View source for Seattle

{{Short description|City in Washington, United States}}
{{about|the city}}
{{pp-move}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{use American English||date=September 2019}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Seattle
| native_name = dᶻidᶻəlal̕ič
| native_name_lang = lut
| settlement_type = [[City government in Washington (state)|City]]
| image_skyline = {{multiple image
 |border             = infobox
 |total_width        = 290
 |perrow             = 1/2/2
 |caption_align      = center
 |image1             = Seattle Downtown Aerial, July 2025 (zoomed).jpg
 |alt1               = Downtown Seattle skyline
 |caption1           = [[Downtown Seattle]] skyline with [[Mount Rainier]] in the background
 |image2             = Seattle Center as night falls.jpg
 |alt2               = Space Needle with the Olympic Mountains in the background
 |caption2           = [[Space Needle]] and [[Climate Pledge Arena]], with the [[Olympic Mountains]] in the background
 |image3             = Seattle Great Wheel, Seattle, Washington, Estados Unidos, 2017-09-02, DD 16.jpg
 |alt3               = Seattle Great Wheel
 |caption3           = [[Seattle Great Wheel]]
 |image4             = Pike Place Market 2019-1078.jpg
 |alt4               = The sign of Pike Place Market, a popular public market and tourist destination
 |caption4           = [[Pike Place Market]]
 |image5             = Amazon Spheres from 6th Avenue, April 2020.jpg
 |alt5               = Amazon Spheres
 |caption5           = [[Amazon Spheres]]
}}
| image_flag = Flag of Seattle.svg
| flag_size = 105px
| image_seal = Seal of Seattle, Washington.png
| seal_size = 85px
| image_blank_emblem = City of Seattle (logo).svg
| blank_emblem_type = Wordmark
| blank_emblem_size = 155px
| blank_emblem_alt = 
| blank_emblem_link = List of U.S. county and city insignia
| named_for = [[Chief Seattle]]
| nicknames = The Emerald City, Jet City, Rain City
| mottoes = The City of Flowers, The City of Goodwill
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-zoom = 9
| mapframe-point = none
| pushpin_map = Washington#USA
| pushpin_relief = yes
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = [[United States]]
| subdivision_type1 = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1 = [[Washington (state)|Washington]]
| subdivision_type2 = [[List of counties in Washington|County]]
| subdivision_name2 = [[King County, Washington|King]]
| established_title1 = Founded
| established_date1 = {{start date |1851|11|13}}{{efn|November 13, 1851, is often referred to as the unofficial date of Seattle's founding, when much of the [[Denny Party]] arrived at [[Alki Point]]. However, the first White settlers to inhabit the area had already arrived in September, which included some scouts of the Denny clan. The modern city did not take shape until the following spring after much of the party abandoned Alki to move across [[Elliott Bay|the bay]]. The name "Seattle" didn't become official until May 23, 1853.}}
| established_title2 = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated (town status)]]
| established_date2 = {{start date|1865|01|14}}
| established_title3 = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated (city status)]]
| established_date3 = {{start date|1869|12|02}}
| government_type = [[Mayor–council government|Mayor–council]]
| governing_body = [[Seattle City Council]]
| leader_title = [[Mayor of Seattle|Mayor]]
| leader_name = [[Katie Wilson]]
| unit_pref = Imperial
| area_footnotes = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer">{{cite web |title=2022 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Washington |url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2022_Gazetteer/2022_gaz_place_53.txt |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=January 15, 2024 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907221212/https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2022_Gazetteer/2022_gaz_place_53.txt |url-status=live }}</ref>
| area_total_sq_mi = 142.07
| area_total_km2 = 367.97
| area_land_sq_mi = 83.99
| area_land_km2 = 217.54
| area_water_sq_mi = 58.08
| area_water_km2 = 150.43
| area_metro_sq_mi = 8,186
| area_metro_km2 = 21,202
| population_as_of = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_total = 737015
| population_footnotes = <ref name="QuickFacts">{{cite web |title=QuickFacts: Seattle city, Washington |url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/seattlecitywashington/POP010220 |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=May 15, 2025 |archive-date=June 9, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220609093625/https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/seattlecitywashington/POP010220 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| pop_est_footnotes = <ref name="QuickFacts"/>
| pop_est_as_of = 2024
| population_est = 780995
| population_rank = {{nowrap|[[List of North American cities by population|54th]] in North America<br />[[List of United States cities by population|18th]] in the United States<br />[[List of municipalities in Washington|1st]] in Washington}}
| population_density_sq_mi = 9298.67
| population_density_km2 = 3591.59
| population_metro_footnotes = <ref name="2020Pop">{{cite web |title=2020 Population and Housing State Data |url=https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/2020-population-and-housing-state-data.html |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=August 22, 2021 |archive-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210824081449/https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/2020-population-and-housing-state-data.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
| population_metro = 4018762 (US: [[List of metropolitan statistical areas|15th]])
| population_urban = 3544011 (US: [[List of United States urban areas|13th]])
| population_urban_footnotes = <ref name="urban area">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/geography/guidance/geo-areas/urban-rural.html |title=List of 2020 Census Urban Areas |website=census.gov |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=January 8, 2023 |archive-date=January 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114022812/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/geography/guidance/geo-areas/urban-rural.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
| population_density_urban_km2 = 1,392.7
| population_density_urban_sq_mi = 3,607.1
| population_demonym = Seattleite<ref name="The Seattle Times">{{cite news |last1=Balk |first1=Gene |title=When can you call yourself a Seattleite? |url=http://blogs.seattletimes.com/fyi-guy/2012/10/02/when-can-you-call-yourself-a-seattleite/ |website=The Seattle Times |access-date=October 19, 2018 |date=October 2, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116233637/http://blogs.seattletimes.com/fyi-guy/2012/10/02/when-can-you-call-yourself-a-seattleite/ |archive-date=January 16, 2013 }}</ref> or Seattlite<ref name="City of Seattle">{{cite web |last1=Wilson-Codega |first1=Lily |title=About Seattle: Sister Cities |url=http://www.seattle.gov/oir/sister-cities/about-seattle-sister-cities |website=City of Seattle |access-date=October 19, 2018 |archive-date=October 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019164018/http://www.seattle.gov/oir/sister-cities/about-seattle-sister-cities |url-status=live }}</ref>
| demographics_type2 = GDP
| demographics2_footnotes = <ref name="FRED-GDP">{{cite web |date=December 4, 2024 |title=Total Gross Domestic Product for Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA (MSA) |url=https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NGMP42660 |work=[[Federal Reserve Economic Data]] |publisher=[[Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis]] |access-date=June 22, 2025 |archive-date=June 22, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250622055404/https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NGMP42660 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| demographics2_title1 = Metro
| demographics2_info1 = $566.742 billion (2023)
| timezone = [[Pacific Time Zone|PST]]
| utc_offset = −8
| timezone_DST = [[Pacific Time Zone|PDT]]
| utc_offset_DST = −7
| elevation_ft = 148
| elevation_footnotes = <ref name=gnis/>
| coordinates = {{coord|47|36|14|N|122|19|48|W|region:US-WA|display=inline,title}}
| postal_code_type = [[ZIP Code]]s
| postal_code = {{collapsible list
 |title              = {{nobold|ZIP Codes}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupResultsAction!input.action?resultMode=1&address1=&address2=&city=Seattle&state=WA |publisher=USPS |title=Zip Code Lookup |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151112030118/http://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupResultsAction%21input.action?resultMode=1&address1=&address2=&city=Seattle&state=WA |archive-date=November 12, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupResultsAction!input.action?items=30&page=2&address1=&address2=&city=Seattle&state=WA |publisher=USPS |title=Zip Code Lookup |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151112030348/http://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupResultsAction%21input.action?items=30&page=2&address1=&address2=&city=Seattle&state=WA |archive-date=November 12, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>
 |list_style               = text-align:center;display:none
 |98101–98119, 98121–98122, 98124–98127, 98129, 98131, 98133–98134, 98136, 98138–98139, 98141, 98144–98146, 98148, 98154–98155, 98158, 98160–98161, 98164–98166, 98168, 98170, 98174–98175, 98177–98178, 98181, 98185, 98188, 98190–98191, 98194–98195, 98198–98199}}
| area_code = [[Area code 206|206]], [[Area code 564|564]]
| area_code_type = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area code]]
| blank_name = [[Federal Information Processing Standards|FIPS code]]
| blank_info = 53-63000
| blank1_name = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info = 2411856<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2411856 }}</ref>
| module = {{infobox network service provider|child=yes|asn=3401}}
| website = {{Official URL}}
}}
'''Seattle''' ({{IPAc-en|audio=GT Seattle AE.ogg|s|i|ˈ|æ|t|əl}} {{respell|see|AT|əl}}) is the [[List of municipalities in Washington|most populous city]] in the U.S. state of [[Washington (state)|Washington]] and the [[Pacific Northwest]] region of [[North America]]. It is the [[List of United States cities by population|18th-most populous city]] in the United States with a population of 780,995 in 2024,<ref name="QuickFacts"/> while the [[Seattle metropolitan area]] at over 4.15 million residents is the [[List of metropolitan statistical areas|15th-most populous metropolitan area]] in the nation.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattle-just-one-of-5-big-metros-last-year-that-had-more-people-move-here-than-leave-census-data-show/ |title=Seattle just one of 5 big metros last year that had more people move here than leave, census data show |last=Balk |first=Gene |date=March 26, 2018 |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=May 7, 2018 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=May 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515232543/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattle-just-one-of-5-big-metros-last-year-that-had-more-people-move-here-than-leave-census-data-show/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The city is the [[county seat]] of [[King County, Washington|King County]], the [[List of counties in Washington|most populous county]] in Washington. Seattle's growth rate of 21.1% between 2010 and 2020 made it one of the country's fastest-growing large cities.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gutman |first1=David |last2=Shapiro |first2=Nina |title=Seattle grew by more than 100,000 people in past 10 years, King County population booms, diversifies, new census data shows |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/seattle-grew-by-more-than-100000-people-in-past-10-years-kent-among-fastest-growing-cities-new-census-data-shows/ |access-date=August 20, 2021 |work=The Seattle Times |date=August 12, 2021 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=May 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526194428/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/seattle-grew-by-more-than-100000-people-in-past-10-years-kent-among-fastest-growing-cities-new-census-data-shows/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Seattle is situated on an [[isthmus]] between [[Puget Sound]], an inlet of the [[Pacific Ocean]], and [[Lake Washington]]. It is the northernmost major city in the United States, located about {{convert|100|mi}} south of the [[Canada–United States border|Canadian border]]. A gateway for trade with [[Asia-Pacific|the West Pacific]], the [[Port of Seattle]] is the fourth-largest port in North America in terms of container handling {{As of|2021|lc=y}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Seaport Statistics |url=https://www.nwseaportalliance.com/about-us/cargo-statistics |publisher=Port of Seattle |access-date=June 1, 2022 |archive-date=November 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221122062811/https://www.nwseaportalliance.com/about-us/cargo-statistics |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Seattle area has been inhabited by [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] (such as the [[Duwamish people|Duwamish]], who had at least 17 villages around [[Elliott Bay]]) for at least 4,000 years before the first permanent European settlers.<ref name=Discovery_Park>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/lifestyle/article/Feel-the-beat-of-history-in-the-park-and-concert-1251579.php |title=Feel the beat of history in the park and concert hall at two family-friendly events |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=October 4, 2007 |author-first1=Doree |author-last1=Armstrong |access-date=November 1, 2007 |archive-date=January 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125114516/http://www.seattlepi.com/lifestyle/article/Feel-the-beat-of-history-in-the-park-and-concert-1251579.php |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Arthur A. Denny]] and his group of travelers, subsequently known as the [[Denny Party]], arrived from [[Illinois]] via [[Portland, Oregon]], on the [[Schooner Exact|schooner ''Exact'']] at [[Alki Point, Seattle|Alki Point]] on November 13, 1851.<ref name="SonsOfTheProfits">{{cite book |last=Speidel |first=William C. |author-link=Bill Speidel |date=1967 |title=Sons of the Profits or There's No Business Like Grow Business The Seattle Story 1851–1901 |publisher=Nettle Creek |isbn=9780914890065 |pages=12–13 |quote=At the time, the Schooner "Exact" was outfitting in Portland for a voyage to Queen Charlotte Island with gold prospectors, and for a reasonable price the captain was willing to touch at Puget Sound en route. She started from Portland on November 5, 1851 and headed out over the Columbia River Bar after touching at Astoria two days later. }}</ref> The settlement was moved to the eastern shore of [[Elliott Bay]] in 1852 and named "Seattle" in honor of [[Chief Seattle]], a prominent 19th-century leader of the local [[Duwamish people|Duwamish]] and [[Suquamish people|Suquamish]] tribes. Seattle currently has relatively high populations of Native Americans as well as Americans with strong Asian, African, European, and Scandinavian ancestry, and, as of 2015, hosts the fifth-highest percentage of residents who identify as [[LGBT culture in Seattle|LGBT]] among major metropolitan areas in the U.S. (4.8 percent).<ref name=Fifth2015>{{cite web |author-first1=Gene |author-last1=Balk |date=March 20, 2015 |title=Survey ranks Seattle area 5th for LGBT population – so how many people is that? |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/data-show-seattle-metros-lgbt-population-at-173000/ |url-access=subscription |publisher=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 4, 2019 |archive-date=January 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126002327/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/data-show-seattle-metros-lgbt-population-at-173000/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Logging]] was Seattle's first major industry, but by the late 19th century the city had become a commercial and shipbuilding center as a gateway to [[Alaska]] during the [[Klondike Gold Rush]]. The city grew after [[World War II]], partly due to the local company [[Boeing]], which established Seattle as a center for its manufacturing of aircraft. Beginning in the 1980s, the Seattle area developed into a [[list of technology centers|technology center]]; [[Microsoft]] established its headquarters in the region. [[Alaska Airlines]] is based at [[Seattle–Tacoma International Airport]] in [[SeaTac, Washington]]. The stream of new software, [[biotechnology]], and Internet companies led to an economic revival, which increased the city's population by almost 50,000 in the decade between 1990 and 2000.

The culture of Seattle is heavily defined by its [[Music of Seattle|significant musical history]]. Between 1918 and 1951, nearly 24 [[jazz]] nightclubs existed along Jackson Street, from the current [[Chinatown/International District, Seattle|Chinatown/International District]] to the [[Central District, Seattle|Central District]]. The jazz scene nurtured the early careers of [[Ernestine Anderson]], [[Ray Charles]], [[Quincy Jones]], and others. In the late 20th and early 21st century, the city also was the origin of several [[Rock music|rock]] artists, including [[Foo Fighters]], [[Heart (band)|Heart]], and [[Jimi Hendrix]], and the subgenre of [[grunge]] and its pioneering bands, including [[Alice in Chains]], [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]], [[Pearl Jam]], [[Soundgarden]], and others.<ref name="Seattle_Sound">{{cite book |last=Heylin |first=Clinton |title=Babylon's Burning: From Punk to Grunge |publisher=Conongate |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84195-879-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/babylonsburningf0000heyl/page/606 606] |url=https://archive.org/details/babylonsburningf0000heyl/page/606 }}</ref>

==History==
{{main|History of Seattle}}

{{For timeline}}
[[Archaeological excavation]]s suggest that [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] have inhabited the Seattle area for at least 4,000 years.<ref name=Discovery_Park/> By the time the first European settlers arrived, the [[Duwamish people]] occupied at least 17 villages in the areas around [[Elliott Bay]].<ref>{{cite web |first=Greg |last=Lange |date=October 15, 2000 |publisher=HistoryLink |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=1660 |title=Seattle and King County's First European Settlers |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=September 22, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922225548/http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=1660 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=July 4, 2003 |url=http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/learn/CDROM/SongStorySpeech/Content/SalishArtCulture.htm |title=The people and their land |work=Puget Sound Native Art and Culture |publisher=Seattle Art Museum |access-date=April 21, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613093932/http://seattleartmuseum.org/Learn/CDROM/SongStorySpeech/Content/SalishArtCulture.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2010}} (Publication date per "Native Art of the Northwest Coast: Collection Insight")</ref><ref>{{cite web |author-first1=Walt |author-last1=Crowley |author-link=Walt Crowley |date=March 13, 2003 |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5402 |title=Native American tribes sign Point Elliott Treaty at Mukilteo on January 22, 1855 |publisher=HistoryLink |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=January 25, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090125123542/http://historylink.org/index.cfm?displaypage=output.cfm&file_id=5402 |url-status=live }}</ref> The name for the modern city of Seattle in [[Lushootseed]], {{lang|lut|dᶻidᶻəlal̓ič}}, meaning "little crossing-over place", comes from one of these villages, which was located at the present-day [[King Street Station]].<ref name="BatesHess1994">{{cite book |last1=Bates |first1=Dawn |last2=Hess |first2=Thom |last3=Hilbert |first3=Vi |author-link3=Vi Hilbert |url=https://archive.org/details/lushootseeddicti00bate/page/91/mode/1up |title=Lushootseed Dictionary |publisher=University of Washington Press |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-295-97323-4 |page=91 |access-date=December 22, 2025 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222214/https://books.google.com/books?id=ekq921r1kV0C |url-status=live |quote=dᶻidᶻəlalʼič Seattle. See dᶻal.}}</ref><ref name="Waterman2001">{{Cite book |last=Waterman |first=T. T. |author-link=T. T. Waterman |editor-last1=Hilbert |editor-first1=Vi |editor1-link=Vi Hilbert |editor-last2=Miller |editor-first2=Jay |editor-link2=Jay Miller (anthropologist) |editor-last3=Zahir |editor-first3=Zalmai |title=sdaʔdaʔ gʷəɬ dibəɬ ləšucid ʔacaciɬtalbixʷ Puget Sound Geography Original Manuscript from T. T. Waterman |publisher=Lushootseed Press |year=2001 |isbn=979-8750945764 |pages=44 }}</ref><ref name="HuntKaylor1917">{{cite book |last1=Hunt |first1=Herbert |last2=Kaylor |first2=Floyd C. |url=https://archive.org/details/washingtonwestc00kaylgoog/page/534/mode/1up |title=Washington, West of the Cascades |publisher=[[S. J. Clarke Publishing Company]] |year=1917 |volume=I |page=534 |oclc=10086413 |access-date=April 24, 2017 |quote=The following are some of the local aboriginal names used at Tulalip for various places about Puget Sound: Seattle, Tzēē-tzēē-lălʼ-ĭtch, little portage, referring to the short cut from bay to lake rather than the circuitous river route.}}</ref>

In May 1792, [[George Vancouver]] was the first European to visit the Seattle area during his [[Vancouver Expedition|1791–1795 expedition]] for the [[Royal Navy]], which sought to chart the [[Pacific Northwest]] for the British.<ref name=Vancouver1801>{{cite book |author-first1=George |author-last1=Vancouver |author-first2=John |author-last2=Vancouver |title=A voyage of discovery to the North Pacific ocean, and round the world |publisher=J. Stockdale |orig-year=1801 |year=2011|location=London |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qwol8bPaYxsC |isbn=978-0-665-18642-4 |access-date=October 20, 2020 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222215/https://books.google.com/books?id=qwol8bPaYxsC |url-status=live }}</ref>

===19th century===
[[File:Seattle - Occidental and Yesler - 1884.jpg|thumb|[[Seattle Street Railway|Seattle's first streetcar]] at the corner of Occidental and Yesler in 1884; all buildings depicted were destroyed by the [[Great Seattle Fire]] five years later, in 1889.]]
[[File:Birds-eye-view of Seattle and environs King County, Wash., 1891. LOC 75696663.jpg|thumb|An 1891 aerial view of Seattle and surrounding [[King County, Washington|King County]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://coololdphotos.com/birds-eye-view-of-seattle-and-king-county-in-1891/ |title=Bird's-Eye View of Seattle and King County in 1891 |last=Tom |date=May 22, 2015 |website=Cool Old Photos |language=en-US |access-date=March 5, 2019 |archive-date=March 6, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306044017/https://coololdphotos.com/birds-eye-view-of-seattle-and-king-county-in-1891/ |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
In 1851, a large party of [[American pioneer]]s led by Luther Collins made a location on land at the mouth of the [[Duwamish River]]; they formally claimed it on September 14, 1851.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5390 |title=Luther Collins Party, first King County settlers, arrive at mouth of Duwamish River on September 14, 1851. |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |date=March 8, 2003 |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=July 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210703082552/https://www.historylink.org/File/5390 |url-status=live }}</ref> Thirteen days later, members of the Collins Party on the way to their claim passed three scouts of the Denny Party.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=2765 |title=Collins party encounters Denny party scouts at Duwamish Head near future site of Seattle on September 27, 1851. |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |date=December 16, 2000 |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=July 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210703082647/https://www.historylink.org/File/2765 |url-status=live }}</ref> Members of the Denny Party claimed land on [[Alki Point, Seattle|Alki Point]] on September 28, 1851.<ref name="founding">{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=303 |title=Seattle – a Snapshot History of Its Founding |date=August 31, 1998 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Walt |author-last1=Crowley |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=July 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210703080949/https://www.historylink.org/File/303 |url-status=live }}</ref> The rest of the Denny Party set sail on the [[Schooner Exact|schooner ''Exact'']] from [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], Oregon, stopping in [[Astoria, Oregon|Astoria]], and landed at Alki Point during a rainstorm on November 13, 1851.<ref name=founding/> After a difficult winter, most of the Denny Party relocated across Elliott Bay and claimed land a second time at the site of present-day [[Pioneer Square, Seattle|Pioneer Square]],<ref name=founding/> naming this new settlement ''Duwamps''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.seattle.gov/documents/departments/neighborhoods/historicpreservation/historicresourcessurvey/context-pioneer-square.pdf |title=The Pioneer Square-Skid Road National Historic District Statement of Significance |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=n.d. |website=seattle.gov |publisher=City of Seattle |access-date=July 10, 2022 |quote= |archive-date=August 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816050419/http://www.seattle.gov/documents/departments/neighborhoods/historicpreservation/historicresourcessurvey/context-pioneer-square.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

Charles Terry and John Low remained at the original landing location, reestablished their old land claim and called it "New York", but renamed "New York Alki" in April 1853, from a [[Chinook Jargon|Chinook]] word meaning, roughly, "by and by" or "someday".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Seattle-at-150-Charles-Terry-s-unlimited-energy-1069610.php |title=Seattle at 150: Charles Terry's unlimited energy influenced a city |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |author-first1=James R. |author-last1=Warren |date=October 23, 2001 |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=January 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125121342/http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Seattle-at-150-Charles-Terry-s-unlimited-energy-1069610.php |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="ws">{{cite book |last1=Speidel |first1=William |title=Sons of the Profits |date=1967 |publisher=Nettle Creek Publishing Company |location=Seattle |pages=27–55 }}</ref> For the next few years, New York Alki and Duwamps competed for dominance, but in time Alki was abandoned and its residents moved across the bay to join the rest of the settlers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=3142 |title=Charles Terry homesteads site of Alki business district on May 1, 1852. |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |date=March 28, 2001 |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=February 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226125116/https://www.historylink.org/File/3142 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[David Swinson Maynard|David Swinson "Doc" Maynard]], one of the founders of Duwamps, was the primary advocate to name the settlement after [[Chief Seattle]] ({{langx|lut|siʔaɫ}}, anglicized as "Seattle"), chief of the Duwamish and [[Suquamish people|Suquamish]] tribes.<ref name=nameorigin>{{cite web |editor=Thomas R. Speer |date=July 22, 2004 |url=http://www.duwamishtribe.org/chiefsiahl.html |title=Chief Si'ahl and His Family |publisher=Duwamish Tribe |access-date=October 14, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090213151404/http://duwamishtribe.org/chiefsiahl.html |archive-date=February 13, 2009}} Includes bibliography.</ref><ref>{{cite web |author-first1=Kenneth G. |author-last1=Watson |date=January 18, 2003 |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5071 |title=Seattle, Chief Noah |publisher=HistoryLink |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=February 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225172241/https://www.historylink.org/File/5071 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author-first1=Murray |author-last1=Morgan |year=1982 |orig-year=First published 1951, 1982 revised and updated, first illustrated edition |title=Skid Road: an Informal Portrait of Seattle |publisher=University of Washington Press |location=Seattle and London |isbn=978-0-295-95846-0 |page=20 |author-link=Murray Morgan }}</ref> The brief [[Puget Sound War]] culminated in the [[Battle of Seattle (1856)|Battle of Seattle]] on January 26, 1856. The attack was repelled, and the settlement was never attacked again.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Crowley |first1=Walt |last2=Wilma |first2=David |title=Native Americans attack Seattle on January 26, 1856. |url=https://www.historylink.org/file/5208 |website=HistoryLink |access-date=18 February 2025 |date=February 15, 2003}}</ref>

The name "Seattle" appears on official [[Washington Territory]] papers dated May 23, 1853, when the first [[plat]]s for the village were filed. In 1855, nominal land settlements were established. On January 14, 1865, the Legislature of Territorial Washington incorporated the Town of Seattle with a [[trustee model of representation|board of trustees]] managing the city. The Town of Seattle was disincorporated on January 18, 1867, and remained a mere precinct of King County until late 1869, when a new petition was filed and the city was re-incorporated December 2, 1869, with a [[mayor–council government]].<ref name=founding/><ref>{{cite web |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |author2=Cassandra Tate |date=November 4, 1998 |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=168 |title=Legislature incorporates the Town of Seattle for the first time on January 14, 1865. |publisher=HistoryLink |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224213817/https://www.historylink.org/File/168 |url-status=live }}</ref> The corporate seal of the City of Seattle carries the date "1869" and a likeness of Chief Seattle in left profile.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/facts/symbols.htm |title=Seattle City Symbols |publisher=City of Seattle |access-date=February 28, 2014 |archive-date=September 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921214904/http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/Facts/symbols.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> That same year, Seattle acquired the epithet of the "Queen City", a designation officially changed in 1982 to the "Emerald City".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/181" |title=Seattle receives epithet Queen City in 1869 |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |publisher=HistoryLink |access-date=June 27, 2022 }}</ref>

Seattle has a history of boom-and-bust cycles, like many other cities near areas of extensive natural and mineral resources. Seattle has risen several times economically, then gone into precipitous decline, but it has typically used those periods to rebuild solid infrastructure.<ref name=shear>
{{cite journal |author-first1=Emmett |author-last1=Shear |title=Seattle: Booms and Busts |journal=Yale University |date=Spring 2002}} Author has granted blanket permission for material from that paper to be reused in Wikipedia. Now at [[s:Seattle: Booms and Busts]].</ref>

The first such boom, covering the early years of the city, rode on the lumber industry. During this period the road now known as [[Yesler Way]] won the nickname "Skid Road", supposedly after the timber skidding down the hill to [[Henry Yesler]]'s sawmill. The later dereliction of the area may be a possible origin for the term which later entered the wider American lexicon as ''[[Skid Row]]''.<ref name=yesler>{{cite web |author-first1=Junius |author-last1=Rochester |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=286 |title=Yesler, Henry L. |publisher=HistoryLink |date=October 7, 1998 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224212357/https://www.historylink.org/File/286 |url-status=live }}</ref> Like much of the [[Western United States|U.S. West]], Seattle experienced conflicts between labor and management and ethnic tensions that culminated in the [[History of Seattle before 1900#Relations between whites and Chinese|anti-Chinese riots of 1885–1886]].<ref name="Kinnear 1911">{{cite wikisource |last1=Kinnear |first1=George |author-link1=George Kinnear |title=Anti-Chinese Riots At Seattle, Wn.. February 8, 1876 |wslink=Anti-Chinese Riots At Seattle |date=February 8, 1911 |publisher=[privately printed] |location=Seattle |oclc=844602374 }} See also {{Internet Archive|id=AntiChineseRiotsAtSeattle1886|name=Anti-Chinese Riots At Seattle, Wn.. February 8, 1876}}. Kinnear's article originally appeared in the ''[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]]''.</ref> This violence originated with unemployed whites who were determined to drive the Chinese from Seattle; anti-Chinese riots also occurred in [[Tacoma riot of 1885|Tacoma]].

