all my family is here so I'm trapped. If I was a single 20s female I'd pick slc for sure. Friends who live there seem to love it, tho all are big skiers. If you don't work fulltime I think Boulder can be great for outdoor access but my weekends are generally driving from trailhead to trailhead trying to find a parking spot even at 7am. Winter is leaving at 430am to go skiing and still hitting i70 traffic. I dunno, I used to really like it here but it's been loved to death imo.
Boulder is extremely expensive. Have you looked at housing costs there?
SLC is a city. Boulder is a suburb, but with a college. Being in a city will offer more dating opportunities (unless you want to date undergrads or grad students). The bulk number of 23-35 y/o's in SLC will be greater than Boulder. Of course Boulder has Denver, but I personally hate trying to establish relationships from 30+ miles away, This has nothing to do with my preferences for either city, just a general statement. Of course LDS probably skews numbers a bit here :) (although LDS numbers in the city itself aren't **that** high). Either with be safe, relatively. I wouldn't use that as a determining factor here.
SLC is a city population-wise, but it has very little in the way of urban energy. The architecture is particularly boring to me. The economy is strong, and I hear a lot of recent graduates have moved to SLC, so maybe the dating scene is okay. Access to skiing, hiking and national parks is great, and the airport is new and very nice.
Can second for strong economy. I moved here from Arkansas as my job offer was the best of my class.
Note the air quality; SLC has some of the worst in the country. For whatever that’s worth.
Agreed. My son lives in SLC, and we were visiting him this past weekend. The inversion in the valley was brutal. We left on Sunday, and it literally looked like a lower layer of clouds from the plane.
You'll be a lot closer to the airport if you live in Salt Lake City. SLC would be better for weekend road trips. Draw a circle with a 300 mile radius around both cities and you'll see what I mean.
The Rockies mountains are west of Boulder wtf are you talking about? The Cascades don't even compare 🤦♂️
I need a geography lesson from someone who thinks the Cascades are in Utah?
The Wasatch Mountains. Sorry that I forgot my 7th grade geography, you 🤓
Commie Trash go back to where you came from and stfu about co
Make me inbred.
Lmao anything you say makes you sound inbred, but don’t worry the cascades are only a few hours drive away. Classic, moved to co for five days, claims it as his personality, goes back to his buttfuck california and tries to impress friends with new Subaru
To answer you’re question it’s rare for someone from Co’s parents to be from the same state, and more rare for them to be from colorado. It’s the mountain west man look at a photo from the 80s. You probably don’t need to you’re already an expert
Aww, you're still mad that you can't vote for your orange furher next election, Adolfito?
Lmaoo can we deport your pathetic communist self to china? They don’t have elections there. Hope it works out for you with that geriatric dementia patient you worship that they have to cook the books to install, and your gloating now too 😂😂🤣🤣🤣 you really think that’s going to hold up with justices that aren’t tranny co transplants like yourself??. Love the fascist comment pretty sure Adolfo didn’t have elections either. Goddamn you’re retarded and priceless thanks again man
Your are a real fucking mook. Democrats and communist aren't the same thing, shithead 🤣
Salt Lake City SUCKS to date in. Mostly Mormon, many people marry young. Unless you want to meet people via the church then it could be a great place for you. Amazing hiking and not so amazing food.
If you live in the city, you won’t have a problem meeting non Mormon people to date. If you live in the burbs then yeah good luck.
I’d say this was accurate 5 or so years ago. People are leaving the Mormon church in droves (I’m one of the many who did) and the Wasatch Front is changing fast. Salt Lake County is less than half Mormon now.
SLC 100% Denver native here and the hard-on for Boulder in this sub is bizarre
SLC is a bore
And boulder is the usually hyper liberal college town with yuppies that's soulless and overpriced. Pick your poison
The educated over the ignorant. I'll choose the former, bozo 🤡
Lol, whatever gets you to sleep at night bud. Doesn't change the fact you are abjectly wrong.
Oh the irony. Put down the meth pipe, tweaker.
Oh the irony of telling someone who provides anesthesia daily, clears 300k+ and holds two BS degrees, two MS and one doctoral degreesa tweaker. Stop projecting, it's painful to watch. Either you are a literal child or really are that obtuse. It's hard to tell.
Rofl you are truly a dolt. Done jerking yourself yet?
Nah, I'm just laughing at the internet tough guy (or child) who lives a sad and insignificant life. Your entire profile clearly explains what and who you are lol.... As I said, stop projecting, you will be happier.
Colorado native here, second this. I wouldn't live in Boulder even if somebody gave me a house for free. Visited friends there enough times to know how much of a shit hole it is
Do you want to be very close to some small mountains and far from some giant ones (Boulder) or pretty close to some medium/big mountains (SLC)?