Seattle had achieved sufficient economic success when the [[Great Seattle Fire]] of 1889 destroyed the central business district. However, a far grander city center rapidly emerged in its place.<ref name=fire>{{cite news |author-first1=Walt |author-last1=Crowley |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5115 |title=Seattle burns down in the Great Fire on June 6, 1889. |publisher=HistoryLink |date=January 25, 2003 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224234450/https://www.historylink.org/File/5115 |url-status=live }}</ref> Finance company [[Washington Mutual]], for example, was founded in the immediate wake of the fire.<ref name=Klondike-foundings>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/klse/hrs/hrs0.ht |title=Hard Drive to the Klondike: Promoting Seattle During the Gold Rush |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |date=February 18, 2003 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103062325/http://www.nps.gov/archive/klse/hrs/hrs0.htm |archive-date=November 3, 2007 |url-status=dead}}
</ref> The [[Panic of 1893]] hit Seattle hard.<ref>{{cite web |author-first1=J. Kingston |author-last1=Pierce |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=2030 |title=Panic of 1893: Seattle's First Great Depression. |publisher=HistoryLink |date=November 24, 1999 |access-date=December 18, 2008 |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224224005/https://www.historylink.org/File/2030 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The second and most dramatic boom resulted from the [[Klondike Gold Rush]], which ended the depression that had begun with the [[Panic of 1893]]. In a short time, Seattle became a major transportation center. On July 14, 1897, the ''S.S. Portland'' docked with its famed "ton of gold", and Seattle became the main transport and supply point for the miners in [[Alaska]] and the [[Yukon]]. Few of those working men found lasting wealth. However, it was Seattle's business of clothing the miners and feeding them salmon that panned out in the long run. Along with Seattle, other cities like [[Everett, Washington|Everett]], [[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]], [[Port Townsend, Washington|Port Townsend]], [[Bremerton, Washington|Bremerton]], and [[Olympia, Washington|Olympia]], all in the Puget Sound region, became competitors for exchange, rather than [[mother lode]]s for extraction, of precious metals.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=687 |title=Klondike Gold Rush |publisher=HistoryLink.org |date=January 14, 1999 |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=February 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225161326/https://www.historylink.org/File/687 |url-status=live }}</ref> 
{{wide image|Seattle, Washington Territory, Harper's New Monthly Magazine, circa September 1870 (cropped).jpg|600px|A September 1870 engraving of Seattle published in ''[[Harper's Magazine]]''}}

===20th century===
[[File:Pioneer square.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Pioneer Square, Seattle|Pioneer Square]], the [[Pioneer Building (Seattle, Washington)|Pioneer Building]], the [[Smith Tower]], and the [[Seattle Hotel]] in 1917]]
[[File:Monorail Pillar Erection on 5th Avenue, Seattle, Washington, June 15, 1961 (cropped).tif|thumb|upright|The [[Seattle Center Monorail]] under construction in 1961]]
The boom lasted into the early part of the 20th century, and funded many new Seattle companies and products. In 1907, 19-year-old [[James E. Casey]] borrowed $100 from a friend and founded the [[American Messenger Company]] (later [[United Parcel Service|UPS]]). Other Seattle companies founded during this period include [[Nordstrom]] and [[Eddie Bauer]].<ref name=Klondike-foundings/> Seattle brought in the [[Olmsted Brothers]] landscape architecture firm to design a system of parks and boulevards.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/parks/parkspaces/olmsted.htm |title=Park History – Olmsted Parks |publisher=Seattle Parks and Recreation |access-date=November 30, 2015 |archive-date=April 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414203312/http://www.seattle.gov/parks/about-us/park-history |url-status=live }}</ref> The Gold Rush era culminated in the [[Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition]] of 1909, which is largely responsible for the layout of today's [[University of Washington]] campus.<ref name="aypexpo">{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5371 |title=Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition opens for a 138-day run on June 1, 1909. |date=May 5, 2003 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=January 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090126202244/http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5371 |url-status=live }}</ref>

A [[shipbuilding]] boom in the early part of the 20th century became massive during [[World War I]], making Seattle somewhat of a company town. The subsequent retrenchment led to the [[Seattle General Strike|Seattle General Strike of 1919]], an early [[general strike]] in the country.<!--Not the first. An earlier general strike occurred, in St.Louis. [[1877 St. Louis general strike]]--><ref name=generalstrike>{{cite news |author-first1=Patrick|author-last1=McRoberts |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=861 |title=Seattle General Strike, 1919, Part I |publisher=HistoryLink |date=February 4, 1999 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=March 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210305084737/https://www.historylink.org/File/861 |url-status=live }}</ref> A 1912 city development plan by [[Virgil Bogue]] went largely unused. Seattle was mildly prosperous in the 1920s but was particularly hard hit in the Great Depression, experiencing some of the country's harshest labor strife in that era. Violence during the [[Maritime Strike of 1934]] cost Seattle much of its maritime traffic, which was rerouted to the [[Port of Los Angeles]].<ref>BOLA Architecture + Planning & Northwest Archaeological Associates, Inc., {{cite web |url=http://www.portseattle.org/downloads/business/realestate/development/northbay/Appendix_I_Historic_Cultural.pdf |title=Port of Seattle North Bay Project DEIS: Historic and Cultural Resources |access-date=July 26, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723025013/http://www.portseattle.org/downloads/business/realestate/development/northbay/Appendix_I_Historic_Cultural.pdf |archive-date=July 23, 2011}}, Port of Seattle, April 5, 2005, pp. 12–13 (which is pp. 14–15 of the PDF). Retrieved July 25, 2008.</ref>

Seattle was one of the major cities that benefited from programs such as the [[Works Progress Administration]], [[Civilian Conservation Corps|CCC]], [[Public Works Administration]], and others.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Building Washington |last1=Dorpat |first1=Paul |last2=McCoy |first2=Genevieve |publisher=Tartu Publications |year=1998 |location=Seattle }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Seattle 1921–1940: From Boom to Bust |last=Berner |first=Richard |publisher=Charles Press |year=1992 |location=Seattle }}</ref> The workers, mostly men, built roads, parks, dams, schools, railroads, bridges, docks, and even historical and archival record sites and buildings. Seattle faced significant unemployment, loss of lumber and construction industries as [[Los Angeles]] prevailed as the bigger [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]] city. Seattle had building contracts that rivaled [[New York City]] and [[Chicago]], but also lost to Los Angeles. Seattle's eastern farm land faded due to [[Oregon]]'s and the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]]'s, forcing people into town.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Depression and the Urban West Coast, 1929–1933 |url=https://archive.org/details/depressionurbanw0000mull |url-access=registration |last=Mullins |first=William |publisher=Indiana University Press |year=1991 |location=Indianapolis |isbn=9780253339355 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=San Francisco and Seattle During the Hoover Years of the Depression: 1929–1933 |last=Mullins |first=William |publisher=University of Washington |year=1975 |location=Seattle }}</ref>

[[Hooverville]] arose during the Depression, leading to Seattle's growing homeless population. Stationed outside Seattle, the Hooverville housed thousands of men but very few children and no women. With work projects close to the city, Hooverville grew and the WPA settled into the city.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Hooverville: A Study of a Community of Homeless Men in Seattle |last=Roy |first=Donald |publisher=University of Washington |year=1935 |location=Seattle }}</ref>

A movement of women arose from Seattle during the [[Great Depression]], fueled in part by [[Eleanor Roosevelt]]'s 1933 book ''It's Up to the Women''; women pushed for recognition, not just as housewives, but as the backbone to family. Using newspapers and journals ''Working Woman'' and ''The Woman Today'', women pushed to be seen as equal and receive some recognition.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Orleck |first=Annelise |date=1993 |title=We Are the Mythical Thing Called the Public |journal=Feminist Studies |volume=19 |pages=147–172 |doi=10.2307/3178357 |jstor=3178357 |hdl=2027/spo.0499697.0019.109 |hdl-access=free |issn=0046-3663 }}</ref>

The Great Depression did not impact the [[University of Washington]] negatively. As schools across Washington lost funding and attendance, the university actually prospered during the time period as they focused on growing their student enrollment. While [[Seattle Public Schools|Seattle public schools]] were influenced by Washington's superintendent Worth McClure,<ref>{{Cite book |title=Schools in the Great Depression |url=https://archive.org/details/schoolsingreatde0000more |url-access=registration |last=Moreo |first=Dominic |publisher=Garland Publishing |year=1996 |location=New York |isbn=9780815320395 }}</ref> they still struggled to pay teachers and maintain attendance.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The First Century at the University of Washington |url=https://archive.org/details/firstcenturyatun0000gate |url-access=registration |last=Gates |first=Charles |publisher=University of Washington Press |year=1961 |location=Seattle }}</ref>

Seattle was the home base of impresario [[Alexander Pantages]] who, starting in 1902, opened a number of theaters in the city exhibiting [[vaudeville]] acts and silent movies. He went on to become one of America's greatest theater and movie tycoons. Scottish-born architect [[B. Marcus Priteca]] designed several theaters for Pantages in Seattle, which were later demolished or converted to other uses. Seattle's surviving [[Paramount Theatre (Seattle)|Paramount Theatre]], on which he collaborated, was not a Pantages theater.<ref>{{cite web |last=Statt |first=Daniel |date=March 5, 2001 |title=Pantages, Alexander (1876-1936) |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/2999 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=May 3, 2021 |archive-date=June 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210623221352/https://www.historylink.org/File/2999 |url-status=live }}</ref>

War work again brought local prosperity during [[World War II]], centered on the production of [[Boeing]] aircraft. The war dispersed the city's numerous Japanese-American businessmen due to the [[Japanese American internment]]. After the World War II, however, the local economy dipped. It rose again with Boeing's growing dominance in the commercial [[airliner]] market.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.visitseattle.org/press/press-kit/seattle-history/ |title=History of Seattle: The "Jet City" Takes Off |website=Seattle's Convention and Visitors Bureau |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905074721/http://www.visitseattle.org/press/press-kit/seattle-history/ |archive-date=September 5, 2015 }}</ref> Seattle celebrated its restored prosperity and made a bid for world recognition with the [[Century 21 Exposition]], the [[Century 21 Exposition|1962 World's Fair]], for which the [[Space Needle]] was built.<ref name="worldsfair">{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=2290 |title=Century 21 – The 1962 Seattle World's Fair, Part I |date=April 18, 2000 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Alan J. |author-last1=Stein |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=March 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310015248/https://www.historylink.org/File/2290 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Another major local economic downturn was in the late 1960s and early 1970s, at a time when Boeing was heavily affected by the [[1970s energy crisis|oil crises]], loss of government contracts, and costs and delays associated with the [[Boeing 747]]. Many people left the area to look for work elsewhere, and two local real estate agents put up a billboard reading "Will the last person leaving Seattle – Turn out the lights."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=1287 |title=Billboard appears on April 16, 1971, near Sea–Tac, reading: Will the Last Person Leaving Seattle—Turn Out the Lights. |date=June 8, 1999 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=July 18, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160718222609/http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?displaypage=output.cfm&file_id=1287 |url-status=live}}
The real estate agents were Bob McDonald and Jim Youngren, as cited at Don Duncan, ''Washington: the First One Hundred Years'', 1889–1989 (Seattle: The Seattle Times, 1989), 108, 109–110; ''The Seattle Times'', February 25, 1986, p. A3; Ronald R. Boyce, ''Seattle–Tacoma and the Southern Sound'' (Bozeman, Montana: Northwest Panorama Publishing, 1986), 99; Walt Crowley, ''Rites of Passage: A Memoir of the Sixties in Seattle'' (Seattle: [[University of Washington Press]], 1995), 297.</ref>

Seattle remained the corporate headquarters of Boeing until 2001, when the company separated its headquarters from its major production facilities; the headquarters were moved to Chicago.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002876673_boeingimage20.html |title=Chicago's got the headquarters, but Seattle's still Jet City, USA |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Kristi |author-last1=Heim |date=March 21, 2006 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717022228/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002876673_boeingimage20.html |archive-date=July 17, 2011 }}</ref> The Seattle area is still home to Boeing's [[Boeing Renton Factory|Renton narrow-body plant]] and [[Boeing Everett Factory|Everett wide-body plant]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Gates |first=Dominic |author-link=Dominic Gates |date=August 22, 2020 |title=Boeing's 787 choice could gut Washington state's aircraft industry |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeings-787-choice-could-gut-washington-states-aircraft-industry/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=May 3, 2021 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=June 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210623220633/https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeings-787-choice-could-gut-washington-states-aircraft-industry/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The company's [[credit union]] for employees, [[BECU]], remains based in the Seattle area and has been open to all residents of Washington since 2002.<ref>{{cite news |last=Engleman |first=Eric |date=October 3, 2004 |title=State's largest credit union grows by distancing itself from Boeing name |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2004/10/04/focus1.html |work=Puget Sound Business Journal |access-date=May 3, 2021 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=June 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210623221351/https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2004/10/04/focus1.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

On March 20, 1970, twenty-eight people were killed when the Ozark Hotel was burned by an unknown arsonist.<ref>{{cite news |title=Seattle, WA Deadly Hotel Fire, Mar 1970 |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Ozark-Hotel-fire-unsolved-1971-Seattle-blaze-4401146.php |access-date=October 24, 2020 |publisher=Walla Walla Union-Bulletin |date=March 20, 1970 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130402083205/https://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Ozark-Hotel-fire-unsolved-1971-Seattle-blaze-4401146.php |archive-date=April 2, 2013 }}</ref> The [[Wah Mee massacre]] in 1983 resulted in the killing of 13 people in an illegal gambling club in the [[Seattle Chinatown-International District]].<ref>{{cite news |author-first1=Natalie |author-last1=Singer |date=September 7, 2006 |title=23 years haven't erased grief caused by Wah Mee Massacre |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003247239_wahmee07m.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614212246/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003247239_wahmee07m.html |archive-date=June 14, 2011 |access-date=December 18, 2008 |work=[[The Seattle Times]] }}</ref>

The city's first [[Coffee in Seattle|coffeehouses]] were established in the late 1950s and grew over the following decades as espresso was introduced to the American market. On March 30, 1971, the [[Original Starbucks|first location]] for [[Starbucks|Starbucks Coffee]] opened at Pike Place Market in Downtown Seattle. The company initially sold [[coffee bean]]s but later expanded into cafes.<ref>{{cite web |last=Holden |first=Brad |date=July 26, 2023 |title=The History of Coffee in Seattle |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/22750 |work=HistoryLink |accessdate=April 3, 2025}}</ref>

Prosperity began to return in the 1980s beginning with [[Microsoft]]'s 1979 move from [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]], to nearby [[Bellevue, Washington]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Information for Students: Key Events In Microsoft History |url=http://www.slideshare.net/Sammy17/key-events-in-microsoft-history |publisher=Microsoft Visitor Center Student Information |access-date=October 1, 2005 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100805054837/http://www.slideshare.net/Sammy17/key-events-in-microsoft-history |archive-date=August 5, 2010 }}</ref>

Seattle and its suburbs became home to a number of technology companies, including [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]], [[F5 Networks]], [[RealNetworks]], [[Nintendo of America]], and [[T-Mobile US|T-Mobile]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Basnet |first=Neetish |date=October 14, 2022 |title=Largest Tech Employers |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/subscriber-only/2022/10/14/tech-employers.html |work=Puget Sound Business Journal |url-access=subscription |access-date=December 11, 2022 |archive-date=January 11, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111232709/https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/subscriber-only/2022/10/14/tech-employers.html |url-status=live }}</ref> This success brought an influx of new residents with a population increase within city limits of almost 50,000 between 1990 and 2000,<ref name=pophistory>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/cs/groups/pan/@pan/documents/web_informational/dpdd016816.pdf |title=Basic Population and Housing Unit Characteristics: Decennial Census |publisher=City of Seattle |author=Strategic Planning Office |date=March 2011 |access-date=February 28, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131218193710/http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/cs/groups/pan/@pan/documents/web_informational/dpdd016816.pdf |archive-date=December 18, 2013 }}</ref> and saw Seattle's real estate become some of the most expensive in the country.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2002446059_homeprices21.html?syndication=rss&source=realestate.xml&items=7 |title=Seattle area 'sticker shock' is a matter of perception |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=August 20, 2005 |author-first1=Jane |author-last1=Hodges |access-date=September 29, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622071454/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2002446059_homeprices21.html?syndication=rss&source=realestate.xml&items=7 |archive-date=June 22, 2011 }}</ref>

Seattle in this period attracted attention as home to the companies opened operations in or around the city. In 1990, the [[Goodwill Games]] were held in the city.<ref name=goodwillgames>{{cite web |author-first1=David |author-last1=Wilma |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5658 |title=Ted Turner's Goodwill Games open in Seattle on July 20, 1990. |publisher=HistoryLink |date=February 25, 2004 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=October 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071028062905/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5658 |url-status=live }}</ref> Three years later, in 1993, the [[APEC]] leaders was hosted in Seattle.<ref>{{cite news |last=Friedman |first=Thomas L. |author-link=Thomas Friedman |date=November 21, 1993 |title=The Pacific Summit: Leaders at Summit Seek Strong Pacific Community |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/21/world/the-pacific-summit-leaders-at-summit-seek-strong-pacific-community.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=May 3, 2021 |archive-date=May 4, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504062216/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/21/world/the-pacific-summit-leaders-at-summit-seek-strong-pacific-community.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The 1990s also witnessed a growing popularity in [[grunge]] music, a sound that was largely developed in Seattle's independent music scene.<ref>{{cite video |people=Pray, D., Helvey-Pray Productions |year=1996 |title=[[Hype!]] |publisher=Republic Pictures }}</ref>

In 1993, the movie ''[[Sleepless in Seattle]]'' brought the city further national attention,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-06-28-ca-8080-story.html |title='Sleepless' Surprises Hollywood : Movies: Romantic comedy opens with a strong $17 million; 'Last Action Hero' falls 50% at box office. 'Jurassic Park' collects another $28 million. – latimes |last=Fox |first=David J. |date=June 28, 1993 |publisher=Articles.latimes.com |access-date=May 29, 2015 |archive-date=January 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123145732/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-06-28-ca-8080-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> as did the television sitcom ''[[Frasier]]''. The [[dot-com bubble|dot-com boom]] caused a great frenzy among the technology companies in Seattle but the bubble ended in early 2001.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116294042194116133 |title=The Dot-Com Bubble Is Reconsidered – And Maybe Relived |date=November 8, 2006 |work=The Wall Street Journal |author-first1=Lee |author-last1=Gomes |access-date=October 4, 2007 |archive-date=March 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309102422/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116294042194116133 |url-status=live}} Gomes considers the bubble to have ended with the peak of the March 2000 peak of [[NASDAQ]].</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.forbes.com/2005/01/27/cx_de_0127bubblebowl.html |title=The Bubble Bowl |work=Forbes |author-first1=David M. |author-last1=Ewalt |date=January 27, 2005 |access-date=October 4, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303171759/http://www.forbes.com/2005/01/27/cx_de_0127bubblebowl.html |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead}} Ewalt refers to the advertising on [[Super Bowl XXXIV]] (January 2000) as "the dot-com bubble's Waterloo".</ref>

In 1999, the [[World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference of 1999|World Trade Organization]] held its conference in Seattle, which was met with [[World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference of 1999 protest activity|protest activity]]. The protests and police reactions to them largely overshadowed the conference itself.<ref name=wto>{{cite web |author-first1=David |author-last1=Wilma |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2141 |title=Protests against the World Trade Organization (WTO) continue on December 1, 1999. |publisher=HistoryLink |date=March 1, 2000 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=February 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226140058/https://www.historylink.org/File/2141 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===21st century===
In 2001, the city was impacted by the [[Seattle Mardi Gras Riots|Mardi Gras Riots]] and then by the [[2001 Nisqually earthquake|Nisqually earthquake]] the following day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/03/01/quake.pioneersq/index.html |publisher=CNN |title=Double dose of woe strikes historic Seattle neighborhood |date=March 1, 2001 |access-date=December 11, 2008 |archive-date=February 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225094133/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/03/01/quake.pioneersq/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Another boom began as the city emerged from the [[Great Recession]], commencing when [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] moved its headquarters from North [[Beacon Hill, Seattle|Beacon Hill]] to [[South Lake Union, Seattle|South Lake Union]]. The move initiated a historic construction boom which resulted in the completion of almost 10,000 apartments in Seattle in 2017, more than any previous year and nearly twice as many as were built in 2016.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rosenberg |first1=Mike |title=Seattle's record apartment boom is ready to explode; what it means for rents |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattles-record-apartment-boom-is-ready-to-explode/ |url-access=subscription |access-date=January 11, 2018 |work=The Seattle Times |date=December 30, 2016 |archive-date=January 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126075832/https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/seattles-record-apartment-boom-is-ready-to-explode/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Rosenberg">{{cite web |last1=Rosenberg |first1=Mike |title=Record construction frenzy sweeps downtown Seattle; more building to come |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/record-construction-frenzy-sweeps-downtown-seattle-with-more-building-to-come/ |url-access=subscription |website=seattletimes.com |access-date=March 27, 2017 |date=March 10, 2017 |archive-date=May 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515211228/https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/record-construction-frenzy-sweeps-downtown-seattle-with-more-building-to-come/ |url-status=live }}</ref> By 2025, Seattle's new apartments had become the smallest in the U.S., with an average of {{convert|649|sqft|m2}} among all unit types.<ref>{{cite news |last=Balk |first=Gene |date=April 18, 2025 |title=Seattle has nation's smallest new apartments, report shows |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattle-has-nations-smallest-new-apartments-report-shows/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=April 19, 2025}}</ref>

From 2010 to 2015, Seattle gained an average of 14,511 residents per year, with the growth strongly skewed toward the center of the city,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattles-population-boom-approaching-gold-rush-numbers/ |url-access=subscription |title=Seattle's population boom approaching Gold Rush numbers |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Gene |author-last1=Balk |date=September 13, 2015 |access-date=November 30, 2015 |archive-date=April 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424165621/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattles-population-boom-approaching-gold-rush-numbers/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and unemployment dropped from roughly 9 percent to 3.6 percent.<ref name="pi-slu-boom">{{cite news |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Bursting-at-the-seams-Seattle-is-booming-but-6543852.php |title=Thanks to an influx of tech jobs, Seattle is booming – but it's not easy to deal with |date=October 13, 2015 |work=[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]] |author-first1=Daniel |author-last1=DeMay |access-date=November 30, 2015 |archive-date=October 20, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151020004611/http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Bursting-at-the-seams-Seattle-is-booming-but-6543852.php |url-status=live }}</ref> The city has found itself "bursting at the seams", with over 45,000 households spending more than half their income on housing and [[Homelessness in Seattle|at least 2,800 people homeless]], and with the country's sixth-worst rush-hour traffic.<ref name=pi-slu-boom/> In response, many [[Urbanism|urbanist]] measures to improve transit, cycling,<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |last=Nickelsburg |first=Monica |date=2017-07-06 |title=Seattle bike share pilot speeds ahead, hitting the streets as early as Friday |url=https://www.geekwire.com/2017/seattle-bike-share-pilot-speeds-ahead-hitting-streets-early-friday/ |access-date=2025-07-04 |website=GeekWire |language=en-US}}</ref> and housing affordability were passed by city council, the state, and voters.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pacheco |first=Antonio |date=2018-01-29 |title=In fits and starts, Seattle plans for regional-scale urbanism |url=https://www.archpaper.com/2018/01/seattle-plans-regional-scale-urbanism/ |access-date=2025-07-04 |website=The Architect’s Newspaper |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Argerious |first=Natalie Bicknell |date=2020-09-18 |title=Seattle's Quest to Become a 15-Minute City » The Urbanist |url=https://www.theurbanist.org/2020/09/18/seattles-quest-to-become-a-15-minute-city/ |access-date=2025-07-04 |website=www.theurbanist.org |language=en-US}}</ref>  These include [[Sound Transit 3]], Seattle Prop 1A,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-12 |title=Seattle voters approve Proposition 1A, pledging millions for social housing |url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/politics/elections/seattle-housing-school-levies-approved-february-special-election/281-fc4c10b3-6428-409d-a17b-bd8b9223fc23 |access-date=2025-07-04 |website=king5.com |language=en-US}}</ref> a "Downtown Activation Plan,"<ref>{{Cite web |title=Downtown Activation Plan |url=https://www.downtownisyou.com/ |access-date=2025-07-04 |website=www.downtownisyou.com |language=en}}</ref> and a new "One Seattle" Comprehensive Plan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=One Seattle Plan - OPCD {{!}} seattle.gov |url=https://www.seattle.gov/opcd/one-seattle-plan |access-date=2025-07-04 |website=www.seattle.gov}}</ref>

==Geography==
===Topography===
{{see also|Bodies of water of Seattle|List of neighborhoods in Seattle|Regrading in Seattle}}
[[File:Seattle by Sentinel-2, 2018-09-28.jpg|thumb|upright|A satellite photo of Seattle in September 2018]]
Seattle is located between the saltwater [[Puget Sound]] (an arm of the Pacific Ocean) to the west and [[Lake Washington]] to the east. The city's chief harbor, [[Elliott Bay]], is part of Puget Sound, making the city an oceanic port. To the west, beyond Puget Sound, are the [[Kitsap Peninsula]] and [[Olympic Mountains]] on the [[Olympic Peninsula]]; to the east, beyond Lake Washington and the [[Eastside (King County, Washington)|Eastside]] suburbs, are [[Lake Sammamish]] and the [[Cascade Range]]. Lake Washington's waters flow to Puget Sound through the [[Lake Washington Ship Canal]] (consisting of two man-made canals, [[Lake Union]], and the [[Hiram M. Chittenden Locks]] at [[Salmon Bay]], ending in [[Shilshole Bay]] on Puget Sound).{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}

The sea, rivers, forests, lakes, and fields surrounding Seattle were once rich enough to support one of the world's few sedentary [[hunter-gatherer]] societies. In modern times the surrounding area lends itself well to sailing, skiing, bicycling, camping, and hiking year-round.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fourdir.com/chapter_3_native_american_cultures.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060329143347/http://www.fourdir.com/chapter_3_native_american_cultures.htm |url-status=usurped |archive-date=March 29, 2006 |title=Chapter Three – Native American Cultures |publisher=Four Directions |work=The First Americans |access-date=October 20, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Hunters and Gatherers |editor=Richard B. Lee |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-521-57109-8 |author1-link=Howard Morphy |author-first1=Howard |author-last1=Morphy |chapter=Traditional and modern visual art of hunting and gathering peoples |page=443 }}</ref>

The city is hilly in some places.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/steepest.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030523072234/http://seattle.gov/transportation/steepest.htm |archive-date=May 23, 2003 |title=Highest Elevations in Seattle and The Twenty Steepest Streets in Seattle |publisher=City of Seattle |author=Department of Transportation |access-date=October 4, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Like Rome, the city is said to lie on [[Seven hills of Seattle|seven hills]];<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=4131 |title=Seattle's Seven Hills |publisher=[[HistoryLink]] |author-last1=Crowley|author-first1=Walt |date=January 14, 2003 |access-date=April 12, 2010 |archive-date=June 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160609231318/http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=4131 |url-status=live }}</ref> the lists vary but typically include [[Capitol Hill, Seattle|Capitol Hill]], [[First Hill, Seattle|First Hill]], [[West Seattle]], [[Beacon Hill, Seattle|Beacon Hill]], [[Queen Anne, Seattle|Queen Anne]], Magnolia, and the former [[Denny Hill]]. The [[Wallingford, Seattle|Wallingford]], [[Delridge, Seattle|Delridge]], [[Mount Baker, Seattle|Mount Baker]], [[Seward Park, Seattle|Seward Park]], [[Washington Park, Seattle|Washington Park]], [[Broadmoor, Seattle|Broadmoor]], [[Madrona, Seattle|Madrona]], [[Phinney Ridge, Seattle|Phinney Ridge]], [[Sunset Hill, Seattle|Sunset Hill]], [[Blue Ridge, Seattle|Blue Ridge]], [[Broadview, Seattle|Broadview]], [[Laurelhurst, Seattle|Laurelhurst]], [[Hawthorne Hills, Seattle|Hawthorne Hills]], [[Maple Leaf, Seattle|Maple Leaf]], and [[Crown Hill, Seattle|Crown Hill]] neighborhoods are all located on hills. Many of the hilliest areas are near the city center, with Capitol Hill, First Hill, and Beacon Hill collectively constituting something of a ridge along an isthmus between Elliott Bay and Lake Washington.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://landslides.usgs.gov/docs/schulz/lidar_enggeo.pdf |title=Landslide susceptibility revealed by LIDAR imagery and historical records, Seattle, Washington |author-last1=Schulz|author-first1=William H. |publisher=United States Geological Survey |date=November 15, 2006 |access-date=March 5, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318012404/http://landslides.usgs.gov/docs/schulz/lidar_enggeo.pdf |archive-date=March 18, 2009 }}</ref> The break in the ridge between First Hill and Beacon Hill is man-made, a result of two of the many [[Regrading in Seattle|regrading projects]] that reshaped the topography of the city center.<ref>Peterson, Lorin & Davenport, Noah C. (1950), ''Living in Seattle'', Seattle: Seattle Public Schools, p. 44.</ref> The topography of the city center was also changed by the construction of a [[seawall]] and the artificial [[Harbor Island, Seattle|Harbor Island]] (completed 1909) at the mouth of the city's industrial [[Duwamish Waterway]], the terminus of the [[Green River (Duwamish River tributary)|Green River]]. The highest point within city limits, {{convert|520|ft|m}} above sea level, is at Myrtle Reservoir Park in the [[High Point, Seattle|High Point]] neighborhood of West Seattle.<ref name="Times-Hill">{{cite news |last=Wija |first=Tantri |date=January 27, 2025 |title=West Seattle Hill towers over the city — in a totally nonthreatening way |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/west-seattle-hill-towers-over-the-city-in-a-totally-nonthreatening-way/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 27, 2025 |archive-date=January 27, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250127180231/https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/west-seattle-hill-towers-over-the-city-in-a-totally-nonthreatening-way/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

North of the city center, the Lake Washington Ship Canal connects Puget Sound to Lake Washington. It incorporates four natural bodies of water: [[Lake Union]], [[Salmon Bay]], [[Portage Bay]], and [[Union Bay (Seattle)|Union Bay]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=David B. |last2=Ott |first2=Jennifer |date=June 29, 2017 |title=Our Ship Canal has provided a century of connections |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/our-ship-canal-has-provided-a-century-of-connections/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 27, 2025 |archive-date=September 13, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240913070242/https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/our-ship-canal-has-provided-a-century-of-connections/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Due to its location in the [[Pacific Ring of Fire]], Seattle is in a major [[Seismic zone|earthquake zone]]. On February 28, 2001, the [[Richter magnitude scale|magnitude 6.8]] [[2001 Nisqually earthquake|Nisqually earthquake]] did significant architectural damage, especially in the [[Pioneer Square, Seattle|Pioneer Square]] area (built on [[land reclamation|reclaimed land]], as are the [[Industrial District, Seattle|Industrial District]] and part of the city center), and caused one fatality.<ref>{{cite web |author-first1=Walt|author-last1=Crowley |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=3039 |title=Earthquake registering 6.8 on Richter Scale jolts Seattle and Puget Sound on February 28, 2001 |publisher=HistoryLink |date=March 2, 2001 |access-date=October 1, 2007 |archive-date=November 5, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071105212813/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=3039 |url-status=live }}</ref> Other strong earthquakes occurred on [[1700 Cascadia earthquake|January 26, 1700]] (estimated at 9 magnitude), [[1872 North Cascades earthquake|December 14, 1872]] (7.3 or 7.4),<ref>{{cite web |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=852 |title=Earthquake hits Washington Territory on December 14, 1872 |publisher=HistoryLink |date=February 1, 1999 |access-date=October 5, 2007 |archive-date=December 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071211082110/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=852 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[1949 Olympia earthquake|April 13, 1949]] (7.1),<ref name=1949-quake>{{cite web |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2063 |title=Earthquake hits Puget Sound area on April 13, 1949 |publisher=HistoryLink |date=January 1, 2000 |access-date=October 5, 2007 |archive-date=November 9, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071109140702/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2063 |url-status=live }}</ref> and April 29, 1965 (6.5).<ref name=1965-quake>{{cite web |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=1986 |title=Earthquake rattles Western Washington on April 29, 1965 |publisher=HistoryLink |date=March 2, 2000 |access-date=October 4, 2007 |archive-date=November 5, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071105212601/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=1986 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[1965 Puget Sound earthquake|1965 quake]] caused three deaths in Seattle directly and one more by heart failure.<ref name=1965-quake/> Although the [[Seattle Fault]] passes just south of the city center, neither it<ref>{{cite web |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/pacnw/activefaults/sfz/sfzhaz.php |title=Seattle Fault Zone – implications for earthquake hazards |date=June 15, 2007 |publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]] |access-date=October 4, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070916020028/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/pacnw/activefaults/sfz/sfzhaz.php |archive-date=September 16, 2007 }}</ref> nor the [[Cascadia subduction zone]] has caused an earthquake since the city's founding. The Cascadia subduction zone poses the threat of an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 or greater, capable of seriously damaging the city and collapsing many buildings, especially in zones built on fill.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ess.washington.edu/SEIS/PNSN/HAZARDS/CASCADIA/cascadia_zone.html |title=The Cascadia Subduction Zone – What is it? How big are the quakes? How Often? |date=July 2, 2002 |publisher=University of Washington Department of Earth and Space Sciences |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417061622/http://www.ess.washington.edu/SEIS/PNSN/HAZARDS/CASCADIA/cascadia_zone.html |author-first1=Ray |author-last1=Flynn |author2=Kyle Fletcher |archive-date=April 17, 2009 |access-date=October 4, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

According to the [[United States Census Bureau|U.S. Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|142.5|sqmi|km2}},<ref name="GR1">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=April 23, 2011 |date=February 12, 2011 |title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990 |archive-date=August 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824085937/https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html |url-status=live }}</ref> {{convert|84|sqmi|km2}} of which is land and {{convert|58.1|sqmi|km2}} is water (41% of the total area).<ref name="CenPopGazetteer"/>

===Cityscape===
{{Further|List of tallest buildings in Seattle|Architecture of Seattle}}
{{wide image|Seattle skyline panorama from Kerry Park, June 2022.jpg|700px|A Seattle skyline view from Queen Anne Hill, including the [[Space Needle]], [[Climate Pledge Arena]], [[Mount Rainier]], [[Elliott Bay]], and the Port of Seattle on [[Puget Sound]]}}

===Climate===
{{main|Climate of Seattle}}

According to the [[Köppen climate classification]] system, Seattle has a warm-summer [[Mediterranean climate]] (''Csb''),<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://q13fox.com/2018/06/07/seattle-the-next-saint-tropez-not-quite-but-mediterranean-climate-trends-continue/ |title=Seattle the next Saint-Tropez? Not quite, but Mediterranean climate trends continue |date=June 8, 2018 |work=Q13 FOX News |access-date=December 1, 2018 |language=en-US |archive-date=March 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330205711/https://q13fox.com/2018/06/07/seattle-the-next-saint-tropez-not-quite-but-mediterranean-climate-trends-continue/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=139727&cityname=Seattle,+Washington,+United+States+of+America |title=Seattle, Washington Köppen Climate Classification (Weatherbase) |website=Weatherbase |access-date=November 4, 2018 |archive-date=March 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309035204/https://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=139727&cityname=Seattle,+Washington,+United+States+of+America |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GYGDCwAAQBAJ&q=SEATTLE+KOPPEN+CSB&pg=PA39 |title=Practical Permaculture: for Home Landscapes, Your Community, and the Whole Earth |last1=Bloom |first1=Jessi |last2=Boehnlein |first2=Dave |date=February 4, 2016 |publisher=Timber Press |isbn=9781604697421 |language=en |access-date=October 20, 2020 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222221/https://books.google.com/books?id=GYGDCwAAQBAJ&q=SEATTLE+KOPPEN+CSB&pg=PA39#v=snippet&q=SEATTLE%20KOPPEN%20CSB&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> while under the [[Trewartha climate classification|Trewartha]] system, it is labeled an [[oceanic climate]] (''Dobk'').<ref>{{cite book |title=Climatology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AxWEAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA207 |publisher=Jones & Bartlett Publishers |isbn=978-1-284-05427-9 |page=207 |year=2013|author-first1=Robert V. |author-last1=Rohli|author-first2=Anthony J. |author-last2=Vega|access-date=January 15, 2019 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222217/https://books.google.com/books?id=AxWEAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA207#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.usaprogram.info/schools/communitycol/South%20Seattle%20College.pdf |title=Seattle - WA |website=South Seattle College |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181104211838/http://www.usaprogram.info/schools/communitycol/South%20Seattle%20College.pdf |archive-date=November 4, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It has cool, wet winters and mild, relatively dry summers, covering characteristics of both climate types.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Kottek |first=M. |author2=J. Grieser |author3=C. Beck |author4=B. Rudolf |author5=F. Rubel |year=2006 |title=World Map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification updated |url=http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/pics/kottek_et_al_2006.gif |journal=Meteorol. Z. |volume=15 |issue=3 |pages=259–263 |doi=10.1127/0941-2948/2006/0130 |access-date=February 15, 2007 |bibcode=2006MetZe..15..259K |archive-date=March 16, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070316010128/http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/pics/kottek_et_al_2006.gif |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/006/ad652e/ad652e07.htm |title=Global ecological zoning for the global forest resources assessment 2000 |publisher=UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Forestry Department |year=2001 |place=Rome |chapter=3 Concept and classification |access-date=December 30, 2011 |archive-date=July 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100721040959/http://www.fao.org/docrep/006/ad652e/ad652e07.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The climate is sometimes characterized as a "modified Mediterranean" climate because it is cooler and wetter than a "true" Mediterranean climate, but shares the characteristic dry summer (which has a strong influence on the region's vegetation).<ref name="GobleHirt2012">{{cite book |author1=Dale D. Goble |author2=Paul W. Hirt |title=Northwest Lands, Northwest Peoples: Readings in Environmental History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U3i4xHpIBgkC&pg=PA59 |date=March 15, 2012 |publisher=University of Washington Press |isbn=978-0-295-80137-7 |pages=58–59 |access-date=January 15, 2019 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222218/https://books.google.com/books?id=U3i4xHpIBgkC&pg=PA59#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>

Temperature extremes are moderated by the adjacent [[Puget Sound]], greater [[Pacific Ocean]], and [[Lake Washington]]. Thus extreme [[heat wave]]s are rare in the Seattle area, as are very cold temperatures (below about {{convert|15|F|C|disp=semicolon}}). The Seattle area is the cloudiest region of the [[Continental United States]], due in part to frequent storms and [[Low-pressure area|lows]] moving in from the adjacent Pacific Ocean. Seattle is cloudy 201 days out of the year and partly cloudy 93 days.<ref name="cloudy">{{cite web |title=National Climatic Data Center: Cloudiness – Mean Number of Days |url=http://lwf.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/online/ccd/cldy.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120531113038/http://lwf.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/online/ccd/cldy.html |archive-date=May 31, 2012 |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration }}</ref> With many more "rain days" than other major American cities, Seattle has a well-earned reputation for frequent rain:<ref name=rainshadow>{{cite web |url=http://www.komonews.com/weather/faq/4306627.html |title=What Is The Olympic Rain Shadow? |publisher=KOMOTV.com |access-date=September 28, 2007 |date=October 4, 2006 |archive-date=November 6, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151106104412/http://www.komonews.com/weather/faq/4306627.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> In an average year, there are 150 days in which at least {{convert|0.01|in|mm}} of precipitation falls, more days than in nearly all U.S. cities east of the [[Rocky Mountains]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/ccd-data/prge0112.txt |title=Mean Number of Days with Precipitation 0.01 Inch or More |publisher=NOAA Satellites and Information |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928081654/http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/ccd-data/prge0112.txt |archive-date=September 28, 2013 }}</ref> However, because it often has merely a light [[drizzle]] falling from the sky for many days, Seattle actually receives significantly less rainfall (or other precipitation) overall than many other major U.S. cities like [[New York City]], [[Miami]], or [[Houston]].
{{Seattle weatherbox}}

==Demographics==
{{main|Demographics of Seattle}}

According to the 2012–2016 [[American Community Survey]] (ACS), the racial makeup of the city was 65.7% [[White Non-Hispanic]], 16.9% [[Asian American|Asian]], 6.8% [[African American|Black or African American]], 6.6% [[Hispanics in the United States|Hispanic]] or [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Latino]] of any race, 0.4% [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]], 0.9% [[Pacific Islander American|Pacific Islander]], 0.2% other races, and 5.6% [[Multiracial American|two or more races]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.seattle.gov/opcd/population-and-demographics/about-seattle#raceethnicity |title=About Seattle - OPCD - seattle.gov |website=www.seattle.gov |access-date=April 15, 2018 |archive-date=May 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512144316/http://www.seattle.gov/opcd/population-and-demographics/about-seattle#raceethnicity |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{US Census population
|1860= 188
|1870= 1107
|1880= 3533
|1890= 42837
|1900= 80671
|1910= 237194
|1920= 315312
|1930= 365583
|1940= 368302
|1950= 467591
|1960= 557087
|1970= 530831
|1980= 493846
|1990= 516259
|2000= 563374
|2010= 608660
|2020= 737015
|estyear=2024
|estimate=780995
|estref=<ref name="QuickFacts"/>
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web |url=http://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html |title=Census of Population and Housing |publisher=Census.gov |access-date=June 4, 2016 |archive-date=June 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610232059/http://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html |url-status=live }}</ref><br />2010–2020<ref name="QuickFacts"/>
}}

{|class="wikitable sortable collapsible" style="font-size: 90%;"
|-
! class="unsortable"|Racial composition !! 2024<ref>{{cite web |url=https://data.census.gov/table/ACSDT1Y2024.B03002?q=Race+and+Ethnicity&g=160XX00US5363000&y=2024 |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=December 8, 2025 |title=Data.Census.Gov - B03002 Hispanic or Latino Origin by Race, Seattle city, Washington }}</ref>!! 2020<ref>{{cite web |url=https://data.census.gov/table/DECENNIALDHC2020.P9?q=seattle&t=Race+and+Ethnicity |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=December 8, 2025 |title=Data.Census.Gov - P9HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE, Seattle city, Washington }}</ref>!! 2010<ref name="quickfacts">{{cite web |url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/53/5363000.html |title=Seattle (city), Washington |work=State & County QuickFacts |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=April 26, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327122349/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/53/5363000.html |archive-date=March 27, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>!! 1990<ref name="pop"/> !! 1970<ref name="pop"/> !! 1950<ref name="pop"/> !!1940<ref name="pop"/>
|-
|[[White Americans|White]]  (non-Hispanic)||56.9% ||59.5% ||66.3% ||73.7% ||85.3%{{efn|name="fifteen"|From 15% sample}} ||94.2%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||96.1%{{efn|name="nothisp"|Hispanic data not distinguished}}
|-
|[[Asian American|Asian]] and [[Pacific Islander American|Pacific Islander]] combined (non-Hispanic)||18.1% ||17.2% ||14.1% ||11.8%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||4.2%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||1.8%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||2.8%{{efn|name="nothisp"}}
|-
|[[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]] of any race||9.1% ||8.2% ||6.6% ||3.6%||2.0%{{efn|name="fifteen"}}  ||n/a{{efn|name="nothisp"}}||n/a{{efn|name="nothisp"}}
|-
|[[African American|Black or African American]]  (non-Hispanic)||6.7%  ||6.8% ||7.7% ||10.1%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||7.1%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||3.4%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||1.0%{{efn|name="nothisp"}}
|-
|[[Native American]] (non-Hispanic)||0.3% ||0.4% ||0.6% ||1.4%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||0.8%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||0.1%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||0.1%{{efn|name="nothisp"}}
|-
|[[Some Other Race]]  (non-Hispanic)||0.5% ||0.6% ||0.2% ||1.4%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||0.5%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||0.5%{{efn|name="nothisp"}} ||n/a
|-
|[[Multiracial Americans|Two or more races]]  (non-Hispanic)||8.4% ||7.3% ||4.4% ||n/a ||n/a ||n/a ||n/a
|}

Seattle's population historically has been predominantly white.<ref name="pop">{{cite web |title=Historical Census Statistics On Population Totals By Race, 1790 to 1990, and By Hispanic Origin, 1970 to 1990, For Large Cities And Other Urban Places in the United States |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0076/twps0076.html |access-date=December 18, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120812191959/http://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0076/twps0076.html |archive-date=August 12, 2012 }}</ref> The 2010 census showed that Seattle was one of the whitest big cities in the country, although its proportion of white residents has been gradually declining.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bear |first=Charla |title=Why is Seattle such a white city? |url=http://www.kpluwonders.org/content/why-seattle-such-white-city |access-date=June 30, 2012 |publisher=KPLU |date=June 29, 2012 |archive-date=November 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112031205/http://www.kpluwonders.org/content/why-seattle-such-white-city |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1960, whites constituted 91.6% of the city's population,<ref name="pop"/> while in 2010 they constituted 69.5%.<ref name="factfinder2.census.gov">[https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20151023151502/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/index.xhtml Race, Hispanic or Latino, Age, and Housing Occupancy: 2010 more information 2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File] . Factfinder2census.gov. (2010). Retrieved December 30, 2011.</ref><ref name=c2010>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-02.pdf |title=Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin: 2010 |publisher=Census.gov |access-date=October 13, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429214029/http://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-02.pdf |archive-date=April 29, 2011 }}</ref> According to the 2006–2008 [[American Community Survey]], approximately 78.9% of residents over the age of five spoke only English at home. Those who spoke [[Languages of Asia|Asian languages]] other than Indo-European languages made up 10.2% of the population, Spanish was spoken by 4.5% of the population, speakers of other [[Indo-European languages]] made up 3.9%, and speakers of other languages made up 2.5%.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}
[[File:Ethnic Origins in Seattle.png|thumb|300x300px|Ethnic origins in Seattle]]
[[File:Race and ethnicity 2010- Seattle (5560469372).png|thumb|Map of racial distribution in Seattle, 2010 U.S. Census. Each dot is 25 people: {{legend inline|outline=white|white|text=⬤|textcolor=#ff0000|White}} {{legend inline|outline=white|white|text=⬤|textcolor=#0000ff|Black}} {{legend inline|outline=white|white|text=⬤|textcolor=#00ffaa|Asian}} {{legend inline|outline=white|white|text=⬤|textcolor=#ffa600|Hispanic}} {{legend inline|outline=white|white|text=⬤|textcolor=#ffff07|Other}}]]

Seattle's foreign-born population grew 40% between the 1990 and 2000 censuses.<ref name=brookings>{{cite web |url=http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2003/11/livingcities-seattle |title=Seattle in Focus: A Profile from Census 2000 |publisher=The Brookings Institution |date=November 2003 |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055855/http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2003/11/livingcities-seattle |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Chinese American|Chinese]] population in the Seattle area has origins in [[mainland China]], Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, and [[Taiwan]]. The earliest Chinese-Americans that came in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were almost entirely from [[Guangdong Province]]. The Seattle area is also home to a large [[Vietnamese American|Vietnamese]] population of more than 55,000 residents,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.vatv.org/VAP.html |title=Vietnamese American Population |access-date=August 17, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070818064844/http://www.vatv.org/VAP.html |archive-date=August 18, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> as well as over 30,000 [[Somali American|Somali]] immigrants.<ref name="Lsts">{{cite web |title=Translation Seattle |url=http://www.lingo-star.com/seattle-translation-services |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019142928/http://www.lingo-star.com/seattle-translation-services |publisher=Lingo-Star |access-date=August 24, 2013 |archive-date=October 19, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Seattle-Tacoma area is also home to one of the largest [[Cambodian American|Cambodian]] communities in the United States, numbering about 19,000 Cambodian Americans,<ref name="Turnbull2004">{{citation |mode=cs1 |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20040917/cambodia17m/1500-cambodian-refugees-face-deportation-for-crimes |title=1,500 Cambodian refugees face deportation for crimes |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=September 17, 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501084442/http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20040917&slug=cambodia17m |archive-date=May 1, 2008 |url-status=live |last=Turnbull |first=Lornet |issn=0745-9696 }}</ref> and one of the largest [[Samoan American|Samoan]] communities in the mainland U.S., with over 15,000 people having Samoan ancestry.<ref name="factfinder2.census.gov"/><ref name=pugetsoundsamoan>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009969267_samoaside30m.html |title=Puget Sound's Samoan community awaits news |work=The Seattle Times |date=September 30, 2009 |access-date=April 26, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003114558/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009969267_samoaside30m.html |archive-date=October 3, 2009 }}</ref> Additionally, the Seattle area had the highest percentage of self-identified mixed-race people of any large metropolitan area in the United States, according to the 2000 United States Census Bureau.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008210083_biracial280.html |title=This is who I am: Defining mixed-race identity |work=The Seattle Times |author-first1=Lornet |author-last1=Turnbull |date=September 28, 2008 |access-date=March 12, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112022838/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008210083_biracial280.html |archive-date=January 12, 2012 }}</ref> According to a 2012 [[HistoryLink]] study, Seattle's 98118 ZIP code (in the Columbia City neighborhood) was one of the most diverse ZIP Code Tabulation Areas in the United States.<ref name=zipcode>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=10164 |author-first1=Cassandra |author-last1=Tate |title=Southeast Seattle ZIP Code 98118: Neighborhood of Nations |publisher=HistoryLink.org Essay 10164 |date=August 13, 2012 |access-date=March 10, 2014 |archive-date=June 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160606064935/http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=10164 |url-status=live }}</ref>

According to the ACS 1-year estimates, in 2018, the median income of a city household was $93,481, and the median income for a family was $130,656.<ref name=income>{{cite web |last1=U.S. Census Bureau |title=2018 ACS 1-Year Estimates |url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0400000US53_1600000US5363000&t=Income%20and%20Poverty&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S1703&hidePreview=false&vintage=2018&layer=VT_2018_160_00_PY_D1&cid=S1701_C01_001E |website=data.census.gov |access-date=June 7, 2020 |archive-date=March 1, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301143556/https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0400000US53_1600000US5363000&t=Income%20and%20Poverty&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S1703&hidePreview=false&vintage=2018&layer=VT_2018_160_00_PY_D1&cid=S1701_C01_001E |url-status=live }}</ref> 11.0% of the population and 6.6% of families were below the poverty line. Of people living in poverty, 11.4% were under the age of 18 and 10.9% were 65 or older.<ref name="income" />

It is estimated that King County has 8,000 homeless people on any given night, and many of those live in Seattle.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cehkc.org/DOC_plan/10-YearPlanFinal.pdf |title=A Roof Over Every Bed in King County" within ten years |publisher=The Committee to End Homelessness in King County |access-date=September 28, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081217143216/http://www.cehkc.org/DOC_plan/10-YearPlanFinal.pdf |archive-date=December 17, 2008 }}</ref> In September 2005, King County adopted a "Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness", one of the near-term results of which is a shift of funding from [[homeless shelter]] beds to permanent housing.<ref name=homelessness>{{cite web |url=http://www.metrokc.gov/mkcc/news/2005/0905/Ten_Year_Plan.htm |title=Council Adopts Strategies to Implement "Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness" |publisher=King County |date=September 19, 2005 |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070121232911/http://www.metrokc.gov/mkcc/news/2005/0905/Ten_Year_Plan.htm |archive-date=January 21, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In recent years, the city has experienced steady population growth, and has been faced with the issue of accommodating more residents. In 2006, after growing by 4,000 citizens per year for the previous 16 years, regional planners expected the population of Seattle to grow by 200,000 people by 2040.<ref name="Young2006">{{citation |mode=cs1 |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20060815/population15m/nickels-backs-60-increase-in-citys-population-by-2040 |title=Nickels backs 60% increase in city's population by 2040 |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=August 15, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090705130928/http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20060815&slug=population15m |archive-date=July 5, 2009 |url-status=live |last=Young |first=Bob |issn=0745-9696 |quote=Seattle has added about 4,000 residents a year over the past 16 years. If the city did nothing, planners predict it would gain 200,000 residents by 2040. }}</ref> However, former mayor Greg Nickels supported plans that would increase the population by 60%, or 350,000 people, by 2040 and worked on ways to accommodate this growth while keeping Seattle's single-family housing zoning laws.<ref name="Young2006"/> The Seattle City Council later voted to relax height limits on buildings in the greater part of Downtown, partly with the aim to increase residential density in the city center.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=buildingheights04m&date=20060404&query=height+limits |title=High-rise boom coming to Seattle? |date=April 4, 2006 |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Bob |author-last1=Young |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-date=November 4, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071104000943/http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=buildingheights04m&date=20060404&query=height+limits |url-status=dead }}</ref> As a sign of increasing downtown core growth, the [[Downtown Seattle|Downtown]] population crested to over 60,000 in 2009, up 77% since 1990.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/jontalton/2017770353_biztaltoncol18.html |title=Seattle blessed by downtown's upswing |newspaper=[[The Seattle Times]] |first=Jon |last=Talton |date=March 17, 2012 |access-date=March 24, 2012 |archive-date=July 12, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712041754/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/jontalton/2017770353_biztaltoncol18.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Seattle experienced its first population decline in 50 years.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Balk |first1=Gene |title=Seattle's population dropped, but another King County city saw fastest growth in WA |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/while-seattles-population-declined-another-king-county-city-saw-fastest-growth-in-wa/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=July 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221018171852/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/while-seattles-population-declined-another-king-county-city-saw-fastest-growth-in-wa/ |archive-date=October 18, 2022 |date=May 26, 2022 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> However, this was followed by five straight years of population growth that exceeded 2% per year. According to state estimates, Seattle surpassed 800,000 residents in 2025.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Washington population growth slowing |date=June 27, 2025 |publisher=Washington State Office of Financial Management |url=https://ofm.wa.gov/sites/default/files/public/dataresearch/pop/april1/ofm_april1_press_release.pdf |access-date=June 28, 2025}}</ref>

Seattle has a relatively high number of adults living alone. According to the 2000 U.S. Census interim measurements of 2004, Seattle has the fifth highest proportion of single-person households nationwide among cities of 100,000 or more residents, at 40.8%.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/statab/ccdb/cit3060r.txt |format=TXT |title=City and County Data Book 2000: Cities with 100,000 or More Population Ranked by Subject |author=US Census Bureau |publisher=US Census Bureau |date=March 16, 2004 |access-date=December 17, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327185329/http://www.census.gov/statab/ccdb/cit3060r.txt |archive-date=March 27, 2010 }}</ref>