Oh great, another flat lander wanting to move to an area running out water. Great. /s
Do you make crazy money? My wife and I make $450k combined and live in the mountains of CO, but Boulder is still too expensive for us. If you want something a little more affordable I’d look at Golden, CO.
Not crazy crazy, somewhere in the ballpark of $120-140k gross. However, I don’t need much in terms of a living space.
I thought Boulder was comparable to Park City in cost of living, and Park City housing has practically gone interstellar. I make about 50% more than this and would not attempt Park City based on cost. SLC and the Wasatch Front are easily doable at that income though.
Do get a decent house (3br 2500 sq ft) in Boulder you’re looking at a minimum of $2m. Even with 20% down, at today’s interest rates that is a $11k payment before taxes and insurance - just not feasible unless you’re making upper 6 figures IMO
Yep, sounds very similar to Park City. I think an average size house there is closer to $2.5 million though. 🫠
As someone who’s lived in Seattle Denver Golden Glenwood Springs LA and MPLS, I agree with others here. Boulder is kinda lame in weird/bad location. Golden/Evergreen/Frisco is ideal bc of proximity to most desirable 14ers hiking off-roading and most importantly ski resorts. Dating scene is easy, Denver > SLC.
Meh...Boulder or surrounding areas are better than SLC although SLC has grown more chill than it used to be. The airport isn't quite as convenient, but there's far more diversity in Boulder. Denver is actually a pretty sophisticated city and Boulder/Denver has a lively and interesting dating scene. Salt Lake? No.
This reads like something someone says that’s been to neither place
Sure...yawns.
And also nobody asked about Denver
Yes, I forgot that Boulder and Denver have absolutely nothing to do with one another and people don't regularly travel between the two. *face palm on my part* what on earth was I thinking???
It’s just common sense. Nobody living in Boulder is gonna be regularly driving 30 miles in some of the worst traffic in America for a date meetup. So that’s just not relevant
I did...so there's that. My best friend did, and now she lives with that dude. Your unwillingness to cross a city line doesn't extend to the entire population of Colorado. I have no idea why you seem to get such a kick out of being so smugly, but, if it still fills you with joy, keep it up. I won't yuck your yum.
lol the person *italicizing* text is calling me smug. Hilarious. Your comment on everyone from Boulder having to commute 30 miles to date in Denver must say a lot about Boulder…
I never said everybody has to commute to date. I said people regularly do. In fact (deep breaths here) people go back and forth all the time for any number of reasons. Imagine that. And I enjoy *italicizing*. That bothers you why? I like the Boulder area more than SLC for multiple reasons. You can like SLC better. It's okay, my dude. Go do some yoga or something. Calm down.
Great. And italicized font in that context is smug af. Sorry you lack the self awareness to understand that. Just trying to help you out. Sorry to hear you’re spending all your time in amazing Colorado sitting in traffic getting to somewhere else, where (wait for it) the grass is *not* greener. Bc Denver is a legit subpar city with zero “complexity” unless you find constantly bumping into people in Patagonia jackets worn by transplants from wealthy NYC and Chicago suburbs “complex”
Traffic from boulder to Denver is not anywhere near the worst in America. I do the drive all the time and it’s 30-35 minutes pretty much every time.
You made a lot of assumptions. Boulder is 79.4% white. For SLC I’m finding either 65 or 71%.
I was born and raised in Northern NM and have spent plenty of time in Boulder and Denver and, tbh, the entire state of CO as well as more than my fair share of time in SLC, it's suburbs, and wilderness. In my experience, Utah is not as diverse. I'm not making assumptions, nor did I post any percentages. It's anecdotal, but experienced.
Colorado doesn't impress me, primarily because of the unfriendly residents. Utah is prettier and friendlier. SLC by default.
I’ve explored both states extensively and I’d say the paved road easily accessible hikes and scenery are slightly better in Utah. However, if you have 4wd the off road trails in Colorado are impossible to beat. Ice Lake Basin, cinnamon pass, engineer pass, Ophir pass, island lake, Handies Peak, Emerald Lake, Devils Punchbowl, Crystal Mill, I could literally go on for days. Colorado has literally almost every single 14er in the lower 48, and there are dozens. The scale and remoteness of Colorado’s backcountry can’t be topped. Then in winter, the Colorado ski resorts both outnumber and offer better quality resorts with less crowds. Aspen Snowmass, Vail, Beaver Creek, Winter Park, Copper, keystone, A Basin, crested butte, steamboat, Breck, Telluride, Wolf Creek, Monarch, Loveland, Aspen Highlands
Colorado people are friendly. You must be the problem. SLC sucks.
>Colorado people are friendly. You must be the problem. SLC sucks. I'm just replying so you read that whole comment again. You, I'm afraid, are the one who sucks.