=== Sexual orientation and gender identity ===
{{See also|History of the LGBTQ community in Seattle|LGBTQ culture in Seattle|Seattle Pride}}
[[File:Seattle Pride Fest 2024 main stage.jpg|thumb|right|Seattle Pride Fest 2024]]
Seattle has a notably large [[LGBTQ people|lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender]] community. According to a 2006 study by [[University of California, Los Angeles|UCLA]], 12.9% of city residents polled identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. This was the second-highest proportion of any major U.S. city, behind [[San Francisco]].<ref name=gates_06/> Greater Seattle also ranked second among major U.S. metropolitan areas, with 6.5% of the population identifying as gay, lesbian, or bisexual.<ref name=gates_06>{{cite web |url=http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/Gates-Same-Sex-Couples-GLB-Pop-ACS-Oct-2006.pdf |title=Same-sex Couples and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Population: New Estimates from the American Community Survey |author-first1=Gary J. |author-last1=Gates |date=October 2006 |publisher=UCLA School of Law |access-date=November 21, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130609015224/http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/Gates-Same-Sex-Couples-GLB-Pop-ACS-Oct-2006.pdf |archive-date=June 9, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In a more recent [[Gallup poll]] survey of 2015, Seattle ranked fifth, at 4.8%.<ref name=Fifth2015/> According to 2012 estimates from the United States Census Bureau, Seattle has the highest percentage of same-sex households in the United States, at 2.6 percent, surpassing San Francisco (2.5 percent).<ref>{{cite news |url=http://blogs.seattletimes.com/fyi-guy/2013/09/27/seattle-overtakes-san-francisco-as-no-1-city-for-gay-couples |title=Seattle overtakes San Francisco as No. 1 city for gay couples |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Gene |author-last1=Balk |date=September 27, 2013 |access-date=October 24, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023032316/http://blogs.seattletimes.com/fyi-guy/2013/09/27/seattle-overtakes-san-francisco-as-no-1-city-for-gay-couples/ |archive-date=October 23, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[Capitol Hill, Seattle|Capitol Hill]] district has been the center of LGBTQ culture in Seattle<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/How-did-Seattle-s-Capitol-Hill-come-out-9223667.php |title=How did Capitol Hill become Seattle's gay neighborhood? |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=September 15, 2016 |access-date=September 14, 2020 |archive-date=December 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222143528/https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/How-did-Seattle-s-Capitol-Hill-come-out-9223667.php |url-status=live }}</ref> since the 1970s. Before then, the [[Pioneer Square, Seattle|Pioneer Square]] district was the city's hub of LGBTQ community.<ref name=Freitas2017>{{cite thesis |url=https://dahp.wa.gov/sites/default/files/PreservingPioneerSqQueerLandscape_Freitas_Thesis_2017.pdf |last=Freitas |first=Richard |date=2017 |title="The Land at Our Feet": Preserving Pioneer Square's Queer Landscape |degree=Master of Landscape Architecture |location=Seattle, Washington |publisher=Washington State Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation |access-date=2025-05-05}}</ref>

==Economy==
{{update|section|date=April 2021}}
{{see also|List of companies based in Seattle}}
[[File:Wamuseattle.jpg|thumb|[[Washington Mutual]]'s last headquarters, the WaMu Center, now the [[Russell Investments Center]], (center left), and its prior headquarters, Washington Mutual Tower, now the [[1201 Third Avenue]] Tower]]
[[File:Day 1 Tower Seattle WA Jan 17.jpg|thumb|upright|The corporate headquarters of online retailer [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]], named Day 1 and located in Denny Triangle]]
Seattle's economy is driven by a mix of older industrial companies and new-economy internet and technology companies, as well as service, design, and [[clean technology]] companies. The city's gross metropolitan product (GMP) was $231 billion in 2010, making it the [[List of metropolitan areas in the United States by GMP|11th-largest metropolitan economy]] in the United States.<ref>{{cite web |title=Gross Metropolitan Product |url=http://greyhill.com/gross-metropolitan-product/ |publisher=Greyhill Advisors |access-date=October 13, 2011 |archive-date=January 7, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130107074626/http://greyhill.com/gross-metropolitan-product/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Gross Metropolitan Product |url=https://www.bea.gov/iTable/iTableHtml.cfm?reqid=70&step=10&isuri=1&7001=2200&7002=2&7003=200&7004=NAICS&7005=1&7006=XX&7007=2010 |publisher=U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis |date=September 29, 2011 |access-date=October 13, 2011 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222224/https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=70&step=10&isuri=1&7001=2200&7002=2&7003=200&7004=NAICS&7005=1&7006=XX&7007=2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Port of Seattle]], which also operates [[Seattle–Tacoma International Airport]], is a major gateway for trade with Asia and cruises to Alaska. It also is the 8th-largest port in the United States when measured by container capacity. Its maritime cargo operations merged with the [[Port of Tacoma]] in 2015 to form the [[Northwest Seaport Alliance]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portseattle.org/seaport/statistics/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723030349/http://www.portseattle.org/seaport/statistics/ |archive-date=July 23, 2011 |title=Seaport Statistics |publisher=portseattle.org |access-date=February 23, 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Roberts |first=C.R. |date=August 4, 2015 |title=Tacoma, Seattle ports agree on final Northwest Seaport Alliance details |url=http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/business/port-of-tacoma/article29998869.html |work=The News Tribune |location=Tacoma, Washington |access-date=March 11, 2017 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222229/https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/business/port-of-tacoma/article29998869.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Although it was impacted by the [[Great Recession in the United States|Great Recession]], Seattle has retained a comparatively strong economy, and is noted for start-up businesses, especially in green building and clean technologies.<ref>{{cite news |last=Clark |first=Kate |date=December 30, 2019 |title=In the shadow of Amazon and Microsoft, Seattle startups are having a moment |url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/12/30/in-the-shadow-of-amazon-and-microsoft-seattle-startups-are-having-a-moment/ |work=[[TechCrunch]] |access-date=August 17, 2020 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222745/https://techcrunch.com/2019/12/30/in-the-shadow-of-amazon-and-microsoft-seattle-startups-are-having-a-moment/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In February 2010, the city government committed Seattle to become North America's first "climate neutral" city, with a goal of reaching net-zero per-capita greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.seattlemet.com/articles/2010/2/22/council-wants-city-to-go-carbon-neutral-in-20-years |title=Council Wants City to Go Carbon Neutral in 20 Years |publisher=SeattleMet |date=February 22, 2010 |access-date=February 1, 2017 |archive-date=May 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180509221045/https://www.seattlemet.com/articles/2010/2/22/council-wants-city-to-go-carbon-neutral-in-20-years |url-status=live }}</ref>

Large companies continue to dominate the business landscape. Seven companies on [[Fortune 500|''Fortune'' 500]]'s 2022 list of the United States' largest companies (based on total revenue) are headquartered in Seattle: Internet retailer [[Amazon.com|Amazon]] (#2), coffee chain [[Starbucks]] (#120), freight forwarder [[Expeditors International of Washington]] (#225), department store [[Nordstrom]] (#245), forest products company [[Weyerhaeuser]] (#354), online travel company [[Expedia Group]] (#404), and real-estate tech company [[Zillow]] (#424) .<ref name=Fortune500>{{cite news |url=http://fortune.com/fortune500/list/ |title=Fortune 500 |work=Fortune |year=2017 |access-date=December 18, 2017 |archive-date=January 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190115060417/http://fortune.com/fortune500/list/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Other Fortune 500 companies commonly associated with Seattle are based in nearby Puget Sound cities. Warehouse club chain [[Costco]] (#11), the largest retail company in Washington, is based in [[Issaquah, Washington|Issaquah]]. [[Microsoft]] (#14) is located in [[Redmond, Washington|Redmond]]. Furthermore, Bellevue is home to truck manufacturer [[Paccar]] (#151).<ref name=Fortune500/> Other major companies headquartered in the area include [[Nintendo of America]] in Redmond, [[T-Mobile US]] in Bellevue, and [[Providence Health & Services]] (the state's largest health care system and fifth-largest employer) in [[Renton, Washington|Renton]]. The city has a reputation for heavy [[Coffee in Seattle|coffee consumption]];<ref name=nyt-coffee>{{cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DEEDD1230F93AA1575AC0A9649C8B63 |title=The List; Seattle: An Insider's Address Book |author-first1=Catharine |author-last1=Reynolds |date=September 29, 2002 |work=The New York Times |quote=Seattle's coffee culture has become America's |access-date=October 21, 2001 }}</ref> coffee companies founded or based in Seattle include Starbucks,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.starbucks.com/assets/company-profile-feb10.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716131427/http://www.starbucks.com/assets/company-profile-feb10.pdf |archive-date=July 16, 2011 |title=Starbucks Company Profile |publisher=Starbucks |access-date=October 21, 2007 }}</ref> [[Seattle's Best Coffee]],<ref>{{cite book |title=Pike Place Market Cookbook |author-first1=Braiden |author-last1=Rex-Johnson |others=Foreword by Tom Douglas |page=195 |publisher=Sasquatch Books |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-57061-319-7 }}</ref> and [[Tully's Coffee|Tully's]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/business/327672_tullyipo16.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120721195845/http://seattlepi.com/business/327672_tullyipo16.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 21, 2012 |title=Markets prompt Tully's to delay IPO |author-first1=Craig |author-last1=Harris |date=August 15, 2007 |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |access-date=October 21, 2007 }}</ref> There are also many successful independent artisanal espresso roasters and cafés.<ref name=nyt-coffee/>{{update inline|date=April 2021}}

Before moving its headquarters to [[Chicago]] and then ultimately [[Arlington County, Virginia]], aerospace manufacturer [[Boeing]] (#60) was the largest company based in Seattle. Its largest division, [[Boeing Commercial Airplanes]], is still headquartered within the Puget Sound region.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gates |first1=Dominic |title=Boeing puts up for sale its Commercial Airplanes headquarters campus outside Seattle |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-puts-up-for-sale-its-commercial-airplanes-headquarters-campus-outside-seattle/ |access-date=May 22, 2021 |work=The Seattle Times |date=April 6, 2021 |archive-date=April 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413073125/https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-puts-up-for-sale-its-commercial-airplanes-headquarters-campus-outside-seattle/ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn|The division currently rotates its headquarters between sites within the region; the previous one in [[Renton, Washington|Renton]] was put up for sale in April 2021.}} The company also has large aircraft manufacturing plants in Everett and Renton; it remains the largest private employer in the Seattle metropolitan area.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.komotv.com/news/archive/4095196.html |title=Locke Unveils Boeing 7E7 Tax Cut Wish List |publisher=KOMO |orig-year=1st pub. June 9, 2003 |date=July 24, 2009 |archive-date=January 16, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116223035/http://www.komonews.com/news/archive/4095196.html }}</ref> In 2006 former Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels announced a desire to spark a new economic boom driven by the [[biotechnology]] industry. Major redevelopment of the [[South Lake Union, Seattle|South Lake Union]] neighborhood is underway in an effort to attract new and established biotech companies to the city, joining biotech companies [[Corixa (company)|Corixa]] (acquired by [[GlaxoSmithKline]]), Immunex (now part of Amgen), [[Trubion]], and ZymoGenetics. [[Vulcan Inc.]], the holding company of billionaire [[Paul Allen]], is behind most of the development projects in the region. While some see the new development as an economic boon, others have criticized Nickels and the [[Seattle City Council]] for pandering to Allen's interests at taxpayers' expense.<ref>{{cite news |author-first1=George |author-last1=Howland Jr. |title=The Billion-Dollar Neighborhood |url=http://www.seattleweekly.com/2004-06-23/news/the-billion-dollar-neighborhood/ |work=Seattle Weekly |date=June 23, 2004 |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116000540/http://www.seattleweekly.com/2004-06-23/news/the-billion-dollar-neighborhood/ |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2005, ''[[Forbes]]'' ranked Seattle as the most expensive American city for buying a house based on the local income levels.<ref name=Clemence>{{cite news |author-first1=Sara |author-last1=Clemence |url=https://www.forbes.com/2005/07/14/overpriced-cities-lifestyle-cx_sc_0715home_ls.html |title=Most Overpriced Places in the U.S. 2005 |work=Forbes |date=July 14, 2005 |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-date=November 15, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071115180405/http://www.forbes.com/2005/07/14/overpriced-cities-lifestyle-cx_sc_0715home_ls.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Owing largely to the rapidly increasing cost of living, Seattle and Washington State have some of the [[Minimum wage in the United States|highest minimum wages in the country]], at $15 per hour for smaller businesses and $16 for the city's largest employers.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/minimum-wage-climbs-to-16-per-hour-for-seattles-largest-employers/281-38add31e-76be-4db5-bad4-fa580c8c525a |title=Minimum wage climbs to $16 per hour for Seattle's largest employers |publisher=King 5 News |date=December 30, 2018 |access-date=January 4, 2019 |archive-date=January 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190105201027/https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/minimum-wage-climbs-to-16-per-hour-for-seattles-largest-employers/281-38add31e-76be-4db5-bad4-fa580c8c525a |url-status=live }}</ref>

Operating a hub at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, [[Alaska Airlines]] maintains its headquarters in the city of [[SeaTac, Washington|SeaTac]], next to the airport.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.alaskasworld.com/Newsroom/ASnews/media.asp |title=Media Contacts: Alaska Airlines |publisher=Alaska Airlines |access-date=December 11, 2008 |archive-date=August 9, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120809010537/http://www.alaskaair.com/content/about-us/newsroom/media-contacts.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> Seattle is a hub for global health with the headquarters of the [[Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation]], [[PATH (global health organization)]], [[Infectious Disease Research Institute]], [[Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center]], and the [[Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation]]. In 2015, the Washington Global Health Alliance counted 168 global health organizations in Washington state. Many are headquartered in Seattle.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Infographics |url=http://www.wghalliance.org/WhatWeDo/WashingtonGlobalHealthLandscapeStudy/Infographics.aspx |website=www.wghalliance.org |access-date=February 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160428144850/http://www.wghalliance.org/WhatWeDo/WashingtonGlobalHealthLandscapeStudy/Infographics.aspx |archive-date=April 28, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref><!-- Even though the address says Seattle, a search using Google Earth or Yahoo Maps will reveal that the headquarters are in SeaTac -->

==Culture==
Many of [[List of neighborhoods in Seattle|Seattle's neighborhoods]] host one or more [[List of Seattle street fairs and parades|street fairs or parades]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seafair.com/events/community/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070625125907/http://www.seafair.com/events/community/ |title=Community Events |archive-date=June 25, 2007 |access-date=October 20, 2007 }}</ref>

===Performing arts===
{{main|Arts in Seattle|Music of Seattle}}

{{see also|List of musicians from Seattle|List of songs about Seattle}}
[[File:Kreielsheimer_Promenade_04.jpg|thumb|[[Kreielsheimer Promenade]] and [[Marion Oliver McCaw Hall]] at [[Seattle Center]]]]
[[File:Benaroya Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA.jpg|thumb|[[Benaroya Hall]], home of the [[Seattle Symphony]] since 1998]]
Seattle has been a regional center for the [[performing arts]] for many years. The century-old [[Seattle Symphony Orchestra]] has won many awards and performs primarily at [[Benaroya Hall]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://seattlesymphony.org/about |publisher=Seattle Symphony Orchestra |title=About |access-date=October 21, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160908155251/http://www.seattlesymphony.org/about |archive-date=September 8, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[Seattle Opera]] and [[Pacific Northwest Ballet]], which perform at [[McCaw Hall]] (opened in 2003 on the site of the former Seattle Opera House at Seattle Center), are comparably distinguished,<ref name=pnb>{{cite web |url=https://www.pnb.org/aboutpnb/ |title=About |publisher=Pacific Northwest Ballet |access-date=December 11, 2022 |archive-date=December 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221211223001/https://www.pnb.org/aboutpnb/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattleopera.org/_downloads/press/releases/IphDEC06.pdf |title=Met Opera and Seattle Opera to Co-Produce Gluck's Final Operatic Masterpiece "Iphigénie en Tauride" |date=December 18, 2006 |publisher=[[Metropolitan Opera]] |work=Press release |access-date=October 21, 2007 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222745/http://www.seattleopera.org/_downloads/press/releases/IphDEC06.pdf |url-status=live}} This press release from New York's Metropolitan Opera describes the Seattle Opera as "one of the leading opera companies in the United States... recognized internationally..."</ref> with the Opera being particularly known for its performances of the works of [[Richard Wagner]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattleopera.org/discover/wagner/index.aspx |title=Wagner |publisher=Seattle Opera |access-date=October 21, 2007 |archive-date=October 15, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015111033/http://seattleopera.org/discover/wagner/index.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.playbillarts.com/news/article/5090.html |title=Seattle Opera's First International Wagner Competition Announces Winners |author-first1=Matthew |author-last1=Westphal |date=August 21, 2006 |work=Playbill Arts |access-date=October 21, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080417034804/http://www.playbillarts.com/news/article/5090.html |archive-date=April 17, 2008 }}</ref> and the PNB School (founded in 1974) ranking as one of the top three ballet training institutions in the United States.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=The Berkshire Eagle |location=Pittsfield, Massachusetts |date=August 11, 2006 |page=35 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-berkshire-eagle-pnb-top-three/123457411/ |last=Tracy |first=Allison |title=Master's spinoff is coming to the Pillow |access-date=April 24, 2023 |archive-date=April 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230424175321/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-berkshire-eagle-pnb-top-three/123457411/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras]] (SYSO) is the largest symphonic youth organization in the United States.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.syso.org/ |title=Home page |publisher=SYSO |access-date=October 21, 2007 |archive-date=October 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014012553/http://www.syso.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The city also boasts lauded summer and winter [[chamber music]] festivals organized by the [[Seattle Chamber Music Society]].<ref>Hahn, Sumi [http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/thearts/2008030884_chamber060.html Seattle Chamber Music Society's summer festivals: for newbies and longtime fans] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011174333/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/thearts/2008030884_chamber060.html |date=October 11, 2008 }}. The Seattle Times, July 6, 2008. Retrieved December 30, 2011.</ref>

The [[5th Avenue Theatre]], built in 1926, stages [[Broadway theatre|Broadway-style]] musical shows<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=3750 |title=Fifth (5th) Avenue Theatre |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Eric L. |author-last1=Flom |date=April 21, 2002 |access-date=October 19, 2007 |archive-date=March 13, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070313231134/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=3750 |url-status=live }}</ref> featuring both local talent and international stars.<ref>Examples of local talent are Billy Joe Huels (lead singer of the Dusty 45s) starring in ''[[Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story]]'' and [[Sarah Rudinoff]] in ''[[Wonderful Town]]''. National-level stars include [[Stephen Lynch (musician)|Stephen Lynch]] in ''[[The Wedding Singer (musical)|The Wedding Singer]]'', which went on to Broadway and [[Cathy Rigby]] in ''[[Peter Pan (1954 musical)|Peter Pan]]''<br />
{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/theaterarts/2002797878_wedding11.html |title=Eager-to-please new musical raids the 1980s |date=February 11, 2006 |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Misha |author-last1=Berson |access-date=October 25, 2007 |archive-date=June 22, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622071513/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/theaterarts/2002797878_wedding11.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Seattle has "around 100" theatrical production companies<ref name=Kiley-new-theater>{{cite news |author-first1=Brendan |author-last1=Kiley |title=Old Timers, New Theater |publisher=The Stranger |date=January 31, 2008 |page=27 |url=http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=496361 |access-date=January 9, 2009 |archive-date=March 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080306121955/http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=496361 |url-status=live}} "around 100 theater companies ... Twenty-eight have some sort of [[Actors' Equity]] contract ..."</ref> and over two dozen live theatre venues, many of them associated with [[fringe theatre]];<ref>{{cite news |title=Theater Calendar |publisher=The Stranger |date=October 18, 2007 |page=45}} This lists 23 distinct venues in Seattle hosting live theater (in the narrow sense) that week; it also lists 7 other venues hosting [[burlesque]] or [[cabaret]], and three hosting [[Improvisational theatre|improv]]. In any given week, some theaters are "dark".</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2002557462_fringe16.html |title=A new wave of fringe theater groups hits Seattle |author-first1=Misha |author-last1=Berson |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=February 16, 2005 |access-date=October 26, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510041011/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2002557462_fringe16.html |archive-date=May 10, 2011}} This article mentions five fringe theater groups that were new at that time, each with a venue.</ref> Seattle is probably second only to New York for number of [[Actors' Equity Association|equity]] theaters<ref>{{cite book |author-first1=Daniel C. |author-last1=Schechter |title=Pacific Northwest |publisher=Lonely Planet |isbn=978-1-86450-377-7 |year=2002 |page=33 }}</ref> (28 Seattle theater companies have some sort of [[Actors' Equity]] contract).<ref name=Kiley-new-theater/>
In addition, the 900-seat [[Romanesque Revival architecture|Romanesque Revival]] [[Town Hall Seattle|Town Hall]] on First Hill hosts numerous cultural events, especially lectures and recitals.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002193046_townhall01m.html |title=Where culture goes to town |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Stuart |author-last1=Eskenazi |date=March 1, 2005 |access-date=October 19, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217064522/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002193046_townhall01m.html |archive-date=December 17, 2007 }}</ref>

Between 1918 and 1951, there were nearly two dozen jazz nightclubs along Jackson Street, running from the current Chinatown/International District to the Central District. The jazz scene developed the early careers of [[Ray Charles]], [[Quincy Jones]], [[Bumps Blackwell]], [[Ernestine Anderson]], and others.<ref name=Seattle_Music/>

Early popular musical acts from the Seattle/Puget Sound area include the collegiate folk group [[The Brothers Four]], vocal group [[The Fleetwoods]], 1960s garage rockers [[The Wailers (rock band)|The Wailers]] and [[The Sonics]], and instrumental surf group [[The Ventures]], some of whom are still active.<ref name=Seattle_Music/>

Seattle is considered the home of [[grunge]] music,<ref name=Seattle_Sound/> having produced artists such as [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]], [[Soundgarden]], [[Alice in Chains]], [[Pearl Jam]], and [[Mudhoney]], all of whom reached international audiences in the early 1990s.<ref name="Seattle_Music">{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2374 |title=Rock Music – Seattle |date=May 4, 2000 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Clark |author-last1=Humphrey |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-date=May 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080506225917/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2374 |url-status=live }}</ref> The city is also home to such varied artists as [[avant-garde jazz]] musicians [[Bill Frisell]] and [[Wayne Horvitz]], [[swing music|hot jazz]] musician [[Glenn Crytzer]], [[hip hop music|hip hop]] artists [[Sir Mix-a-Lot]], [[Macklemore]], [[Blue Scholars]], and [[Shabazz Palaces]], [[smooth jazz]] saxophonist [[Kenny G]], [[classic rock]] staples [[Heart (band)|Heart]] and [[Queensrÿche]], and alternative rock bands such as [[Foo Fighters]], [[Harvey Danger]], [[The Presidents of the United States of America (band)|The Presidents of the United States of America]], [[The Posies]], [[Modest Mouse]], [[Band of Horses]], [[Death Cab for Cutie]], and [[Fleet Foxes]]. Rock musicians such as [[Jimi Hendrix]], [[Duff McKagan]], and [[Nikki Sixx]] spent their formative years in Seattle.

The Seattle-based [[Sub Pop]] record company continues to be one of the world's best-known independent/alternative music labels.<ref name=Seattle_Music/> Seattle is known for its live-music venues including [[The Crocodile]], [[Vito's]] and Columbia City Theater.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=EverOut |title=The Stranger's Guide to Live Music and Dancing in Seattle |url=https://www.thestranger.com/stranger-things-to-do/2018/06/20/27936231/your-guide-to-live-music-and-dancing-in-seattle |access-date=2024-10-26 |website=The Stranger |language=en |archive-date=June 23, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240623035431/https://www.thestranger.com/stranger-things-to-do/2018/06/20/27936231/your-guide-to-live-music-and-dancing-in-seattle |url-status=live }}</ref> Over the years, [[List of songs about Seattle|a number of songs have been written about Seattle]].

Seattle annually sends a team of [[spoken word]] slammers to the [[National Poetry Slam]] and considers itself home to such performance poets as [[Buddy Wakefield]], two-time [[Individual World Poetry Slam]] Champ;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/arts/news/press_releases.asp?prID=7593&deptID=1 |title=Skip your commute for a 'Traffic Jam' with a twist, a Hip Hop & Spoken Word Mashup at City Hall, Aug. 16 |publisher=City of Seattle |author-first1=Lori |author-last1=Patrick |date=August 2, 2007 |access-date=October 6, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019021126/http://www.seattle.gov/arts/news/press_releases.asp?prID=7593&deptID=1 |archive-date=October 19, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Anis Mojgani]], two-time National Poetry Slam Champ;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.austinslam.com/nps06/ |title=Indie and Team Semis results |publisher=National Poetry Slam 2006 |date=August 12, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060830062934/http://www.austinslam.com/nps06/ |archive-date=August 30, 2006 |access-date=October 6, 2007 }}</ref> and [[Danny Sherrard]], 2007 National Poetry Slam Champ and 2008 Individual World Poetry Slam Champ.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattlepoetryslam.org/ |title=Home |publisher=Seattle Poetry Slam |access-date=October 6, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024063114/http://seattlepoetryslam.org/ |archive-date=October 24, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Seattle also hosted the 2001 national Poetry Slam Tournament. The Seattle Poetry Festival is a biennial poetry festival that (launched first as the Poetry Circus in 1997) has featured local, regional, national, and international names in poetry.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/books/312352_poetry20.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120719044214/http://seattlepi.com/books/312352_poetry20.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 19, 2012 |title=Eleventh Hour's volunteers deserve credit for a strong poetry fest revival |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |author-first1=John |author-last1=Marshall |date=August 19, 2007 |access-date=October 6, 2007 }}</ref>

The city also has movie houses showing both [[Hollywood, Los Angeles, California|Hollywood]] productions and works by [[independent film]]makers.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/movies/177098_littletheaters10.html |title=Now showing in Seattle: an explosion of indie theaters |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=June 10, 2004 |author-first1=Kristin|author-last1=Dizon|access-date=January 9, 2009 }}</ref> Among these, the [[Seattle Cinerama]] stands out as one of only three movie theaters in the world still capable of showing three-panel [[Cinerama]] films.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20030228/cinerama28/looking-back-at-cinerama-format |title=Looking back at Cinerama format |work=The Seattle Times |author-first1=Moira |author-last1=Macdonald |date=February 23, 2003 |access-date=January 9, 2009 |archive-date=May 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513162744/http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20030228&slug=cinerama28 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Tourism===
{{see also|List of museums in Seattle}}
[[File:Norwegian Sun in Seattle, Washington.jpg|thumb|210 cruise ship visits brought 886,039 passengers to Seattle in 2008.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portseattle.org/seaport/cruise/ |title=Cruise Seattle |publisher=Port of Seattle |access-date=October 16, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090922185458/http://www.portseattle.org/seaport/cruise/ |archive-date=September 22, 2009 }}</ref>]]
[[File:Seattle_Great_Wheel_Washington1.jpg|thumb|The [[Seattle Great Wheel]]]]
Among Seattle's prominent annual fairs and festivals are the 24-day [[Seattle International Film Festival]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=34784 |title=Everything SIFF |date=May 25–31, 2006 |publisher=The Stranger |author-first1=Annie |author-last1=Wagner |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-date=September 20, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070920182913/http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=34784 |url-status=live }}</ref> Northwest Folklife over the [[Memorial Day]] weekend, numerous [[Seafair]] events throughout July and August (ranging from a [[Bon Odori]] celebration to the [[Seafair Cup]] [[Hydroplane (boat)|hydroplane]] races), the [[Bite of Seattle]], one of the largest [[Seattle Pride|Gay Pride]] festivals in the United States, and the art and music festival [[Bumbershoot]], which programs music as well as other art and entertainment over the Labor Day weekend. All are typically attended by 100,000 people annually, as are the [[Seattle Hempfest]] and two separate [[Independence Day (United States)|Independence Day]] celebrations.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003801605_rain23m.html |title=Rains wash records away |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Judy Chia Hui|author-last1=Hsu|date=July 23, 2007 |access-date=October 9, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071104004845/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003801605_rain23m.html |archive-date=November 4, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/local/328174_hempfest18.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722181856/http://seattlepi.com/local/328174_hempfest18.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 22, 2012 |title=Where there's smoke, there's Hempfest |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |author-first1=Casey |author-last1=McNerthney |date=August 14, 2007 |access-date=October 9, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2003866959_webbumbermon.html |title=Report from Bumbershoot: Monday: Strong attendance, but not a record: 8:30 pm |author-first1=Misha |author-last1=Berson |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=September 3, 2007 |access-date=October 9, 2007 |archive-date=December 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206152058/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2003866959_webbumbermon.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008024792_gayparade30m.html |title=Marchers soak in the sun, gay pride |author-first1=Kyung M. |author-last1=Song |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=June 30, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417200643/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008024792_gayparade30m.html |archive-date=April 17, 2012 }}</ref>

Other significant events include numerous Native American [[pow-wow]]s, a Greek Festival hosted by [[St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church (Seattle)|St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church]] in [[Montlake, Seattle|Montlake]], and numerous ethnic festivals (many associated with [[Festál at Seattle Center]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://seattlecenter.com/events/festivals/festal/default.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429202507/http://seattlecenter.com/events/festivals/festal/default.asp |archive-date=April 29, 2011 |title=Create Your Seattle Center Experience |publisher=Seattle Center |access-date=October 21, 2007 }}</ref>

There are other annual events, ranging from the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair & Book Arts Show;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattlebookfair.com/ |title=Home page |publisher=The Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair & Book Arts Show |access-date=October 26, 2007 |archive-date=October 5, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121005124720/http://www.seattlebookfair.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> an [[anime]] convention, [[Sakura-Con]];<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sakuracon.org/index.php?langset=e |title=Sakura-Con English-language site |publisher=Asia Northwest Cultural Education Association |access-date=October 25, 2007 |archive-date=October 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014035947/http://www.sakuracon.org/index.php?langset=e |url-status=live}} Relevant information is on "Location" and "History" pages.</ref> [[Penny Arcade Expo]], a gaming convention;<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/videogames/329002_penny25.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120715111531/http://seattlepi.com/videogames/329002_penny25.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 15, 2012 |title=Video games rule at Penny Arcade Expo |author-first1=Regina |author-last1=Hackett |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=August 24, 2007 |access-date=October 26, 2007 }}</ref> a two-day, 9,000-rider [[Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic]];<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/local/323722_bikeride14.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120714054213/http://seattlepi.com/local/323722_bikeride14.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 14, 2012 |title=9,000 bicyclists ready to ride in annual event |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |author-first1=Amy |author-last1=Rolph |date=July 13, 2007 |access-date=October 9, 2007 }}</ref> and specialized film festivals, such as the [[Maelstrom International Fantastic Film Festival]], the [[Seattle Asian American Film Festival]], Children's Film Festival Seattle, Translation: the Seattle Transgender Film Festival, the [[Seattle Queer Film Festival]], Seattle Latino Film Festival, and the [[Seattle Polish Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://seattlequeerfilm.org/ |title=Home page |publisher=Three Dollar Bill Cinema |access-date=October 25, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070702110504/http://www.seattlequeerfilm.org/ |archive-date=July 2, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/filmoffice/festivals.htm |title=Seattle Film Office: Filming in Seattle: Film Events and Festivals |publisher=Office of Film and Music |access-date=February 23, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510091238/http://www.seattle.gov/filmoffice/festivals.htm |archive-date=May 10, 2011 }}</ref>

The [[Henry Art Gallery]] opened in 1927, the first public art museum in Washington.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://henryart.org/about/about-the-henry |title=About the Henry |publisher=Henry Art Gallery |access-date=October 9, 2015 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907222724/https://henryart.org/about/about-the-henry |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Seattle Art Museum]] (SAM) opened in 1933 and moved to their current downtown location in 1991 (expanded and reopened in 2007); since 1991, the 1933 building has been SAM's [[Seattle Asian Art Museum]] (SAAM).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2082 |title=Seattle Art Museum opens in Volunteer Park on June 23, 1933. |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Dave |author-last1=Wilma |access-date=October 9, 2007 |archive-date=June 9, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080609065848/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2082 |url-status=live }}</ref> SAM also operates the [[Olympic Sculpture Park]] (opened in 2007) on the waterfront north of the downtown piers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/parks/parkspaces/OlympicSculpturePark.htm |title=Seattle Parks Department official site |publisher=City of Seattle |year=2013 |access-date=September 20, 2023 |archive-date=April 1, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401070320/http://www.seattle.gov/parks/parkspaces/OlympicSculpturePark.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Frye Art Museum]] is a free museum on [[First Hill, Seattle|First Hill]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/reviews/karlins/seattle-frye-museum6-28-11.asp |title=Frye Art Museum |publisher=Artnet |access-date=September 20, 2023 |author-last1=Karlins|author-first1=N. F. |archive-date=September 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920170502/http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/reviews/karlins/seattle-frye-museum6-28-11.asp |url-status=live }}</ref>

Regional history collections are at the Log House Museum in Alki, [[Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park]], the [[Museum of History and Industry]], and the [[Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture]]. Industry collections are at the [[Center for Wooden Boats]] and the adjacent [[Northwest Seaport]], and the [[Museum of Flight]]. Regional ethnic collections include the [[National Nordic Museum]], the [[Wing Luke Asian Museum]], and the [[Northwest African American Museum]]. Seattle has artist-run galleries,<ref name="Scott2006">{{cite web |url=http://www.carrie-scott.com/articles/two-by-two/ |title=And the Galleries Marched in Two by Two |publisher=CS&P Art Advisory |first=Carrie E. A. |last=Scott |author-link=Carrie Scott |archive-date=July 2, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702105713/http://www.carrie-scott.com/articles/two-by-two/ }}</ref> including ten-year veteran Soil Art Gallery,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://soilart.org/about/index.htm |title=About SOIL |publisher=SOIL Gallery |access-date=October 27, 2007 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116003616/http://soilart.org/about/index.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> and the newer Crawl Space Gallery.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://crawlspacegallery.com/aboutgallery.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060906024817/http://crawlspacegallery.com/aboutgallery.htm |archive-date=September 6, 2006 |title=About the gallery |publisher=Crawl Space Gallery |access-date=October 27, 2007 }}</ref>

The [[Seattle Great Wheel]], one of the largest [[Ferris wheel]]s in the US, opened in June 2012 as a new, permanent attraction on the city's waterfront, at [[Pier 57 (Seattle)|Pier 57]], next to [[Downtown Seattle]].<ref name="great wheel opens">{{cite news |author-first1=Jennifer |author-last1=Sullivan |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2018564435_wheel30m.html |title=The Seattle Great Wheel opens to a big crowd |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=June 29, 2012 |access-date=June 30, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120630184316/http://www.seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2018564435_wheel30m.html |archive-date=June 30, 2012 }}</ref> The [[Seattle Aquarium]] opened on the downtown waterfront in 1977 and was expanded in 2007 with an auditorium, gift shop, and cafe alongside new exhibit spaces. A new, three-story building under the [[Overlook Walk]] opened in 2024 with tropical exhibits and a {{convert|500,000|gal|L|adj=mid}} tank with sharks and rays from the [[Coral Triangle]] region of Southeast Asia.<ref>{{cite web |last1=McRoberts |first1=Patrick |last2=Caldbick |first2=John |date=November 5, 2014 |title=Seattle Aquarium |url=https://www.historylink.org/file/2203 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=November 10, 2024 |archive-date=November 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111080114/https://www.historylink.org/file/2203 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Zhou |first1=Amanda |last2=Breda |first2=Isabella |date=August 29, 2024 |title=Inside the Seattle Aquarium's new tropical exhibit |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/inside-the-seattle-aquariums-new-tropical-exhibit-and-tricky-conservation-balancing-act/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 10, 2024 |archive-date=November 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111080102/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/inside-the-seattle-aquariums-new-tropical-exhibit-and-tricky-conservation-balancing-act/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Woodland Park Zoo]] opened as a private [[menagerie]] in 1889 but was sold to the city in 1899.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=1481 |title=Woodland Park Zoo – A Snapshot History |date=July 8, 1999 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Walt |author-last1=Crowley |access-date=October 9, 2007 |archive-date=November 5, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071105211309/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=1481 |url-status=live }}</ref> The city also has many [[community centers in Seattle|community centers]] for recreation, including Rainier Beach, Van Asselt, Rainier, and Jefferson south of the Ship Canal and Green Lake, Laurelhurst, Loyal Heights north of the Canal, and Meadowbrook.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/parks/centers.asp |title=Community Centers |publisher=City of Seattle |access-date=October 21, 2007 |archive-date=October 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014072809/http://seattle.gov/parks/centers.asp |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Seattle Underground]] Tour is an exhibit of places that existed before the Great Fire and subsequent rebuilding of modern-day Pioneer Square, which raised the street level.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2011-nov-13-la-tr-seattle-20111113-story.html |title=History hidden in Seattle's basement |author-first1=Ken |author-last1=Van Vechten |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=November 13, 2011 |access-date=August 25, 2012 |archive-date=July 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717221059/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2011-nov-13-la-tr-seattle-20111113-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Since the mid-1990s, Seattle has experienced significant growth in the cruise industry, especially as a departure point for Alaska cruises. In 2023, a record total of 907,572 cruise passengers passed through the city, surpassing the number for Vancouver, BC, the other major departure point for Alaska cruises.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 9, 2023 |title=Port of Seattle Completes Record-Setting 2023 Cruise Season |url=https://www.portseattle.org/news/port-seattle-completes-record-setting-2023-cruise-season}}</ref> New tourist industries, such as guided tours and [[Duck tour|amphibious tours]] also emerged during the 1990s.<ref>{{cite news |last=Sanders |first=Eli |author-link=Eli Sanders |date=July 31, 1999 |title=Tourists get an earful about Seattle |page=A1 |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19990731/2974677/tourists-get-an-earful-about-seattle----truth-takes-a-holiday-in-many-tour-guides-spiels |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 10, 2024 |archive-date=November 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241111080113/https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19990731/2974677/tourists-get-an-earful-about-seattle----truth-takes-a-holiday-in-many-tour-guides-spiels |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Libraries===
{{main|Seattle Public Library}}

[[File:Seattle_Library_01.jpg|thumb|[[Seattle Central Library]]]]
The [[Seattle Public Library]] system consists of 27 branches with a combined total of 3,119,298 items {{as of|2023|lc=y}}.<ref>{{cite report |date=October 2024 |title=2023 Washington Public Library Statistical Report |pages=46, 54 |url=https://www.sos.wa.gov/_assets/library/libraries/libdev/2023stats.pdf |publisher=[[Washington State Library]] |access-date=January 18, 2025 |archive-date=January 9, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250109002612/https://www2.sos.wa.gov/_assets/library/libraries/libdev/2023stats.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The library was founded as part of the city government in 1890, though previous efforts to establish one date back to 1868; it first opened in 1891 and moved into a permanent location, a [[mansion]] once owned by Seattle pioneer [[Henry Yesler]], in 1899.<ref name="SPL central 1906 - HL">{{cite web |last1=Becker |first1=Paula |title=Central Library, 1906-1957, The Seattle Public Library |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/9869 |website=HistoryLink |access-date=January 19, 2025 |date=July 1, 2011 }}</ref> The mansion burned down in 1901 along with most of the 33,000 books then in the library's collection, resulting in the construction of a [[Carnegie library]] building in 1906; eventually known as the [[Seattle Central Library]], the building was replaced in 1960 with an [[International Style]] design and again in 2004 with a design by Dutch architect [[Rem Koolhaas]].<ref name="SPL central 1906 - HL" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Ouchi |first1=Monica Soto |title=Looking up – and all around on Central Library's first day: Thousands book the initial due date at new building |work=The Seattle Times |date=May 24, 2004 |page=B1 }}</ref>

==Religion==
{{see also|List of places of worship in Seattle}}
{{update|section|date=December 2022|reason=This survey is more than eight years old}}

A 2024 Household Pulse Survey from the United States Census Bureau estimated that 64&nbsp;percent of adults in the Seattle area never attend religious services or attend less than once a year, the highest percentage among large U.S. metropolitan areas.<ref>{{cite news |last=Balk |first=Gene |date=February 29, 2024 |title=Seattle is the least-religious large metro area in the U.S. |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattle-is-the-least-religious-large-metro-area-in-the-u-s/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=February 29, 2024 |archive-date=February 29, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240229171155/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/data/seattle-is-the-least-religious-large-metro-area-in-the-u-s/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

According to a 2014 study by the [[Pew Research Center]], the largest religious groupings are [[Christianity|Christians]] (52%), followed by those of [[Irreligion|no religion]] (37%), [[Hinduism|Hindus]] (2%), [[Buddhism|Buddhists]] (2%), [[Judaism|Jews]] (1%), [[Islam|Muslims]] (1%) and a variety of other religions have smaller followings.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Religious Landscape Study |url=http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/metro-area/seattle-metro-area/ |access-date=November 10, 2015 |website=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project |archive-date=November 9, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151109082033/http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/metro-area/seattle-metro-area/ |url-status=live }}</ref> According to the same study by the [[Pew Research Center]], about 34% of Seattleites are [[Protestant]], and 15% are [[Roman Catholic]]. Meanwhile, 6% of the residents in Seattle call themselves [[agnostics]], while 10% call themselves [[atheists]].<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/07/29/major-u-s-metropolitan-areas-differ-in-their-religious-profiles/ Major U.S. metropolitan areas differ in their religious profiles] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308152313/https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/07/29/major-u-s-metropolitan-areas-differ-in-their-religious-profiles/ |date=March 8, 2021 }}, Pew Research Center</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/ |title=America's Changing Religious Landscape |publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]: Religion & Public Life |date=May 12, 2015 |access-date=May 25, 2017 |archive-date=April 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410223438/https://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable collapsible sortable" style="font-size: 90%;"
!Religious composition !! 2014
|-
|[[Christians|Christian]] || |52%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Evangelical Protestant]] || 23%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Mainline Protestant]] || 10%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Black Protestant]] || 1%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Catholic (term)|Catholic]] || 15%
|-
|Non-Christian faiths || 10%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Judaism|Jewish]] || 1%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Muslims|Muslim]] || < 1%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Buddhism|Buddhist]] || 2%
|-
|&nbsp;—[[Hindus|Hindu]] || 2%
|-
|Unaffiliated || 37%
|-
|Don't know || 1%
|}

==Sports==
{{main|Sports in Seattle}}

{{see also|History of professional soccer in Seattle}}
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Club
!Sport
!League
!Venue (capacity)
!Founded
!Titles
!Record<br />attendance
|-
|[[Seattle Seahawks]]
|[[American football]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[National Football League|NFL]]
|[[Lumen Field]] (69,000)
|align=center |1976
|align=center |1
|align=center |69,005
|-
|[[Seattle Mariners]]
|[[Baseball]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[Major League Baseball|MLB]]
|[[T-Mobile Park]] (47,574)
|align=center |1977
|align=center |0
|align=center |46,596
|-
|[[Seattle Kraken]]
|[[Ice hockey]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[National Hockey League|NHL]]
|[[Climate Pledge Arena]] (17,100)
|align=center |2021
|align=center |0
|align=center |17,151<ref>{{cite web |title=2021-22 Seattle Kraken Schedule and Results |url=https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/SEA/2022_games.html |website=Hockey-Reference.com |publisher=Sports Reference |access-date=June 3, 2022 |language=en |archive-date=June 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220603163238/https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/SEA/2022_games.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[Seattle Sounders FC]]
|[[Association football|Soccer]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[Major League Soccer|MLS]]
|[[Lumen Field]] (69,000)
|align=center |2007{{ref label|SoundersAge|A}}
|align=center |2
|align=center |69,274<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bogert |first1=Tom |title=2019 MLS Cup breaks Seattle Sounders all-time attendance record |url=https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/2019-mls-cup-breaks-seattle-sounders-all-time-attendance-record |publisher=Major League Soccer |access-date=June 3, 2022 |language=en |date=November 10, 2019 |archive-date=May 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511234432/https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/2019-mls-cup-breaks-seattle-sounders-all-time-attendance-record |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[Seattle Seawolves]]
|[[Rugby union|Rugby]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[Major League Rugby|MLR]]
|[[Starfire Sports]] (4,500)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.starfiresports.com/ |title=Starfire Sports – Indoor/Outdoor Soccer – Seattle, Renton, Kent |website=www.starfiresports.com }}</ref>
|align=center |2017
|align=center |2
|align=center |4,500
|-
|[[Seattle Storm]]
|[[Basketball]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[Women's National Basketball Association|WNBA]]
|[[Climate Pledge Arena]] (18,100)
|align=center |2000
|align=center |4
|align=center |18,100<ref>{{cite news |last=Allen |first=Percy |date=May 6, 2022 |title=Storm put on a show in front of Climate Pledge Arena crowd, blowing out Minnesota in opener |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/storm-put-on-a-show-in-front-of-climate-pledge-arena-crown-blowing-out-minnesota-in-opener/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 5, 2022 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=November 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221105084349/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/storm-put-on-a-show-in-front-of-climate-pledge-arena-crown-blowing-out-minnesota-in-opener/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[Seattle Reign FC]]
|[[Association football|Soccer]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[National Women's Soccer League|NWSL]]
|[[Lumen Field]] (69,000)
|align=center |2013
|align=center |0
|align=center |42,054<ref>{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |date=June 3, 2023 |title=OL Reign lose to Thorns for first time since 2019 to cap soccer twinbill |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/reign/ol-reign-lose-to-thorns-for-first-time-since-2019-to-cap-soccer-twinbill/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=August 6, 2023 |archive-date=June 11, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230611004155/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/reign/ol-reign-lose-to-thorns-for-first-time-since-2019-to-cap-soccer-twinbill/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[Seattle Torrent]]
|[[Ice hockey]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[Professional Women's Hockey League|PWHL]]
|[[Climate Pledge Arena]] (17,100)
|align=center |2025<ref name="Times-PWHL">{{cite news |last=Shefte |first=Kate |date=April 30, 2025 |title=PWHL expanding to Seattle. Here's what we know. |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/kraken/pwhl-expanding-to-seattle-heres-what-we-know/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=April 30, 2025}}</ref>
|align=center |0
|align=center |TBD
|-
|[[Ballard FC]]{{hr}}[[Salmon Bay FC]]
|[[Association football|Soccer]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[USL League 2|USL2]]{{hr}}[[USL W League|USL-W]]
|Interbay Soccer Field (1,000)
|align=center | 2022{{hr}}2025
|align=center | 1{{hr}}0
|align=center |3,146<ref>{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |date=August 5, 2023 |title=Ballard FC prevails in a thrilling USL League Two final |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/soccer/ballard-fc-prevails-in-a-thrilling-usl-league-two-final/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=August 6, 2023 |archive-date=August 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230806182345/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/soccer/ballard-fc-prevails-in-a-thrilling-usl-league-two-final/ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{hr}}&mdash;
|-
|[[West Seattle Junction FC]]{{hr}}West Seattle Rhodies FC
|[[Association football|Soccer]]
|style="text-align:center;"|[[USL League 2|USL2]]{{hr}}[[USL W League|USL-W]]
| Nino Cantu Southwest Athletics Complex
|align=center | 2024<ref name="USL-WestSeattle">{{Cite press release |date=January 3, 2024 |title=West Seattle Junction FC to join USL League Two in 2024 |url=https://www.uslleaguetwo.com/news_article/show/1295843-west-seattle-junction-fc-to-join-usl-league-two-in-2024 |publisher=USL League Two |access-date=January 3, 2024 |archive-date=January 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240103184804/https://www.uslleaguetwo.com/news_article/show/1295843-west-seattle-junction-fc-to-join-usl-league-two-in-2024 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{hr}}2025
|align=center | 0{{hr}}0
|align=center | &mdash;
|}

;Notes
:{{note label|SoundersAge|A}}Originally founded in 1974, the MLS version of the Sounders franchise was legally re-incorporated in 2007 and entered the league for the 2009 season.
[[File:Qwest_Field,_Seattle,_USA-1June2009.jpg|thumb|[[Lumen Field]], home of the [[Seattle Seahawks]], [[Seattle Sounders FC]], and [[Seattle Reign FC]]]]
[[File:Safeco Field, Seattle-.jpg|thumb|[[T-Mobile Park]], home of the [[Seattle Mariners]]]]
[[File:Climate Pledge Arena in Kraken configuration - view from SE upper tier.jpg|thumb|[[Climate Pledge Arena]], home of the [[Seattle Kraken]] and [[Seattle Storm]]]]
[[File:Soundersfcqwestfield.jpg|thumb|[[Lumen Field]] during a Sounders match]]
Seattle has four major men's [[professional sports]] teams: the [[National Football League]] (NFL)'s [[Seattle Seahawks]], [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB)'s [[Seattle Mariners]], the [[National Hockey League]] (NHL)'s [[Seattle Kraken]], and [[Major League Soccer]] (MLS)'s [[Seattle Sounders FC]]. Other professional sports teams include the [[Women's National Basketball Association]] (WNBA)'s [[Seattle Storm]], the [[National Women's Soccer League]]'s [[Seattle Reign FC]]; and [[Major League Rugby]] (MLR)'s [[Seattle Seawolves]].

Seattle's professional sports history began at the start of the 20th century with the [[Pacific Coast Hockey Association|PCHA]]'s [[Seattle Metropolitans]], which in 1917 became the first American hockey team to win the [[Stanley Cup]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5414 |title=Seattle Metropolitan hockey team wins the Stanley Cup on March 26, 1917. |work=HistoryLink |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Lange |date=March 14, 2003 |access-date=September 29, 2007 |archive-date=April 10, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060410012303/http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5414 |url-status=live }}</ref>
In 1969, Seattle was awarded a Major League Baseball franchise, the [[Seattle Pilots]]. Based at [[Sick's Stadium]] in [[Mount Baker, Seattle|Mount Baker]], home to Seattle's [[Seattle Rainiers|former minor-league teams]], the Pilots played in Seattle for [[1969 Major League Baseball season|one season]] before relocating to [[Milwaukee]] and becoming the [[Milwaukee Brewers]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Caple |first=Jim |date=August 24, 2016 |title=Seattle Pilots barely remembered, except through Brewers, 'Ball Four' |url=http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/17083888/seattle-pilots-now-milwaukee-brewers-barely-remembered-ball-four |publisher=ESPN |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=December 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218054620/http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/17083888/seattle-pilots-now-milwaukee-brewers-barely-remembered-ball-four |url-status=live }}</ref> The city, alongside the county and state governments, sued the league and was offered a second expansion team, later named the [[Seattle Mariners]], as settlement.<ref>{{cite news |last=Zimmerman |first=Hy |date=January 27, 1980 |title=Baseball left town in 1970, but came back to occupy Dome |pages=L8–L9 |work=The Seattle Times }}</ref>

The Mariners began play in 1977 at the [[multi-purpose stadium|multi-purpose]] [[Kingdome]], where the team struggled for most of its time. Relative success in the mid-to-late 1990s saved the team from being relocated and allowed them to move to a purpose-built baseball stadium, [[T-Mobile Park]] (formerly [[Safeco Field]]), in 1999.<ref>{{cite web |last=Stein |first=Alan J. |date=April 8, 1999 |title=Seattle Pilots Baseball Team |url=http://www.historylink.org/File/1021 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=December 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181216012111/http://www.historylink.org/File/1021 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Divish |first=Ryan |date=December 19, 2018 |title=Goodbye, Safeco Field. The Mariners' stadium is now called T-Mobile Park |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/mariners-reach-a-stadium-naming-rights-agreement-with-t-mobile/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 19, 2018 |archive-date=December 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181219174007/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/mariners-reach-a-stadium-naming-rights-agreement-with-t-mobile/ |url-status=live }}</ref> As of 2025, the Mariners are the only modern Major League Baseball franchise to have never reached a [[World Series]]. They have only appeared in the MLB playoffs six times, the most recent in [[2025 Seattle Mariners season|2025]] (where they came within one win of advancing to the World Series), but have had Hall of Fame players and candidates like [[Ken Griffey Jr.]], [[Randy Johnson]], [[Ichiro Suzuki]], and [[Alex Rodriguez]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Stone |first=Larry |date=July 14, 2017 |title=Why didn't star-studded Mariners from 1995–2001 reach World Series? |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/why-didnt-star-studded-mariners-from-1995-2001-reach-world-series/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=December 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218054714/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/why-didnt-star-studded-mariners-from-1995-2001-reach-world-series/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The team tied the all-time MLB single regular season wins record in 2001 with 116 wins.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110713&content_id=21777266&c_id=sea&vkey=news_sea |title=Mariners celebrate anniversary of 116-win club |date=July 13, 2011 |publisher=Major League Baseball |author-first1=Greg |author-last1=Johns |access-date=May 22, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140705003504/http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110713&content_id=21777266&c_id=sea&vkey=news_sea |archive-date=July 5, 2014 }}</ref> From 2001 to 2022, the Mariners failed to qualify for the playoffs—the then-longest [[List of Major League Baseball franchise postseason droughts|active postseason drought]] in major North American sports, at 20 seasons.<ref>{{cite news |last=Brewer |first=Jerry |date=October 5, 2022 |title=After 21 years of pain, Seattle baseball fans feel something new: Hope |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/10/05/seattle-mariners-playoffs-drought/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=November 5, 2022 |archive-date=October 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221006003608/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/10/05/seattle-mariners-playoffs-drought/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Seattle Seahawks entered the National Football League in 1976 as an [[expansion team]] and have advanced to the [[Super Bowl]] three times: [[Super Bowl XL|2005]], [[Super Bowl XLVIII|2013]] and [[Super Bowl XLIX|2014]].<ref name="HL-Seahawks">{{cite web |last=Drosendahl |first=Glenn |date=November 3, 2012 |title=Seattle Seahawks |url=http://historylink.org/File/10217 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=December 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181216012112/http://www.historylink.org/File/10217 |url-status=live }}</ref> The team played in the [[Kingdome]] until it was imploded in 2000 and moved into Qwest Field (now [[Lumen Field]]) at the same site in 2002.<ref name="HL-Seahawks"/> The Seahawks lost [[Super Bowl XL]] in 2005 to the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] in [[Detroit]], but won [[Super Bowl XLVIII]] in 2013 by defeating the [[Denver Broncos]] 43–8 at [[MetLife Stadium]]. The team advanced to the Super Bowl the following year, but lost to the [[New England Patriots]] in [[Super Bowl XLIX]] on a last-minute play.<ref name="HL-Seahawks"/> Seahawks fans have set stadium noise records on several occasions and are collectively known as the "[[12th man (football)|12th Man]]".<ref name="HL-Seahawks"/><ref>{{cite news |last=Memmott |first=Mark |date=December 3, 2013 |title=Seahawks Fans Cause Earthquake, Set Noise Record |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/12/03/248566190/seahawks-fans-cause-earthquake-set-noise-record |publisher=NPR |access-date=December 17, 2018 }}</ref>