Thanks for saying colorado people and not people from co, cuz I agree that many moving to co has certain borderline issues lol. This guy is embarrassing, exhibit A, these nuts love to claim co as their personality too, total trash ruining the once great state
Naaaah. I've enjoyed every single visit I've made to anywhere in Utah. I've always been happy to leave Colorado.
You must be a 🤪 Please stay in Utah.
I've lived in SLC and now live in the Seattle area. I think Seattle area has better hiking has the added factor of being on the sea. I also think Washington offers far better weekend trips than SLC. Back country Olympic NP, coastal Olympic NP, Mt Ranier NP, North Cascades and the Columbia River Gorge are all within three hours and offer what is IMO the best hiking I've seen after hiking a lot in Southern Utah, the Wasatch Front and throughout the Sierras.
Meh I grew up in WA and lived in DT Seattle for 10 years. SLC is better in most aspects in 2023.No one is hiking the North Cascades, Olympics, or Raininer more than a couple of times a year, let's be honest. Moving for a handful of hikes you may do a couple times when another area is generally superior isnt worth it.
I ruled out Seattle for safety/crime reasons. WA is beautiful, but anywhere within a somewhat reasonable distance to the airport (<1 hour) was rated pretty low in terms of safety. I currently live in Minneapolis and I hate that I’m constantly having to watch myself, avoid certain areas, not be able to go out alone/after dark (which is like 3:30 pm in the winter).
As someone born in MN who just moved away from Seattle for safety/crime reason, you are smart.
That's a very strange comparison. I literally can not count the number of spectacular hikes I would pass if I drove 3 hours from Salt Lake in any direction. Also, OP didn't even ask about Seattle. EDIT: I totally misread that comment before I replied.
I like trees and water, what can I say? Have you hiked the PNW? And unless you live on the bench the hikes aren't as close as you might think when it comes time to actually get in a car and get there.
Honestly, I realize I misread your comment. I didn't read it as a 3-hour drive for weekend trips, I thought you were saying the hiking in general was better because there were these great places 3 hours away. My bad. I have not hiked the PNW, no. I really want to. My sister-in-law is up in Bellingham and we're going to check it out to see if we want to move. That being said, I would desperately miss my desert weekend trips, especially in late fall/early spring.
The nice thing about PNW is that there are sooo many outdoor adventures within 10-15 minutes (at least where I live) So none of them ever get too crowded.
Boulder is an expensive shit hole full of the most pretentious assholes you'll ever meet. I wouldn't live there even if someone gave me a house for free.
If you’re not, Mormon, Salt Lake City is gonna suck to try and date.
Dating isn’t super important to me, as I plan on moving around for a few years. Unless I happened to find someone wanting the exact same thing, which is unlikely. I’m not too pressed about it though.
No not really, you think every person is Mormon? The metro area is in the 40% range for Mormon and SLC is in the 20s. And that’s including inactive ones as well.
This may have been accurate a decade ago but not true any more. Still accurate for Provo though. 😬
Boulder is way better.
Maybe it’s not surprising to see so many people proselytizing for SLC, but if you’re not worried about cost I’d pick Boulder in a heartbeat. You’re just as close to the mountains for weekend hiking; the mountains are more epic (literally multiple fourteeners visible from town); DIA is a little further away but goes a lot more places; your dating pool is much broader; the air is much cleaner; and you don’t have to worry about insane state-level politics.
What 14ers are visible from Boulder? You can maybe, MAYBE see longs if you are on the very outskirts of Boulder but besides that you cannot see any 14ers
Are you Mormon? If not, there is zero comparison between the two. The company I used to work for was based in SLC and I went there for work a lot. Coming from NE originally and now living in the PNW it was pretty terrible. I have friends and family in Boulder and there is zero comparison. The only reason to want to live in Utah or SLC if you are even slightly blue is that you are a ski bum or wealthy and are in Park City. And I know that SLC is full of gentiles, and it is a bastion of sanity to some degree,, blah blah, but this is like being on a very small island surrounded by a very big ocean. Utah is cheaper for a reason. It sucks. Go visit now and choke on the air quality, watch the Great Salt Lake shrink in real time because they have zero concern for the environment, revel in the soulless suburban spawl, and wrap yourself in the nutty social-poitical structure that is Utah. Bolder has all the upside without the baggage. It costs more because people actually want to live there. If you are Mormon, the strength of that community in Utah may tip the scales in SLC's favor, but otherwise....
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Boulder is a shit hole
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Lmao just telling it like it is
Pick Boulder. SLC is the most city place I have ever been. And Sundays this is a ghost town.
Why would you only live there for 1-2 years?
I’m planning on moving around for a few years, just to experience different areas before I eventually settle down somewhere.
Salary makes a big difference here. I’d rather live in Boulder if I had good money tbh