Seattle Sounders FC has played in Major League Soccer since 2009, as the latest continuation of the [[Seattle Sounders (1974–1983)|original 1974 Sounders team]] of the [[North American Soccer League (1968–1984)|North American Soccer League]] after [[Seattle Sounders (1994–2008)|an incarnation]] in the [[American soccer pyramid|lower divisions of American soccer]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/sounders-fc-debuts-with-dazzling-3-0-victory/ |title=Sounders FC debuts with dazzling 3–0 victory |last=Romero |first=José Miguel |date=March 20, 2009 |newspaper=The Seattle Times |access-date=September 4, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924130815/http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/sounders-fc-debuts-with-dazzling-3-0-victory/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sharing Lumen Field with the Seahawks, the team set various [[Major League Soccer attendance|attendance records]] in its first few MLS seasons, averaging over 43,000 per match and placing themselves among the top 30 teams internationally.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pentz |first=Matt |date=October 21, 2015 |title=Seattle Sounders to set MLS single-season attendance record on Sunday |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/seattle-sounders-to-set-mls-single-season-attendance-record-on-sunday/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907223321/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/seattle-sounders-to-set-mls-single-season-attendance-record-on-sunday/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Ruthven |first=Graham |date=May 14, 2018 |title=Is the Seattle Sounders' era as an MLS superclub coming to an end? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/may/14/seattle-sounders-mls-club-ambitions |work=The Guardian |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907223242/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/may/14/seattle-sounders-mls-club-ambitions |url-status=live }}</ref> The Sounders have won the [[MLS Supporters' Shield]] in 2014<ref>{{cite news |date=October 25, 2014 |title=Seattle Sounders FC capture first-ever MLS Supporters' Shield with victory over LA Galaxy |url=http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2014/10/25/seattle-sounders-fc-capture-first-ever-mls-supporters-shield-victory-over-la |work=MLSsoccer.com |access-date=September 4, 2015 |archive-date=November 28, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141128073323/http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2014/10/25/seattle-sounders-fc-capture-first-ever-mls-supporters-shield-victory-over-la |url-status=dead }}</ref> and the [[U.S. Open Cup]] on four occasions: [[2009 U.S. Open Cup|2009]], [[2010 U.S. Open Cup|2010]], [[2011 U.S. Open Cup|2011]], and [[2014 U.S. Open Cup|2014]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Pentz |first=Matt |date=September 18, 2014 |title=Sounders win 4th U.S. Open Cup |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/sounders-win-4th-us-open-cup/ |newspaper=The Seattle Times |access-date=September 4, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924130818/http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/sounders-win-4th-us-open-cup/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Sounders won the first of their two [[MLS Cup]] titles in [[MLS Cup 2016|2016]], defeating [[Toronto FC]] 5–4 in a [[penalty shootout (association football)|penalty shootout]] in Toronto,<ref>{{cite news |last=Parker |first=Graham |date=December 10, 2016 |title=Seattle Sounders hold nerve in shootout to clinch first ever MLS Cup |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/dec/10/seattle-sounders-penalty-shootout-mls-cup-toronto |work=The Guardian |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=December 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161211051723/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/dec/10/seattle-sounders-penalty-shootout-mls-cup-toronto |url-status=live }}</ref> before finishing as runners-up in a rematch against Toronto in [[MLS Cup 2017]].
<!--With the Sounders' first MLS Cup championship in franchise history, the Mariners are the only men's professional sports team in the city without a championship, let alone a championship series appearance.-->In [[MLS Cup 2019|2019]] the Sounders made their first-ever home-field appearance in MLS Cup, once again against Toronto FC, and won the game 3–1 to earn their second MLS Cup title in front of a club-record attendance of 69,274.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dart |first=Tom |date=November 10, 2019 |title=Opportunistic Sounders see off Toronto FC for second MLS Cup title in four years |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/nov/10/seattle-sounders-toronto-fc-mls-cup-final |work=The Guardian |access-date=November 10, 2019 |archive-date=November 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191110233418/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/nov/10/seattle-sounders-toronto-fc-mls-cup-final |url-status=live }}</ref> The stadium also hosted the second leg of the [[2022 CONCACAF Champions League Final]], played in front of 68,741 to break the tournament attendance record. The Sounders became the first MLS team to win a continental title since 2000 and the first to win the modern [[CONCACAF Champions League|Champions League]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Streeter |first=Kurt |date=May 5, 2022 |title=Sounders' Breakthrough Title Cements Seattle's Soccer Bona Fides |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/05/sports/soccer/seattle-sounders-pumas-unam.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=October 12, 2022 |archive-date=October 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013043446/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/05/sports/soccer/seattle-sounders-pumas-unam.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Seattle's Major League Rugby team, the [[Seattle Seawolves]], play in nearby [[Tukwila, Washington|Tukwila]] at the [[Starfire Sports Complex]], a small stadium that is also used by the Sounders for their [[U.S. Open Cup]] matches.<ref>{{cite news |last=Krasnoo |first=Ryan |date=June 8, 2017 |title=Reliving the top three Seattle Sounders U.S. Open Cup matches at Starfire Sports |url=https://www.soundersfc.com/post/2017/06/08/reliving-top-three-seattle-sounders-us-open-cup-matches-starfire-sports |publisher=Seattle Sounders FC |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=December 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218054647/https://www.soundersfc.com/post/2017/06/08/reliving-top-three-seattle-sounders-us-open-cup-matches-starfire-sports |url-status=live }}</ref> The team began play in 2018 and won [[2018 Major League Rugby final|the league's inaugural championship]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Monahan |first=Terry |date=July 7, 2018 |title=Seawolves win inaugural Major League Rugby championship |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/other-sports/seawolves-win-inaugural-major-league-rugby-championship/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 5, 2018 |archive-date=August 20, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180820075003/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/other-sports/seawolves-win-inaugural-major-league-rugby-championship/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They successfully defended their title in the [[2019 Major League Rugby final|2019 season]] and finished as runners-up in the [[2022 Major League Rugby final|2022 championship game]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/other-sports/seawolves-repeat-as-major-league-rugby-champions-with-try-as-time-expires/ |title='I can't explain this feeling': Seawolves repeat as Major League Rugby champions with try as time expires |date=June 16, 2019 |last=Monahan |first=Terry |access-date=June 17, 2019 |work=Seattle Times |archive-date=June 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617054114/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/other-sports/seawolves-repeat-as-major-league-rugby-champions-with-try-as-time-expires/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Pengelly |first=Martin |date=June 25, 2022 |title=New York win Major League Rugby championship game against Seattle |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/jun/25/new-york-win-major-league-rugby-championship-game-seattle |work=The Guardian |access-date=January 3, 2024 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907223336/https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2022/jun/25/new-york-win-major-league-rugby-championship-game-seattle |url-status=live }}</ref>

From 1967 to 2008, Seattle was home to the [[Seattle SuperSonics]] of the [[National Basketball Association]] (NBA), the city's first major professional sports team. A frequent playoff participant, the Sonics were the [[1979 NBA Finals|1978–79 NBA champions]], and also contended for the championship in [[1978 NBA Finals|1978]] and [[1996 NBA Finals|1996]]. Following a team sale in 2006, a failed effort to replace the aging [[KeyArena]], and settlement of a lawsuit to hold the team to the final two years of its lease with the city, [[Seattle SuperSonics relocation to Oklahoma City|the SuperSonics relocated]] to [[Oklahoma City]] and became the [[Oklahoma City Thunder]] ahead of the [[2008–09 NBA season|2008–09 season]].<ref>{{cite web |title=NBA Board of Governors Approve Sonics Move to Oklahoma City Pending Resolution of Litigation |url=http://www.nba.com/news/bog_sonics_080418.html |publisher=National Basketball Association |date=April 18, 2008 |access-date=May 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170520212020/http://www.nba.com/news/bog_sonics_080418.html |archive-date=May 20, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=NBA approves Sonics' move to Oklahoma |url=http://www.komotv.com/news/17916284.html |agency=Associated Press |publisher=KOMO-TV |date=April 18, 2008 |access-date=April 18, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080430073129/http://www.komotv.com/news/17916284.html |archive-date=April 30, 2008 }}</ref> An [[Failed relocation of the Sacramento Kings#Seattle|effort in 2013]] to purchase the [[Sacramento Kings]] franchise and relocate it to Seattle as a resurrected Sonics squad was denied by the NBA board of governors.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kings to stay in Sacramento as owners reject Seattle move |url=http://www.nba.com/2013/news/05/15/kings-stay-in-sacramento.ap/index.html |agency=Associated Press |publisher=National Basketball Association |date=May 15, 2013 |access-date=November 6, 2015 |archive-date=June 8, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130608085019/http://www.nba.com/2013/news/05/15/kings-stay-in-sacramento.ap/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Seattle Storm]] of the [[Women's National Basketball Association]] have also played their games at KeyArena (now [[Climate Pledge Arena]]) since their foundation in 2000. The WNBA granted Seattle their expansion side following the popularity of the recently folded [[Seattle Reign (basketball)|Seattle Reign]], a women's professional basketball team that played from 1996 to 1998 in the rival [[American Basketball League (1996–1998)|American Basketball League]].<ref name="seattletimes_121912">{{cite web |last=Mayers |first=Joshua |url=http://seattletimes.com/html/soundersfcblog/2019935275_seattles_professional_womens_s.html |title=Seattle's professional women's soccer team will be called Reign FC |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 19, 2012 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907223253/https://www.seattletimes.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Storm began as a sister team to the now-defunct [[Seattle SuperSonics|Sonics]] of the NBA, but sold to separate Seattle-based ownership in 2006. Tied for the league record, the Storm have claimed the [[WNBA Finals|WNBA championship]] on four occasions, winning in [[2004 WNBA Finals|2004]], [[2010 WNBA Finals|2010]], [[2018 WNBA Finals|2018]], and [[2020 WNBA Finals|2020]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Allen |first=Percy |date=September 12, 2018 |title=The champs are back! Seattle Storm wins the 2018 WNBA championship |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/the-champs-are-back-seattle-storm-wins-the-2018-wnba-championship/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=November 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123030927/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/the-champs-are-back-seattle-storm-wins-the-2018-wnba-championship/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Kareem |last=Copeland |date=October 6, 2020 |title=Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird grab another ring as Seattle Storm wins WNBA title |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/wnba/seattle-storm-wins-wnba-finals/2020/10/06/4a130b1c-0804-11eb-a166-dc429b380d10_story.html |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=October 7, 2020 |archive-date=October 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201007205601/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/wnba/seattle-storm-wins-wnba-finals/2020/10/06/4a130b1c-0804-11eb-a166-dc429b380d10_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The team also won the first-ever [[WNBA Commissioner's Cup]] in [[2021 WNBA Commissioner's Cup|2021]].

The [[Seattle Thunderbirds]] hockey team has represented Seattle in the Canadian major-junior [[Western Hockey League]] since 1977. Originally playing in [[Mercer Arena]] and the [[Seattle Center Coliseum]] (which had hosted [[Ice hockey in Seattle|previous minor-league hockey teams]]), the Thunderbirds have been based at the [[ShoWare Center]] in the suburb of [[Kent, Washington|Kent]] since 2007, and have won one WHL championship in [[2016–17 WHL season|2017]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://moobunny.dreamhosters.com/cgi/mbmessage.pl/amiga/148986.shtml |title=Preliminaries are Over; Kent to Become Home to Events Center |publisher=City of Kent |date=July 27, 2007 |access-date=December 11, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120127100116/http://moobunny.dreamhosters.com/cgi/mbmessage.pl/amiga/148986.shtml |archive-date=January 27, 2012 }}</ref> In 1974, Seattle was [[Seattle Totems|awarded a conditional expansion franchise]] in the [[National Hockey League]]; however, this opportunity did not come to fruition. In 2018, a new Seattle-based group successfully applied for an expansion team in the NHL, which was named the [[Seattle Kraken]] and began play in 2021.<ref>{{cite news |title=Seattle gets NHL expansion team, to debut in 2021–22 season |url=http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/25451216/nhl-votes-give-expansion-franchise-seattle |last=Kaplan |first=Emily |date=November 4, 2018 |access-date=November 4, 2018 |archive-date=December 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181204210638/http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/25451216/nhl-votes-give-expansion-franchise-seattle |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="SeattleApplies">{{cite news |title=Seattle applies for NHL expansion team |url=https://www.nhl.com/news/seattle-applies-for-nhl-expansion-team/c-295930852 |publisher=National Hockey League |date=February 13, 2018 |access-date=February 14, 2018 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907223246/https://www.nhl.com/news/seattle-applies-for-nhl-expansion-team-295930852 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Baker |first=Geoff |title=Seattle group files application for NHL expansion team to play at KeyArena |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/hockey/seattle-group-files-application-for-nhl-expansion-team-to-play-at-keyarena/ |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=February 13, 2018 |access-date=February 14, 2018 |archive-date=February 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180214010001/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/hockey/seattle-group-files-application-for-nhl-expansion-team-to-play-at-keyarena/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The SuperSonics' former home arena, KeyArena (now [[Climate Pledge Arena]]), underwent major renovations from 2018 to 2021 to accommodate the new NHL team.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/Oak-View-Group-tweaks-KeyArena-renovation-design-12510712.php |title=Oak View Group unveils tweaked KeyArena renovation design |work=seattlepi.com |access-date=January 21, 2018 |archive-date=June 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618030110/https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/Oak-View-Group-tweaks-KeyArena-renovation-design-12510712.php |url-status=live }}</ref> The NHL ownership group reached its goal of 10,000 deposits within 12 minutes of opening a ticket drive, which later increased to 25,000 in 75 minutes.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Baker |first1=Geoff |title=Seattle surpasses 25,000 NHL season ticket commitments in just over an hour, OVG says |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/hockey/oak-view-group-says-it-surpassed-25000-nhl-season-ticket-commitments-for-seattle-in-just-over-an-hour/ |website=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 2, 2018 |date=March 1, 2018 |archive-date=March 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180302044854/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/hockey/oak-view-group-says-it-surpassed-25000-nhl-season-ticket-commitments-for-seattle-in-just-over-an-hour/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Seattle Reign FC]],<ref name="Reign">{{cite news |date=August 27, 2015 |title=Seattle Reign win NWSL Shield for 2nd straight season |url=http://www.espn.com/espnw/news-commentary/article/13526128/seattle-reign-win-nwsl-shield-2nd-straight-season |publisher=[[ESPN]] |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907224252/https://www.espn.com/espnw/news-commentary/story/_/id/13526128/seattle-reign-win-nwsl-shield-2nd-straight-season |url-status=live }}</ref> a founding member of the [[National Women's Soccer League]], was founded in 2012, holding their home games in Seattle from 2014 to 2018 and again since 2022. The team name was chosen to honor the [[Seattle Reign (basketball)|defunct women's basketball team of the same name]].<ref name="seattletimes_121912" /> The club played at the Starfire Sports Complex in nearby Tukwila for the league's inaugural 2013 season before moving to [[Seattle Center]]'s [[Memorial Stadium (Seattle)|Memorial Stadium]] in 2014. Under new management, the team moved to [[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]]'s [[Cheney Stadium]] in 2019, before moving to Seattle's Lumen Field in 2022.<ref name="OLR-Return">{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |date=March 17, 2022 |title=With move to Lumen Field, OL Reign get set to embark on a new era in Seattle |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/reign/with-return-to-lumen-field-ol-reign-gets-set-to-embark-on-a-new-era-in-seattle/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 31, 2022 |archive-date=January 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230101074931/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/reign/with-return-to-lumen-field-ol-reign-gets-set-to-embark-on-a-new-era-in-seattle/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2020, OL Groupe, the [[parent company]] of French clubs [[Olympique Lyonnais]] and {{Lang|fr|[[Olympique Lyonnais Féminin]]|italic=no}}, became the team's majority owner and rebranded the club as OL Reign.<ref name="OLR-Return"/> The Seattle Reign name was restored in 2024.<ref>{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |date=January 9, 2024 |title=OL Reign transform to Seattle Reign FC in throwback to original name and crest |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/reign/ol-reign-transform-to-seattle-reign-fc-in-throwback-to-original-name-and-crest/ |access-date=January 9, 2024 |archive-date=January 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240110024947/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/reign/ol-reign-transform-to-seattle-reign-fc-in-throwback-to-original-name-and-crest/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Seattle Torrent]] are one of the first two expansion teams, along with the [[Vancouver Goldeneyes]], in the [[Professional Women's Hockey League]] (PWHL), the top-tier women's [[ice hockey]] league in the United States and Canada. Founded in 2025,<ref name="Times-PWHL"/> the inaugural season of the club will be the [[2025-26 PWHL season|2025-26 season]]. Supported by the NHL's Seattle Kraken,<ref>{{cite news |last=Salvian |first=Hailey |date=April 30, 2025 |title=PWHL expanding to Seattle for 2025-26 season, Kraken to play supporting role |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6322069/2025/04/30/pwhl-seattle-expansion-womens-hockey-kraken/ |work=[[The Athletic]] |url-access=subscription |accessdate=May 4, 2025}}</ref> the team will play its home games at Climate Pledge Arena.

Seattle has also been home to various minor-league professional teams, of which currently [[Ballard FC]] and [[West Seattle Junction FC]] of [[USL League 2]] in soccer remain. Representing the Seattle neighborhood of [[Ballard, Seattle|Ballard]], Ballard FC was founded in 2022 as an independent, semi-professional soccer team in the fourth-division [[USL League 2]]. The team is owned by a group led by former Sounders player [[Lamar Neagle]] and won [[2023 USL League Two season|its first national title in 2023]]. Ballard FC's primary home is the 1,000-seat Interbay Soccer Stadium (also home to [[Seattle Pacific University]]'s and [[Ballard High School (Seattle)|Ballard High School]]'s soccer teams), but during that field's renovations in the 2024 season, Ballard will play out of Memorial Stadium at the Seattle Center.<ref>{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |date=May 21, 2022 |title=Ballard FC kicks off its existence with passionate fan base already installed and an easy win |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/ballard-fc-kicks-off-its-existence-with-passionate-fan-base-already-installed-and-an-easy-win/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 31, 2022 |archive-date=January 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230101074933/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/ballard-fc-kicks-off-its-existence-with-passionate-fan-base-already-installed-and-an-easy-win/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Ballard FC to Play 2024 Season at Memorial Stadium |url=https://www.goballardfc.com/news/2023/10/10/ballard-fc-to-play-2024-season-at-memorial-stadium/ |access-date=January 3, 2024 |publisher=Ballard FC |language=en-US |archive-date=January 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240104032014/https://www.goballardfc.com/news/2023/10/10/ballard-fc-to-play-2024-season-at-memorial-stadium/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[West Seattle Junction FC]], representing the neighborhood of [[West Seattle]], joined USL League 2 during the 2024 season.<ref name="USL-WestSeattle"/>

The short-lived [[Seattle Sea Dragons]], originally the Dragons, of the [[XFL (2020)|XFL]] played at Lumen Field in the league's inaugural season in 2020 prior to its suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hanson |first=Scott |date=December 5, 2018 |title=Seattle one of eight franchises in the new XFL |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/seahawks/seattle-one-of-eight-franchises-in-the-new-xfl-it-was-a-really-simple-decision-says-commissioner/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 5, 2018 |archive-date=December 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181205180004/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/seahawks/seattle-one-of-eight-franchises-in-the-new-xfl-it-was-a-really-simple-decision-says-commissioner/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Sea Dragons returned alongside the XFL in [[2023 XFL season|2023]] after the league's re-launch under new ownership.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.xfl.com/xfl-latest-news/xfl-reveals-names-logos-for-its-eight-teams |title=XFL Reveals Names, Logos for its Eight Teams |access-date=December 11, 2022 |date=October 31, 2022 |website=xfl.com |archive-date=December 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221211221437/https://www.xfl.com/xfl-latest-news/xfl-reveals-names-logos-for-its-eight-teams |url-status=live }}</ref> The team folded prior to the 2024 season during the XFL's merger with the [[United States Football League (2022)|United States Football League]] to form the [[United Football League (2024)|United Football League]].<ref>{{cite news |date=January 1, 2024 |title=Seattle Sea Dragons axed in XFL merger with USFL |url=https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/seattle-sea-dragons-axed-xfl-merger-with-usfl/TFDLMYFRF5GGBLMBDF27GQPP3A/ |publisher=KIRO 7 News |access-date=January 2, 2024 |archive-date=January 2, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240102004211/https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/seattle-sea-dragons-axed-xfl-merger-with-usfl/TFDLMYFRF5GGBLMBDF27GQPP3A/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Seattle also boasts two collegiate sports programs based at the [[University of Washington]] and [[Seattle University]], both competing in [[NCAA Division I]] for various sports.<ref name="NCAA">{{cite news |last=Pentz |first=Matt |date=September 24, 2016 |title=Washington Huskies, Seattle U Redhawks prepare to face off in mutually beneficial rivalry match |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/college/washington-huskies-seattle-u-redhawks-prepare-to-face-off-in-mutually-beneficial-rivalry-match/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907224355/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/college/washington-huskies-seattle-u-redhawks-prepare-to-face-off-in-mutually-beneficial-rivalry-match/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The University of Washington's athletic program, nicknamed the [[Washington Huskies|Huskies]], competes in the [[Big Ten Conference]], and Seattle University's athletic program, nicknamed the [[Seattle Redhawks|Redhawks]], mostly competes in the [[Western Athletic Conference]]. The Huskies teams use several facilities, including the 70,000-seat [[Husky Stadium]] for [[Washington Huskies football|football]] and the [[Hec Edmundson Pavilion]] for basketball and volleyball.<ref>{{cite news |last=Allen |first=Percy |date=August 15, 2018 |title=Storm will play at UW's Alaska Airlines Arena in 2019 while KeyArena is under construction |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/storm-to-play-at-alaska-airlines-arena-in-2019/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=August 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180824070031/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/storm-to-play-at-alaska-airlines-arena-in-2019/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=August 29, 2013 |title=Husky Stadium to debut after $280M renovation |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/pac12/2013/08/29/husky-stadium-university-of-washington-renovations-debut-boise-state/2725873/ |work=USA Today |agency=Associated Press |access-date=December 17, 2018 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907224253/https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/pac12/2013/08/29/husky-stadium-university-of-washington-renovations-debut-boise-state/2725873/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The two schools have basketball and soccer teams that compete against each other in non-conference games and have formed a local rivalry due to their sporting success.<ref name="NCAA"/>

The [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game]] has been held in Seattle three times, once at the Kingdome in [[1979 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|1979]], and twice at T-Mobile Park in [[2001 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|2001]] and [[2023 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|2023]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Hanson |first=Scott |date=July 3, 2023 |title=What you need to know for the 2023 MLB All-Star Game in Seattle |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/what-you-need-to-know-for-the-2023-mlb-all-star-game-in-seattle/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=August 6, 2023 |archive-date=July 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230713035207/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/what-you-need-to-know-for-the-2023-mlb-all-star-game-in-seattle/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[NBA All-Star Game]] was also held in Seattle twice: the first in [[1974 NBA All-Star Game|1974]] at the [[Seattle Center Coliseum]] and the second in [[1987 NBA All-Star Game|1987]] at the Kingdome.<ref>{{cite web |title=NBA All-Star Game History |url=http://www.nba.com/history/all-star/ |publisher=National Basketball Association |date=February 13, 2015 |access-date=May 22, 2015 |archive-date=May 5, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150505031259/http://www.nba.com/history/all-star |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Lumen Field]] hosted [[MLS Cup 2009]], played between [[Real Salt Lake]] and the [[Los Angeles Galaxy]], as a neutral site in front of 46,011 spectators.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kelley |first=Mason |date=November 23, 2009 |title=Real Salt Lake Wins M.L.S. Cup |page=D1 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/23/sports/soccer/23mls.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=December 17, 2018 }}</ref> Seattle will be one of eleven US host cities for the [[2026 FIFA World Cup]], with matches played at Lumen Field and training facilities at [[Longacres]] in [[Renton, Washington]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |date=June 16, 2022 |title=Seattle selected as one of 11 U.S. cities to host 2026 men's World Cup |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/seattle-selected-as-one-of-10-us-cities-to-host-2026-mens-world-cup/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=October 12, 2022 |archive-date=October 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013043448/https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/sounders/seattle-selected-as-one-of-10-us-cities-to-host-2026-mens-world-cup/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Parks and recreation==
{{see also|List of parks in Seattle|Seattle Parks and Recreation}}
[[File:Lake Union Park (19749113032).jpg|thumb|[[Lake Union Park]] at the southern end of [[Lake Union]]]]

Seattle's mild, temperate marine climate allows year-round outdoor recreation, including walking, cycling, hiking, skiing, snowboarding, kayaking, rock climbing, motorboating, sailing, team sports, and swimming.<ref>{{cite book |title=Seattle 1900–1920: From Boomtown, Urban Turbulence, to Restoration |publisher=Charles Press |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-9629889-0-5 |location=Seattle |page=97 |author-first1=Richard C. |author-last1=Berner }}</ref> The [[Seattle Parks and Recreation|city parks system]] encompasses 485 parks, shorelines, and preserved spaces that total {{convert|6,500|acre|ha}}—12&nbsp;percent of the land area of Seattle. These city-owned facilities include {{convert|25|mi|km}} of boulevards and {{convert|120|mi|km}} of walking and hiking trails, athletic fields, swimming pools, community centers, bathhouses, and performance spaces.<ref>{{cite web |date=May 8, 2024 |title=2024 Parks and Open Space Plan |pages=1, 22–23 |url=https://www.seattle.gov/documents/Departments/ParksAndRecreation/Projects/OpenSpacePlan/2024ParksOpenSpacesFinalPlan.pdf |publisher=Seattle Parks and Recreation |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=November 26, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241126011303/https://www.seattle.gov/documents/Departments/ParksAndRecreation/Projects/OpenSpacePlan/2024ParksOpenSpacesFinalPlan.pdf |dead-url=yes }}</ref> The [[Trust for Public Land]] ranked Seattle eighth in the United States among municipal parks systems in 2023 and estimates that 99&nbsp;percent of residents live within a {{convert|1/2|mi|km|1|adj=mid}} of a park.<ref>{{cite news |last=Phair |first=Vonnai |date=July 2, 2023 |title=Seattle ranks among top 10 park systems in the country |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/seattle-parks-ranks-among-top-10-park-systems-in-the-country/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 20, 2024 }}</ref>

The largest park in the city is [[Discovery Park (Seattle)|Discovery Park]], which includes {{convert|534|acre|km2}} of forestland and saltwater beaches along the bluffs in [[Magnolia, Seattle|Magnolia]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Williams |first=David B. |date=December 16, 2015 |title=Discovery Park (Seattle): Natural History |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/11161 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=August 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240819162522/https://www.historylink.org/File/11161 |url-status=live }}</ref> Among the most popular Seattle parks{{citation needed|date=November 2024}} are [[Green Lake (Seattle)|Green Lake]], which is ringed by a walking trail; [[Alki Beach Park]] on the southwest side of Elliott Bay; [[Myrtle Edwards Park]] near the downtown waterfront; [[Volunteer Park (Seattle)|Volunteer Park]] on Capitol Hill; and [[Seward Park (Seattle)|Seward Park]] on Lake Washington.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=Allison |last2=Cheek |first2=Lawrence |date=May 19, 2023 |title=The Best Parks in Seattle |url=https://www.seattlemet.com/travel-and-outdoors/2023/05/best-city-parks-in-seattle-volunteer-kerry-discovery |work=Seattle Met |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=June 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230621201124/https://www.seattlemet.com/travel-and-outdoors/2023/05/best-city-parks-in-seattle-volunteer-kerry-discovery |url-status=live }}</ref> Several city parks include panoramic views of the Seattle skyline, including [[Kerry Park]] on Queen Anne Hill and [[Gas Works Park]] in [[Wallingford, Seattle|Wallingford]], which features the preserved [[superstructure]] of a [[coal gasification]] plant closed in 1956.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dorpat |first=Paul |date=December 11, 2015 |title=How architect Richard Haag turned a gas plant into the beautiful Gas Works Park |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/gas-works-parks-is-architect-richard-haags-enduring-gift-to-seattle/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=December 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203200712/https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/gas-works-parks-is-architect-richard-haags-enduring-gift-to-seattle/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Seattle has a network of recreational and commuting trails for cyclists and pedestrians, mainly repurposed from disused railroads or built alongside regional highways. The [[Burke–Gilman Trail]], which travels for {{convert|27|mi|km}} along the Ship Canal and Lake Washington between Ballard and [[Bothell, Washington|Bothell]], first opened in 1978 on a former railroad.<ref>{{cite news |last=Guevara |first=Natalie |date=August 22, 2019 |title=In history: Burke-Gilman, once a rail route for loggers, is dedicated as a trail 41 years ago |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/History-Burke-Gilman-bicycle-walk-trail-Seattle-14369100.php |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=April 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417002231/https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/History-Burke-Gilman-bicycle-walk-trail-Seattle-14369100.php |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Mountains to Sound Greenway|Mountains to Sound Trail]] connects the Interstate 90 corridor, including the north side of the [[Homer M. Hadley Memorial Bridge]], and is planned to be extended to Snoqualmie.<ref>{{cite press release |date=March 22, 2024 |title=$6.6 million state funding for Mountains to Sound Greenway in Bellevue |url=https://bellevuewa.gov/city-news/state-funding-mountains-to-sound |publisher=City of Bellevue |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=December 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241204174855/https://bellevuewa.gov/city-news/state-funding-mountains-to-sound |url-status=live }}</ref> Other non-motorized paths include the [[Overlook Walk]], which opened in 2024 to connect Pike Place Market to the downtown waterfront via a set of overpasses that integrate with an expansion of the Seattle Aquarium.<ref>{{cite news |last=McCullough |first=Sarah-Mae |date=September 25, 2024 |title=Seattle's new downtown park connects the waterfront to Pike Place Market |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/life/seattles-new-downtown-park-connects-the-waterfront-to-pike-place-market/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=December 2, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202202109/https://www.seattletimes.com/life/seattles-new-downtown-park-connects-the-waterfront-to-pike-place-market/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Also popular among Seattle residents are hikes and skiing in the nearby Cascade or Olympic Mountains and kayaking and sailing in the region's waterways.<ref>{{cite news |last=Cantwell |first=Brian J. |date=June 13, 2017 |title=Seattle makes Outside magazine's 25 'best-towns ever' list (and here's the rest) |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/life/outdoors/seattle-makes-outside-magazines-25-best-towns-ever-list-and-heres-the-rest/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 20, 2024 |archive-date=December 1, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241201213205/https://www.seattletimes.com/life/outdoors/seattle-makes-outside-magazines-25-best-towns-ever-list-and-heres-the-rest/ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=November 2024}}

==Government and politics==
{{main|Government and politics of Seattle|Mayor of Seattle|Seattle City Council}}

[[File:Seattle City Council District map.png|thumb|[[Seattle City Council]] consists of two at-large positions and seven district seats representing the areas shown from 2016 to 2023.]]
Seattle is a [[charter city]], with a [[Mayor–council government|mayor–council form of government]]. From 1911 to 2013, Seattle's nine city councillors were elected at large, rather than by geographic subdivisions.<ref name="archive-chrono">{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/Facts/councilchron.htm |title=Seattle City Council Members, 1869–present Chronological Listing |publisher=Seattle City Archives |access-date=July 19, 2008 |archive-date=September 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921060143/http://www.seattle.gov/CityArchives/Facts/councilchron.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> For the 2015 election, this changed to a hybrid system of seven district members and two at-large members as a result of a ballot measure passed on November 5, 2013. The only other elected offices are the [[district attorney|city attorney]] and Municipal Court judges. All city offices are officially [[Non-partisan democracy|non-partisan]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.ci.seattle.wa.us/ethics/votersguide.asp?e=20071106&p=01_03 |title=Seattle Form of Government |publisher=City of Seattle |author=Ethics and Elections Commission |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-date=June 15, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615142613/http://www2.ci.seattle.wa.us/ethics/vg/20071106.asp?e=20071106 |url-status=live }}</ref> Like some other parts of the United States, government and laws are also run by a series of ballot initiatives (allowing citizens to pass or reject laws), referendums (allowing citizens to approve or reject legislation already passed), and propositions (allowing specific government agencies to propose new laws or tax increases directly to the people).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/seattle-facts/ballot-initiatives |title=Ballot Initiatives - CityArchives |access-date=January 15, 2024 |archive-date=January 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240115025109/https://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/seattle-facts/ballot-initiatives |url-status=live }}</ref>

Seattle is widely considered one of the most socially liberal cities in the United States.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/565550-rapid-change-churns-seattle-creating-political-turmoil/ |title=Angst grips America's most liberal city |work=The Hill |date=July 30, 2021 |access-date=January 15, 2024 |author-last1=Wilson|author-first1=Reid |archive-date=January 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240115184507/https://thehill.com/policy/equilibrium-sustainability/565550-rapid-change-churns-seattle-creating-political-turmoil/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In the 2012 U.S. general election, a majority of Seattleites voted to approve Referendum 74 and legalize gay marriage in Washington state.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://theseattlelesbian.com/washington-state-referendum-74-passage-voter-map/ |work=The Seattle Lesbian |title=Washington State Referendum 74 Passage Voter Map |date=December 11, 2002 |access-date=February 17, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110161155/http://theseattlelesbian.com/washington-state-referendum-74-passage-voter-map/ |archive-date=November 10, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In the same election, an overwhelming majority of Seattleites also voted to approve the legalization of the recreational use of [[cannabis (drug)|cannabis]] in the state.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://blogs.seattletimes.com/politicsnorthwest/2012/12/03/marijuana-initiative-wildly-popular-in-seattle-eastside-2/ |work=The Seattle Times |title=Marijuana initiative wildly popular in Seattle & Eastside |date=December 3, 2012 |access-date=February 17, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130127235529/http://blogs.seattletimes.com/politicsnorthwest/2012/12/03/marijuana-initiative-wildly-popular-in-seattle-eastside-2/ |archive-date=January 27, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Like much of the [[Pacific Northwest]] (which has the lowest rate of [[church attendance]] in the United States and consistently reports the highest percentage of [[atheism]]<ref>{{cite book |first1=Patricia O'Connell |last1=Killen |first2=Mark |last2=Silk |title=Religion and Public Life in the Pacific Northwest |publisher=AltaMira Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-7591-0624-6 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/2002/2002-03-07-no-religion.htm |work=USA Today |title=Charting the unchurched in America |date=March 7, 2002 |access-date=May 23, 2010 |archive-date=May 23, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523203148/http://www.usatoday.com/life/2002/2002-03-07-no-religion.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>), church attendance, religious belief, and political influence of religious leaders are much lower than in other parts of America.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20121005071548/http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_prac2.htm Religious identification in the U.S]}}. Religioustolerance.org. Retrieved December 30, 2011.</ref> Seattle's political culture is very liberal and [[Progressivism in the United States|progressive]] for the United States, with over 80% of the population voting for the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]]. All precincts in Seattle voted for Democratic Party candidate [[Barack Obama]] in the [[2012 United States presidential election|2012 presidential election]].<ref name=Liberal>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/local/236320_liberal12.html |title=Where have Seattle's lefties gone? |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Neil |author-last1=Modie |date=August 15, 2005 |access-date=September 28, 2007 |archive-date=May 14, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514224718/http://seattlepi.com/local/236320_liberal12.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> In partisan elections for the [[Washington State Legislature]] and [[United States Congress]], nearly all elections are won by Democrats. Although local elections are nonpartisan, most of the city's elected officials are known to be Democrats, the most notable exception being [[Seattle City Attorney]] [[Ann Davison (politician)|Ann Davison]].{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}

In 1926, Seattle became the first major American city to elect a female mayor, [[Bertha Knight Landes]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/exhibits/women/panel5.htm |title=Mayor Bertha Knight Landes |publisher=City of Seattle |author=Office of the City Clerk |access-date=November 28, 2013 |archive-date=September 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907224755/https://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives/exhibits-and-education/online-exhibits/women-in-city-government/pioneers-in-city-government |url-status=live }}</ref> It has also elected an openly gay mayor, [[Ed Murray (Washington politician)|Ed Murray]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.komonews.com/news/local/McGinn-concedes-to-Seattles-next-mayor-Ed-Murray-231018811.html |title=McGinn concedes election to Seattle's mayor-elect Ed Murray |publisher=KOMO News |agency=Associated Press |access-date=November 28, 2013 |archive-date=September 25, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925112611/http://www.komonews.com/news/local/McGinn-concedes-to-Seattles-next-mayor-Ed-Murray-231018811.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> and a third-party socialist councillor, [[Kshama Sawant]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2022333916_sawantplansxml.html |title=Socialist Sawant ready to shake up Seattle City Council |work=The Seattle Times |author-first1=Emily |author-last1=Heffter |access-date=November 28, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131128080849/http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2022333916_sawantplansxml.html |archive-date=November 28, 2013 }}</ref> For the first time in United States history, an openly gay black woman was elected to public office when Sherry Harris was elected as a Seattle city councilor in 1991.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/out-and-elected/1991/sherry-harris |title=Out and Elected in the USA: 1974–2004 |publisher=OutHistory.org |author-first1=Sherry |author-last1=Harris |access-date=November 14, 2015 |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117033831/http://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/out-and-elected/1991/sherry-harris |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.blackpast.org/aaw/harris-sherry-d-1957 |title=Harris, Sherry D. (1957– ) |publisher=BlackPast.org |author-first1=Tisa M. |author-last1=Anders |date=March 29, 2013 |access-date=November 14, 2015 |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117064223/http://www.blackpast.org/aaw/harris-sherry-d-1957 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2015, the majority of the city council was female.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-city-council |title=Seattle City Council to be younger, more female, diverse |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 12, 2015 |archive-date=December 9, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151209132739/http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-city-council/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Katie Wilson]] was elected as mayor in the [[2025 Seattle mayoral election|2025 mayoral election]], by a margin of 2,000 votes, and defeated incumbent [[Bruce Harrell]]. She took office on January 1, 2026, becoming the third woman to serve as mayor.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Yoon-Hendricks |first1=Alexandra |last2=Kroman |first2=David |date=January 2, 2026 |title=Katie Wilson sworn in as Seattle mayor: 'This is your city' |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/katie-wilson-sworn-in-as-seattle-mayor-this-is-your-city/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=January 2, 2026}}</ref> The mayor's office also includes three [[deputy mayor]]s, appointed to advise the mayor on policies.

In 2023, the city council voted to ban [[Caste discrimination in the United States|caste discrimination]] as part of the city's anti-discrimination laws. The ban is the first in the United States.<ref>{{cite news |title=Seattle becomes first U.S. city to ban caste discrimination |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/seattle-becomes-first-us-city-ban-caste-discrimination-rcna71709 |access-date=July 2, 2023 |work=NBC News |agency=The Associated Press |date=February 21, 2023 |archive-date=July 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702200603/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/seattle-becomes-first-us-city-ban-caste-discrimination-rcna71709 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Seattle lies within four districts on the [[King County Council]]: the 1st district includes the northeastern corner of the city; the 2nd district generally covers areas east of [[Interstate 5 in Washington|Interstate 5]] and south of Northeast 65th Street; the 4th district consists of the northwestern neighborhoods of Ballard, Fremont, Magnolia, and Queen Anne; and the 8th district includes Downtown Seattle, First Hill, SODO, and West Seattle.<ref>{{cite map |date=January 2022 |title=2022 Metropolitan King County Council Districts |url=https://kingcounty.gov/en/legacy/depts/elections/elections/-/media/depts/elections/elections/maps/county-council-district-maps/county-council-districts-2022.ashx |publisher=King County Elections |access-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116080616/https://kingcounty.gov/en/legacy/depts/elections/elections/-/media/depts/elections/elections/maps/county-council-district-maps/county-council-districts-2022.ashx |url-status=live }}</ref> At the state level, Seattle is divided into six districts that each have one [[Washington State Senate|state senator]] and two [[Washington State House of Representatives|state representatives]].<ref>{{cite map |date=February 2022 |title=2022 Legislative Districts |url=https://kingcounty.gov/en/legacy/depts/elections/elections/-/media/depts/elections/elections/maps/legislative-district-maps/legislative-districts-2022.ashx |publisher=King County Elections |access-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116080618/https://kingcounty.gov/en/legacy/depts/elections/elections/-/media/depts/elections/elections/maps/legislative-district-maps/legislative-districts-2022.ashx |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Overview of the Legislative Process |url=https://leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Overview.aspx |publisher=Washington State Legislature |access-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116080616/https://leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Overview.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref>

Federally, Seattle is split between two congressional districts. Most of the city is in [[Washington's 7th congressional district|7th congressional district]],<ref name="King-Congressional">{{cite map |date=February 2022 |title=2022 Congressional Districts |url=https://kingcounty.gov/~/media/depts/elections/elections/maps/congressional-district-map/congressional-districts-2022.ashx?la=en |publisher=King County Elections |access-date=January 15, 2024 |archive-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116074908/https://kingcounty.gov/~/media/depts/elections/elections/maps/congressional-district-map/congressional-districts-2022.ashx?la=en |url-status=live }}</ref> represented by Democrat [[Pramila Jayapal]], the first Indian-American woman elected to Congress. She succeeded 28-year incumbent and fellow Democrat [[Jim McDermott]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Beekman |first1=Daniel |last2=Thompson |first2=Lynn |last3=Rowe |first3=Claudia |date=November 8, 2016 |title=Pramila Jayapal defeats Brady Walkinshaw in Washington's 7th Congressional District |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/us-congress-7th-district-pramila-jayapal-brady-walkinshaw/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=September 13, 2017 |archive-date=November 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115164203/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/us-congress-7th-district-pramila-jayapal-brady-walkinshaw/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Part of southeastern Seattle is in the [[Washington's 9th congressional district|9th congressional district]],<ref name="King-Congressional"/> represented by Democrat [[Adam Smith (Washington politician)|Adam Smith]] since 1997.<ref>{{cite news |last=Brunner |first=Jim |date=December 1, 2023 |title=U.S. Rep. Adam Smith's Bellevue home spray-painted with demands for Gaza cease-fire |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/u-s-rep-adam-smiths-bellevue-home-spray-painted-with-demands-for-gaza-cease-fire/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 15, 2024 |archive-date=January 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116074913/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/u-s-rep-adam-smiths-bellevue-home-spray-painted-with-demands-for-gaza-cease-fire/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The border between the two districts follows the Tukwila city limits around Boeing Field, Interstate 5, South Dearborn Street, 4th Avenue South, James Street, Madison Street, East Union Street, Martin Luther King Jr. Way, and East Yesler Way.<ref name="King-Congressional"/>

==Education==
{{main|Education in Seattle}}

{{Further||List of libraries in Seattle|Seattle Public Schools}}
{{update|section|date=April 2021}}
Of the city's population over the age of 25, 53.8% (vs. a national average of 27.4%) hold a [[bachelor's degree]] or higher, and 91.9% (vs. 84.5% nationally) have a high school diploma or [[General Educational Development|equivalent]]. A 2008 United States Census Bureau survey showed that Seattle had the highest percentage of college and university graduates of any major U.S. city.<ref name="Most Educated City in US">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Ranking/2003/R02T160.htm |title=ACS: Ranking Table – Percent of People 25 Years and Over Who Have Completed a Bachelor's Degree |publisher=United States Census Bureau |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041013165801/http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Ranking/2003/R02T160.htm |archive-date=October 13, 2004 |url-status=dead |access-date=August 27, 2008 }}</ref> The city was listed as the most literate of the country's 69 largest cities in 2005 and 2006, the second most literate in 2007 and the most literate in 2008 in studies conducted by [[Central Connecticut State University]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004095919_literacy28m.html |title=Minneapolis ousts Seattle as most literate city |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Sandi |author-last1=Doughton |date=December 28, 2007 |access-date=December 28, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071231101540/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004095919_literacy28m.html |archive-date=December 31, 2007 }}</ref>

[[Seattle Public Schools]] is the school district for the vast majority of the city.<ref name=KingCoSDMap>{{cite map |author=U.S. Census Bureau Geography Division |date=December 21, 2020 |title=2020 Census – School District Reference Map: King County, WA |page=2 |scale=1:80,000 |url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st53_wa/schooldistrict_maps/c53033_king/DC20SD_C53033.pdf |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |access-date=August 3, 2022 |archive-date=July 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220720214345/https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st53_wa/schooldistrict_maps/c53033_king/DC20SD_C53033.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The school district desegregated without a court order<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/06pdf/05-908.pdf |title=Parents involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 Et Al. |publisher=Supreme Court of the United States |date=June 28, 2007 |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-date=May 31, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100531195839/http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/06pdf/05-908.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> but still struggles to achieve racial balance in a somewhat ethnically divided city (the south part of town having more ethnic minorities than the north).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=3939 |title=Busing in Seattle: A Well-Intentioned Failure |date=September 7, 2002 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Cassandra |author-last1=Tate |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-date=June 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100620023756/http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=3939 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2007, Seattle's racial tie-breaking system was struck down by the [[United States Supreme Court]], but the ruling left the door open for desegregation formulae based on other indicators (e.g., income or socioeconomic class).<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003766015_webrace28m.html |title=High court rejects school integration plans |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=June 28, 2007 |access-date=October 3, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071001163558/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003766015_webrace28m.html |archive-date=October 1, 2007 }}</ref> A small portion of the city's [[Delridge, Seattle|Delridge]] neighborhood lies within the boundaries of the [[Highline School District]].<ref name=KingCoSDMap/>

The public school system is supplemented by a moderate number of private schools: Five of the private high schools are [[Catholic Church|Catholic]], one is [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]], and six are [[secular]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/schoolguide/search.php?search=criteria&grade_low=9&grade_high=12&school_city=Seattle&district_id=&school_zip=ZIP+code&pl_code%5B%5D=P |title=School Guide |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-date=May 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513162735/http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/schoolguide/search.php?search=criteria&grade_low=9&grade_high=12&school_city=Seattle&district_id=&school_zip=ZIP+code&pl_code%5B%5D=P |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[File:University of Washington Quad, Spring 2007.jpg|thumb|[[University of Washington]] Quad|alt=University of Washington Quad]]
Seattle is home to the [[University of Washington]] and its professional and continuing education unit, the [[Continuum College|University of Washington Continuum College]]. In 2017, ''[[U.S. News & World Report]]'' ranked the University of Washington eleventh in the world.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/rankings?page=2 |title=Best Global University Rankings |publisher=U.S. News & World Report |date=September 8, 2017 |access-date=September 9, 2017 |archive-date=October 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161022072052/http://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/rankings?page=2 |url-status=live }}</ref> The UW receives more federal research and development funding than any public institution. Over the last 10 years, it has also produced more [[Peace Corps]] volunteers than any other U.S. university.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://opb.washington.edu/sites/default/files/opb/Data/2017_Fast_Facts.pdf |title=Fast Facts 2017 |publisher=University of Washington |access-date=August 20, 2019 |archive-date=November 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191101220605/http://opb.washington.edu/sites/default/files/opb/Data/2017_Fast_Facts.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Seattle also has a number of smaller private universities, including [[Seattle University]] and [[Seattle Pacific University]], the former a Jesuit Catholic institution, the latter a Free Methodist institution. The [[Seattle Colleges District]] operates three colleges: [[North Seattle College]], [[Seattle Central College]], and [[South Seattle College]]. Universities aimed at the working adult are the [[City University of Seattle|City University]] and [[Antioch University]]. Seminaries include [[Western Seminary]] and a number of arts colleges, such as [[Cornish College of the Arts]], [[Pratt Fine Arts Center]]. In 2001, ''Time'' magazine selected Seattle Central Community College as community college of the year, saying that the school "pushes diverse students to work together in small teams."<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1000725,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071102054331/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1000725,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 2, 2007 |magazine=Time |title=Seattle Central |date=September 10, 2001 |access-date=September 28, 2007 |author-first1=Andrew |author-last1=Goldstein }}</ref>

==Media==
{{main|Media in Seattle}}

''[[The Seattle Times]]'' is the lone daily newspaper in the city and was founded in 1896; it is one of the few remaining family-owned major newspapers in the United States.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pérez-Peña |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Pérez-Peña |date=August 9, 2009 |title=Seattle Paper Is Resurgent as a Solo Act |page=B1 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/10/business/media/10seattle.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> The ''[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]]'', known as the ''P-I'', published a daily newspaper from 1863 to March 17, 2009, before switching to a strictly online publication.<ref>{{cite web |last=Tate |first=Cassandra |date=March 16, 2009 |title=Seattle Post-Intelligencer (1863-2009) |url=https://www.historylink.org/file/8956 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> Other daily newspapers in the city include the business publication ''[[Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce]]'' and the University of Washington's student-run newspaper ''[[The Daily of the University of Washington|The Daily]]''.<ref name="AP-Papers">{{cite news |last=Johnson |first=Gene |date=March 14, 2009 |title=Seattle Times still standing, but for how long? |url=https://tdn.com/news/seattle-times-still-standing-but-for-how-long/article_d299c9b9-256a-5e55-98a7-61bb2d6490a4.html |work=[[The Daily News (Longview, Washington)|The Daily News]] |location=Longview, Washington |agency=Associated Press |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> The most prominent weeklies are the ''[[Seattle Weekly]]'' and ''[[The Stranger (newspaper)|The Stranger]]''; both consider themselves [[alternative newspaper|"alternative" papers]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattlepi.com/local/281567_seaweekly17.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120717040620/http://seattlepi.com/local/281567_seaweekly17.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 17, 2012 |title=A new history at Seattle Weekly |newspaper=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |author-first1=Mike |author-last1=Lewis |date=August 17, 2006 |access-date=October 28, 2007 }}</ref> The weekly LGBT newspaper is the ''[[Seattle Gay News]]''. ''[[Real Change]]'' is a weekly [[street newspaper]] that is sold mainly by [[homeless]] persons as an alternative to [[begging|panhandling]]. There are also several ethnic newspapers, including ''[[The Facts (Seattle)|The Facts]]'', ''[[Northwest Asian Weekly]]'' and the ''[[International Examiner]]''.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}} Several Seattle neighborhoods had weekly publications, including the ''[[Ballard News-Tribune]]'', ''[[Capitol Hill Times]]'', and ''[[West Seattle Herald]]'', that were shut down in the early 21st century; hyperlocal neighborhood blogs have emerged as an alternative to these weeklies.<ref>{{cite news |last=Westneat |first=Dany |date=April 24, 2021 |title=Stopping the presses, again: The story ends for 2 more century-old Seattle newspapers |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/stopping-the-presses-again-the-story-ends-for-two-more-century-old-seattle-newspapers/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref>

Seattle is also well served by television and radio, with all major U.S. networks represented, along with at least five other English-language stations and two Spanish-language stations.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/ZCGrid.do?method=decideFwdForLineup&zipcode=98101&setMyPreference=false&lineupId=PC:98101&aid=zap2it |title=TV Listings (Zip Code 98101) |publisher=Zap2It |access-date=August 25, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116003608/http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/ZCGrid.do?method=decideFwdForLineup&zipcode=98101&setMyPreference=false&lineupId=PC:98101&aid=zap2it |archive-date=January 16, 2013 }}</ref> Seattle cable viewers also receive [[CBUT]] 2 ([[CBC Television|CBC]]) from [[Vancouver]], British Columbia.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}

[[Non-commercial]] radio stations include [[NPR]] member stations [[KUOW-FM]] 94.9 and [[KNKX]] 88.5 (Tacoma), as well as [[classical music]] station [[KING-FM]] 98.1. Other non-commercial stations include [[KEXP-FM]] 90.3 (affiliated with the UW), [[community radio]] [[KBCS-FM]] 91.3 (affiliated with [[Bellevue College]]), and [[high school radio]] [[KNHC-FM]] 89.5, which broadcasts an [[electronic dance music]] [[radio format]], is owned by the public school system and operated by students of [[Nathan Hale High School (Washington)|Nathan Hale High School]]. Many Seattle radio stations are available through [[Internet radio]], with KEXP in particular being a pioneer of Internet radio.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003686534_brier30.html |title=At KEXP, technology and music embrace |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Brier |author-last1=Dudley |date=April 30, 2007 |access-date=October 21, 2007 |archive-date=November 14, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071114221253/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003686534_brier30.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Seattle also has numerous commercial radio stations. In a March 2012 report by the consumer research firm [[Arbitron]], the top FM stations were [[KRWM]] ([[adult contemporary]] format), [[KIRO-FM]] ([[news/talk]]), and [[KISW]] ([[active rock]]) while the top AM stations were [[KNWN (AM)|KNWN (Formerly KOMO)]] ([[all news]]), [[KJR (AM)]] ([[sports radio|all sports]]), [[KIRO (AM)]] (all sports).<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/musicnightlife/2017910843_radio08.html |title=KRWM edges out KIRO in March Seattle radio rankings |author-first1=Celina |author-last1=Kareiva |date=April 8, 2012 |newspaper=The Seattle Times |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509162553/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/musicnightlife/2017910843_radio08.html |archive-date=May 9, 2012 }}</ref>

==Infrastructure==
===Health systems===
{{main|Medical facilities of Seattle}}

[[File:Seattle_Children's_hospital,_2014-10-13.jpg|thumb|[[Seattle Children's]] in [[Laurelhurst, Seattle|Laurelhurst]]]]

The University of Washington is consistently ranked among the country's leading institutions in medical research, earning special merits for programs in neurology and neurosurgery. The university-run [[UW Medicine]] system encompasses several major local hospitals, including [[Harborview Medical Center]], the public county hospital and the only Level I [[trauma center|trauma hospital]] for Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uwmedicine.org/Facilities/Harborview/CentersOfEmphasis/Trauma/ |title=Trauma Center |publisher=UW Medicine |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071024055225/http://www.uwmedicine.org/Facilities/Harborview/CentersOfEmphasis/Trauma/ |archive-date=October 24, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Harborview and two other major hospitals—[[Virginia Mason Medical Center]] and [[Swedish Medical Center]]—are located on First Hill, which is nicknamed "Pill Hill" for its concentration of medical facilities.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002445189_virginiamason19.html |title=Pill Hill property sells for a bundle |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |author-first1=Tom |author-last1=Boyer |date=August 19, 2005 |access-date=October 3, 2007 }}</ref>

Located in the [[Laurelhurst, Seattle|Laurelhurst]] neighborhood, [[Seattle Children's]], formerly [[Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center]], is the pediatric referral center for Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho. The [[Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center]] has a campus in the Eastlake neighborhood. The University District is home to the [[University of Washington Medical Center]] which, along with Harborview, is operated by the University of Washington. Seattle is also served by a [[United States Department of Veterans Affairs|Veterans Affairs]] hospital on [[Beacon Hill, Seattle|Beacon Hill]], a third campus of Swedish in Ballard, and [[UW Medical Center - Northwest]] near [[Northgate Station (shopping mall)|Northgate Station]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wsha.org/members/uw-medicinenorthwest-hospital-medical-center/ |title=UW Medicine – UW Medical Center Northwest |website=wsha.org |date=August 10, 2015 |publisher=Washington State Hospital Association |access-date=December 11, 2022 }}</ref>

Seattle has seen local developments of modern paramedic services with the establishment of [[Medic One]] in 1970.<ref name=cobb>{{cite web |url=http://depts.washington.edu/mednews/vol6/no33/cobb.html |title=Cobb honored as one of 'Resuscitation Greats' |publisher=UW School of Medicine Online News |date=August 16, 2002 |access-date=September 29, 2007 }}</ref> In 1974, a ''[[60 Minutes]]'' story on the success of the then four-year-old Medic One paramedic system called Seattle "the best place in the world to have a heart attack."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metrokc.gov/health/medicone/history.htm |title=King County Medic One: A History of Excellence |publisher=King County |date=March 29, 2007 |access-date=October 3, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070707064715/http://www.metrokc.gov/health/medicone/history.htm |archive-date=July 7, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The city also has several [[pharmacy]] chains; these include [[Walgreens]], and formerly [[Bartell Drugs]], which was family-run in Seattle until its acquisition by [[Rite Aid]] in 2020 and then closed in 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Times |first=economics for The Seattle |date=2025-06-20 |title=It's official: Bartell Drugs going away as CVS rebrands remaining stores |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/its-official-bartell-drugs-going-away-as-cvs-rebrands-remaining-stores/ |access-date=2025-10-24 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-09-29 |title=Bartell Drugs closes for good |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/everything-must-go-seattles-135-year-old-bartell-drugs-fades-away/ |access-date=2025-10-24 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}</ref> {{As of|2024}}, Seattle lacks a 24-hour retail pharmacy due to the closure of locations across several chains.<ref>{{cite news |last=Talton |first=Jon |date=March 1, 2024 |title=The loss of Bartell Drugs is part of a national pharmacy crisis |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/the-loss-of-bartell-drugs-is-part-of-a-national-pharmacy-crisis/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=June 25, 2024 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Aspan |first=Maria |date=June 3, 2024 |title=A crisis is hitting your local drugstore. Why the slow demise of a 130-year-old family-owned pharmacy chain spells disaster for consumers |url=https://fortune.com/2024/06/03/rite-aid-pharmacy-bartells-health-care-retail/ |work=[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]] |url-access=subscription |access-date=June 25, 2024 }}</ref>

===Transportation===
{{main|Transportation in Seattle}}

{{further|Street layout of Seattle}}
{{see also|List of bridges in Seattle}}
[[File:Seattle I-5 skyline dllu.jpg|thumb|[[Interstate 5 in Washington|Interstate 5]] passing through downtown Seattle]]
[[File:King County Water Taxi Downtown Seattle.jpg|thumb|[[King County Water Taxi]] and downtown Seattle]]
[[File:Link trains at University St station in 2010.jpg|thumb|[[1 Line (Sound Transit)|1 Line]] light rail trains in the [[Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel]] at [[University Street (Link station)|University Street Station]]]]
[[File:King_Street_Station_from_CenturyLink_Field_(18065470218).jpg|thumb|upright|[[King Street Station]], the 15th-busiest [[Amtrak]] station in the nation, also serves commuter trains.]]
The [[Seattle Street Railway|first streetcars]] appeared in 1889 and were instrumental in the creation of a relatively well-defined downtown and strong neighborhoods at the end of their lines. The advent of the automobile began the dismantling of rail in Seattle. Tacoma–Seattle railway service ended in 1929 and the Everett–Seattle service came to an end in 1939, replaced by automobiles running on the recently developed highway system. Rails on city streets were paved over or removed, and the opening of the [[Trolleybuses in Seattle|Seattle trolleybus system]] brought the end of [[Seattle Street Railway|streetcars in Seattle]] in 1941. This left an extensive network of privately owned buses (later public) as the only mass transit within the city and throughout the region.<ref name="interurbanrail">{{cite news |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=2667 |title=Interurban Rail Transit in King County and the Puget Sound Region – A Snapshot History |date=September 19, 2000 |publisher=HistoryLink.org |author-first1=Walt |author-last1=Crowley |access-date=September 29, 2007 }}</ref>

[[King County Metro]] provides regular bus service in the city and county, and the [[South Lake Union Streetcar]] line and the [[First Hill Streetcar]] line.<ref name=slustreetcar>{{cite web |url=http://www.ci.seattle.wa.us/transportation/slustreetcar.htm |title=The South Lake Union Streetcar |publisher=Seattle Department of Transportation |access-date=September 29, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929095905/http://www.ci.seattle.wa.us/transportation/slustreetcar.htm |archive-date=September 29, 2007 }}</ref> Seattle is one of the few cities in North America whose bus fleet includes electric trolleybuses. [[Sound Transit]] provides an express bus service within the metropolitan area, two [[Sounder commuter rail]] lines between the suburbs and downtown, and its [[1 Line (Sound Transit)|1 Line]] [[light rail]] line between [[Northgate, Seattle|Northgate]] and Angle Lake.<ref>{{cite web |title=New to Sound Transit? |url=https://www.soundtransit.org/ride-with-us/know-before-you-go/new-to-sound-transit |publisher=Sound Transit |access-date=December 31, 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=1 Line - Northgate - Angle Lake |url=https://www.soundtransit.org/ride-with-us/routes-schedules/1-line |publisher=Sound Transit |access-date=December 27, 2023 }}</ref> [[Washington State Ferries]], which manages the largest network of ferries in the United States and third-largest in the world, connects Seattle to [[Bainbridge Island, Washington|Bainbridge]] and [[Vashon, Washington|Vashon Islands]] in Puget Sound and to Bremerton and [[Southworth, Washington|Southworth]] on the Kitsap Peninsula.<ref name=ferries>{{cite web |url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/your_wsf/index.cfm?fuseaction=our_history |title=History |publisher=Washington State Department of Transit |access-date=September 29, 2007 |archive-date=October 12, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012062424/http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Ferries/yourwsf/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[King Street Station]] in Pioneer Square serves [[Amtrak]] intercity trains and Sounder commuter trains, and is located adjacent to the [[International District/Chinatown station|International District/Chinatown light rail station]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Lindblom |first=Mike |date=May 28, 2019 |title=Chinatown International District wary of Sound Transit plans for a second light-rail station there |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/chinatown-international-district-wary-as-sound-transit-plans-a-second-light-rail-station-there/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 20, 2020 }}</ref>

According to the 2007 [[American Community Survey]], 18.6% of Seattle residents used one of the three public transit systems that serve the city, giving it the highest transit ridership of all major cities without heavy or light rail prior to the completion of Sound Transit's 1 Line.<ref>{{cite news |title=New Yorkers are Top Transit Users |publisher=CNNMoney.com |url=https://money.cnn.com/2007/06/13/real_estate/public_transit_commutes/index.htm |author-first1=Les |author-last1=Christie |date=June 29, 2007 |access-date=August 17, 2008 |archive-date=June 17, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070617043812/http://money.cnn.com/2007/06/13/real_estate/public_transit_commutes/index.htm |dead-url=yes }}</ref> The city has also been described by [[Bert Sperling]] as the fourth most walkable U.S. city and by [[Walk Score]] as the sixth most walkable of the fifty largest U.S. cities.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Cindy Perman |title=Most Walkable Cities |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2011/04/19/Most-Walkable-Cities.html |website=CNBC |access-date=August 28, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150203040628/https://www.cnbc.com/id/42668491/Most_Walkable_Cities?slide=8 |archive-date=February 3, 2015 |url-status=live |date=April 19, 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.walkscore.com/rankings/ |title=2011 City and Neighborhood Rankings |publisher=Walk Score |access-date=August 24, 2012 }}</ref>

[[Seattle–Tacoma International Airport]], locally known as Sea-Tac Airport and located just south in the neighboring city of SeaTac, is operated by the Port of Seattle and provides commercial air service to destinations throughout the world. Closer to downtown, [[Boeing Field]] is used for general aviation, cargo flights, and testing/delivery of Boeing airliners. A secondary passenger airport, [[Paine Field]], opened in 2019 and is located in [[Everett, Washington|Everett]], {{convert|25|mi|km}} north of Seattle. It is predominantly used by Boeing and their [[Boeing Everett Factory|large assembly plant]] located nearby.<ref>{{cite news |last=Blethen |first=Ryan |date=March 4, 2019 |title=How the first day of commercial flights from Paine Field went |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/life/travel/first-commercial-flight-to-take-off-from-everetts-paine-field-today/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 8, 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Baskas |first=Harriet |date=February 27, 2019 |title=Paine Field: What to expect when 'Seattle's second airport' opens March 4 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/2019/02/27/paine-field-seattle-airport/3003698002/ |work=USA Today |access-date=March 8, 2019 }}</ref>

The main mode of transportation, however, is the street system, which is laid out in a [[cardinal direction]]s [[grid plan|grid pattern]], except in the central business district where early city leaders [[Arthur A. Denny|Arthur Denny]] and [[Carson Boren]] insisted on orienting the plats relative to the shoreline rather than to true north.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=315 |title=Maynard, Dr. David Swinson (1808–1873) |date=November 10, 1998 |publisher=HistoryLink |author-first1=Junius |author-last1=Rochester |access-date=October 3, 2007 }}</ref> The city's topography, formed by the recession of glaciers, created north–south troughs that did not allow east–west streets to be continuous;<ref>{{cite news |last1=Chamberlain Gomez |first1=Caroline |last2=Wang |first2=Deborah |date=May 16, 2019 |title=Why is Seattle's street grid such a disaster? |url=https://www.kuow.org/stories/why-is-seattle-s-street-grid-such-a-disaster |publisher=KUOW |access-date=November 3, 2024 }}</ref> only [[Madison Street (Seattle)|Madison Street]] runs uninterrupted from Elliott Bay to Lake Washington.<ref>{{cite news |last=McDermott |first=Terry |date=December 13, 1992 |title=Life on East Madison |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19921213/1529833/life-on-east-madison----giving-ground |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 3, 2024 }}</ref> Only two roads, [[Interstate 5 in Washington|Interstate 5]] and [[Washington State Route 99|State Route 99]] (both limited-access highways) run uninterrupted through the city from north to south. From 1953 to 2019, State Route 99 ran through downtown Seattle on the [[Alaskan Way Viaduct]], an elevated freeway on the waterfront. However, due to damage sustained during the 2001 Nisqually earthquake the viaduct was replaced by a tunnel. The {{convert|2|mi|adj=on}} [[Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement tunnel]] was originally scheduled to be completed in December 2015 at a cost of US$4.25 billion. The world's largest [[tunnel boring machine]], named "[[Bertha (tunnel boring machine)|Bertha]]", was commissioned for the project, measuring {{convert|57|ft}} in diameter. The tunnel's opening was delayed to February 2019 due to issues with the machine, which included a two-year halt in excavation.<ref>{{cite news |last=McNerthney |first=Casey |date=January 10, 2020 |title=Seattle's State Route 99 Tunnel opens to traffic on February 4, 2019. |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/20945 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=April 26, 2020 }}</ref> Seattle has the 8th-worst traffic congestion of all American cities, and ranks 10th among all North American cities according to [[Inrix]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://scorecard.inrix.com/scorecard/default.asp |title=INRIX Traffic Scorecard |date=April 28, 2013 }}</ref>

The city has started moving away from the automobile and toward mass transit. From 2004 to 2009, the annual number of unlinked public transportation trips increased by approximately 21%.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.apta.com/resources/statistics/Documents/FactBook/APTA_2006_Fact_Book.pdf |title=Public Transportation Fact Book |page=14 |edition=57th |date=April 2006 |publisher=American Public Transportation Association |access-date=August 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/6AaEgJShe?url=http://www.apta.com/resources/statistics/Documents/FactBook/APTA_2006_Fact_Book.pdf |archive-date=September 10, 2012 |url-status=dead}}<br />{{cite book |url=http://www.apta.com/resources/statistics/Documents/FactBook/APTA_2011_Fact_Book.pdf |title=Public Transportation Fact Book |page=9 |edition=62nd |date=April 2011 |publisher=American Public Transportation Association |access-date=August 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120913193705/http://www.apta.com/resources/statistics/Documents/FactBook/APTA_2011_Fact_Book.pdf |archive-date=September 13, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2006, voters in King County passed the Transit Now proposition, which increased bus service hours on high ridership routes and paid for five [[limited-stop]] bus lines called [[RapidRide]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/metrotransit/transitnow.aspx |title=Transit Now |publisher=King County Department of Transportation |access-date=December 30, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111230042932/http://www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/metrotransit/transitnow.aspx |archive-date=December 30, 2011 }}</ref> After rejecting a [[Roads and Transit|roads and transit measure]] in 2007, Seattle-area voters passed a transit only measure in 2008 to increase ST Express bus service, extend the [[Link light rail]] system, and expand and improve [[Sounder commuter rail]] service.<ref>{{cite web |last=Cohen |first=Josh |date=November 28, 2017 |title=Sound Transit (King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties) |url=https://www.historylink.org/file/8002 |work=HistoryLink |access-date=February 26, 2024 }}</ref>

A [[Link light rail]] line (now the [[1 Line (Sound Transit)|1&nbsp;Line]]) from downtown heading south to Sea-Tac Airport began service in 2009, giving the city its first rapid transit line with intermediate stations within the city limits. The line was first extended north to the [[University of Washington]] in March 2016,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/capitol-hill-uw-light-rail-stations-open/ |title=Capitol Hill, UW light-rail stations open to big crowds |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=March 19, 2016 |access-date=March 20, 2016 }}</ref> followed by [[Northgate, Seattle|Northgate]] in October 2021,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lindblom |first1=Mike |last2=Baruchman |first2=Michelle |date=October 2, 2021 |title=New light-rail stations now open at U District, Roosevelt and Northgate |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/new-light-rail-stations-now-open-at-u-district-roosevelt-and-northgate/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=December 1, 2021 }}</ref> and [[Lynnwood, Washington|Lynnwood]] in August 2024.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Deshais |first1=Nicholas |last2=Lindblom |first2=Mike |date=August 30, 2024 |title=New light rail stations draw big crowds for first trips |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/new-light-rail-stations-draw-big-crowds-for-first-trips/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=November 3, 2024 }}</ref> A second line, the [[2 Line (Sound Transit)|2 Line]] opened in April 2024 between [[Bellevue, Washington|Bellevue]] and [[Redmond, Washington|Redmond]]; it is planned to be extended into Seattle via the Interstate 90 floating bridge in early 2026.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lindblom |first1=Mike |last2=Kroman |first2=David |date=April 27, 2024 |title=Eastside light rail line opens as huge crowds try out the ride |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/eastside-light-rail-line-opens-as-huge-crowds-try-out-the-ride/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=October 13, 2024 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Packer |first1=Ryan |title=Sound Transit 2 Line Testing Enters a New, More Visible Phase » The Urbanist |url=https://www.theurbanist.org/2025/11/20/sound-transit-2-line-testing-enters-a-new-more-visible-phase/ |access-date=1 December 2025 |date=20 November 2025}}</ref> Voters in the Puget Sound region approved an additional tax increase, part of the [[Sound Transit 3]] package, in November 2016 to expand light rail to West Seattle and Ballard as well as Tacoma, Everett, and Issaquah.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/sound-transit-3-wins-despite-rejection-from-pierce-county/ |title=Sound Transit 3 wins, despite rejection from Pierce County |work=The Seattle Times |date=November 9, 2016 |access-date=December 22, 2016 }}</ref>

Seattle has scooter and [[bicycle-sharing system]]s operated by private companies ([[Bird Global|Bird]] and [[Lime (transportation company)|Lime]]) who cooperate with the city government.<ref>{{cite web |title=How to Use Scooter Share and Bike Share |url=https://www.seattle.gov/transportation/projects-and-programs/programs/bike-program/how-to-use-scooter-share-and-bike-share |publisher=Seattle Department of Transportation |accessdate=July 6, 2025}}</ref> A docked bikeshare system, [[Pronto Cycle Share]], debuted in 2014 but was shut down in 2017 due to low ridership numbers.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gutman |first=David |date=March 28, 2017 |title=Seattle's Pronto bike share shut down on March 31 |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/seattle-pronto-bike-share-shutting-down-friday/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=July 6, 2025}}</ref> Later that year, the city government allowed privately operated [[dockless bicycle]]s to operate within Seattle as a pilot.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gutman |first=David |date=May 3, 2018 |title=Seattle still using bike shares, but we're not big fans in bad weather, new data shows |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/seattle-still-using-bike-shares-but-were-not-big-fans-in-bad-weather-new-data-shows/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=July 6, 2025}}</ref> It was later made a permanent program with several competing companies; one used bikes with [[Bicycle gearing|gears]] specifically chosen for [[Seven hills of Seattle|Seattle's hilly terrain]].<ref name="auto"/> Later developments included using exclusively [[Electric bicycle|e-bikes]] and [[Motorized scooter|e-scooters]].{{citation needed|date=July 2025}} A city-operated site tracks ridership.{{efn|The micromobility vendors are required to share ride date with the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT). This data is aggregated into a dashboard which provides data about trips, deployment, equity area deployment, relative ridership heat maps, and unique ridership.<ref name=SeattleDataDashboard>{{cite web|accessdate=July 5, 2025 |url=https://www.seattle.gov/transportation/projects-and-programs/programs/new-mobility-program/scooter-bike-share-data|title=Data Dashboard|work=Scooter and Bike Share - Data and Permit Information|publisher=Seattle Department of Transportation}}</ref>}} In 2024, a total of 6.3 million trips on bikeshare and scootershare systems were taken in Seattle; there were also 163 serious injuries that year involving bikes and scooters.<ref>{{cite news |last=Nelson |first=Jim |date=May 30, 2025 |title=Seattle becomes first city to launch 'LimeGlider,' the company's new seated scooter |url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/seattle-first-city-launch-limeglider/281-bffad889-dd26-4f71-8e12-554915381e93 |publisher=KING 5 News |accessdate=July 6, 2025}}</ref>

===Utilities===
{{main|Utilities of Seattle}}

Water and electric power are municipal services, provided by [[Seattle Public Utilities]] and [[Seattle City Light]], respectively.<ref>{{cite news |last=Beekman |first=Daniel |date=September 3, 2024 |title=Seattle council approves rate-hike plans for utilities, electricity |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seattle-council-approves-rate-hike-plans-for-utilities-electricity/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> Private utility companies serving Seattle include [[Puget Sound Energy]], which has 150,000 [[natural gas]] customers in the city,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bernton |first1=Hal |last2=Gutman |first2=David |date=February 1, 2021 |title=Seattle City Council passes measure to end most natural gas use in commercial buildings and some apartments |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/seattle-city-council-passes-measure-to-end-most-natural-gas-use-in-commercial-buildings-and-some-apartments/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> and [[Seattle Steam Company]], which has a [[district heating]] system in Downtown Seattle powered by several steam plants.<ref>{{cite news |last=Stiles |first=Marc |date=April 23, 2023 |title=Powers That Be: Large-scale decarbonization is expected to drive up power costs in Washington |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2023/04/23/seattle-upgrades-power-grid-decarbonization.html |work=Puget Sound Business Journal |url-access=subscription |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> Curbside [[Municipal solid waste|solid waste]], recycling, and composting pickup is outsourced by Seattle Public Utilities to [[Waste Management, Inc]] and [[Recology]]. Non-garbage waste is processed by other companies;<ref>{{cite web |title=Solid Waste Contracts |url=https://www.seattle.gov/utilities/about/solid-waste-contracts |publisher=Seattle Public Utilities |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref> since 2015, curbside collection of [[food waste]] for [[compost]]ing in Seattle has been mandatory to offer to all households.<ref>{{cite news |last=Ferdman |first=Roberto A. |date=January 27, 2015 |title=Seattle is now publicly shaming people for putting food in their trash bins |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/01/27/seattle-is-now-publicly-shaming-people-for-putting-food-in-their-trash-bins/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=January 11, 2025 }}</ref>

[[Lumen Technologies]] (formerly CenturyLink),<ref>{{cite news |last1=Svaldi |first1=Aldo |title=CenturyLink rebrands itself as Lumen Technologies |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2020/09/14/centurylink-rebrands-itself-as-lumen-technologies/ |access-date=January 11, 2025 |work=[[The Denver Post]] |date=September 14, 2020 }}</ref> [[Astound Broadband]] (formerly [[Wave Broadband]]),<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bishop |first1=Todd |title='Wave' of change for a Seattle-born brand: Astound comes back around in latest telecom naming twist |url=https://www.geekwire.com/2022/wave-of-change-for-a-seattle-born-brand-astound-comes-back-around-in-latest-telco-naming-twist/ |access-date=January 11, 2025 |work=[[GeekWire]] |date=January 12, 2022 }}</ref> and [[Comcast]] are the primary providers of [[telephone]], [[cable television]], and [[Internet service]] in the city.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Demmitt |first1=Jacob |title=CenturyLink gigabit Internet reaches 100,000 Seattle households ahead of schedule |url=https://www.geekwire.com/2015/centurylink-gigabit-internet-reaches-100000-seattle-households-ahead-of-schedule/ |access-date=January 11, 2025 |work=GeekWire |date=July 23, 2015 }}</ref> CenturyLink stopped providing cable television service in 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tornay |first1=Kaylee |title=Study reveals internet access inequities in Seattle and Portland |url=https://www.cascadepbs.org/equity/2023/01/study-reveals-internet-access-inequities-seattle-and-portland |access-date=January 11, 2025 |work=InvestigateWest |date=January 4, 2023 |orig-date=December 21, 2022 |via=[[Cascade PBS News]] }}</ref>

As of 2023, at least 88% of Seattle's electricity is produced using [[hydropower]], with less than 40% of the [[hydroelectricity]] acquired via the [[Bonneville Power Administration]]. The remaining known electricity sources consist of [[wind power]], [[nuclear power]], and [[biogas]]; less than 2% comes from an unidentified source.<ref>{{Cite report |title=Washington Electric Utility 2023 Fuel Mix Disclosure Report |date=June 3, 2024 |url=https://www.commerce.wa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/CY2022-Energy-Washington-State-Electric-Utility-Fuel-Mix-Disclosure-Report-with-Utility-Fuel-Mix-Summary.pdf |access-date=January 11, 2025 |publisher=[[Washington State Department of Commerce]] }}</ref> Seattle Public Utilities manages two [[tap water]] supply systems on the [[Cedar River (Washington)|Cedar River]] and [[Tolt River]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Ryan |first=John |date=November 22, 2023 |title=Seattle got dark and rainy again. Do we still need to conserve water? |url=https://www.kuow.org/stories/seattle-s-dark-and-rainy-again-do-we-still-need-to-conserve-water |publisher=KUOW |access-date=February 14, 2024 }}</ref> These systems are fed by melted [[snowpack]] in the Cascade Mountains over the autumn and winter that fill reservoirs as they melt.<ref>{{cite news |last=Swanson |first=Conrad |date=February 4, 2024 |title=WA's mountain snow recharges our drinking water, powers our lives. Now it's turning to rain. |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/wa-drinking-water-hydropower-at-risk-as-pnw-snowpack-shrinks/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=February 14, 2024 }}</ref> The city's [[wastewater]] system includes {{convert|1,422|mi|km}} of sewers that reach [[wastewater treatment|treatment plant]]s that discharge into Puget Sound; a {{convert|485|mi|km|adj=mid}} network of separate tunnels for [[stormwater]] serve other treatment facilities.<ref>{{cite news |last=Scigilano |first=Eric |date=March 14, 2019 |title=In subterranean Seattle, thousands of miles of tunnels, pipes and cables keep the city running |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/pacific-nw-magazine/in-subterranean-seattle-thousands-of-miles-of-tunnels-pipes-and-cables-keep-the-city-running/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=February 14, 2024 }}</ref> Older areas of the city have a [[combined sewer]] system that dumps stormwater and untreated wastewater into Puget Sound during overflow events.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bernton |first1=Hal |last2=Gutman |first2=David |date=December 5, 2019 |title=As costs soar, King County wants to redo water-pollution agreement with state and feds |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/king-county-cites-soaring-costs-climate-change-in-bid-to-redo-water-pollution-agreement-with-state-and-feds/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=February 14, 2024 }}</ref>

==Crime==
[[File:SeattleCrimeMap2023.png|thumb|2023 map of crimes committed in Seattle in each neighborhood]]
In 2023, Seattle had 5,000 violent [[crime]]s, and from 2013 to 2018 there was a slow increase in crimes, however it dipped in 2020, before spiking up again in 2021 and 2022. As of 2023 the city has a violent crime rate of 683 per 100,000 people, and 5,174 property crimes per 100,000 people.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Crime Dashboard - Police {{!}} seattle.gov |url=https://www.seattle.gov/police/information-and-data/data/crime-dashboard |access-date=2024-04-21 |website=www.seattle.gov }}</ref>

Overall crimes per capita in Seattle decreased slightly during the beginning of the 21st century. While the total number of crimes rose, the population of the city<ref name=OPCDCensus>{{cite web |title=Decennial Census |url=https://www.seattle.gov/opcd/population-and-demographics/decennial-census |website=Seattle.gov |publisher=Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) |access-date=2025-04-22}}</ref> grew faster. For the data below, per-capita estimates yield the following: 6744 crimes per 100,000 people for the period of 2008–2009, 6725 crimes per 100,000 people for the period of 2010–2019, and 6325 crimes per 100,000 people for the period of 2020–2024.{{efn|These figures are not an accurate reflection of the actual rate of criminality; repeat offenders will further reduce these rates.}} These percentages are overestimates due to the sample rate of the census: city crime statistics are updated yearly, but city population figures are only updated once per decade.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Crimes in Seattle
!Year
!Violent crimes
!Property crimes
!Total
!Pop. est.<ref name=OPCDCensus />
|-
|2008
|3,301
|33,542
|36,843
| rowspan="2" | 563,374
|-
|2009
|3,672
|35,476
|39,148
|-
|2010
|3,293
|33,736
|37,029
| rowspan="10 | 608,660
|-
|2011
|3,357
|32,503
|35,860
|-
|2012
|3,580
|32,598
|36,178
|-
|2013
|3,564
|37,168
|40,732
|-
|2014
|3,783
|41,029
|44,812
|-
|2015
|3,831
|38,191
|42,022
|-
|2016
|4,060
|38,999
|43,059
|-
|2017
|4,395
|38,625
|43,020
|-
|2018
|4,804
|39,356
|44,160
|-
|2019
|4,701
|37,792
|42,493
|-
|2020
|4,507
|38,903
|43,410
| rowspan="5" | 737,015
|-
|2021
|5,428
|42,600
|48,028
|-
|2022
|5,642
|44,428
|50,070
|-
|2023
|5,333
|40,387
|45,720
|-
|2024 
|5,392
|40,481
|45,873
|}

==International relations==
Seattle has the following [[sister city|sister cities]]:<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.seattle.gov/oir/sister-cities/about-seattle-sister-cities |title=About Seattle's Sister Cities |publisher=Office of International Relations |location=Seattle }}</ref>

{{div col|colwidth=15em}}
*{{flagicon|Israel}} [[Beersheba]], Israel
*{{flagicon|Norway}} [[Bergen]], Norway
*{{flagicon|Philippines}} [[Cebu City]], Philippines
*{{flagicon|China}} [[Chongqing]], China
*{{flagicon|New Zealand}} [[Christchurch]], New Zealand
*{{flagicon|South Korea}} [[Daejeon]], South Korea
*{{flagicon|Ireland}} [[Galway]], Ireland
*{{flagicon|Poland}} [[Gdynia]], Poland
*{{flagicon|Vietnam}} [[Haiphong]], Vietnam
*{{flagicon|Taiwan}} [[Kaohsiung]], Taiwan
*{{flagicon|Japan}} [[Kobe]], Japan
*{{flagicon|Cameroon}} [[Limbe, Cameroon]]
*{{flagicon|Kenya}} [[Mombasa]], Kenya
*{{flagicon|France}} [[Nantes]], France
*{{flagicon|Hungary}} [[Pécs]], Hungary
*{{flagicon|Italy}} [[Perugia]], Italy
*{{flagicon|Iceland}} [[Reykjavík]], Iceland
*{{flagicon|Cambodia}} [[Sihanoukville]], Cambodia
*{{flagicon|Indonesia}} [[Surabaya]], Indonesia
*{{flagicon|Uzbekistan}} [[Tashkent]], Uzbekistan<ref>{{cite web |last=Long |first=Priscilla |title=Seattle-Tashkent Peace Park in Uzbekistan is dedicated in Tashkent and at Seattle Center on September 12, 1988. |website=HistoryLink.org |date=September 12, 1988 |url=https://historylink.org/File/3595 |access-date=July 22, 2022 }}</ref>
{{div col end}}

==See also==
*[[List of people from Seattle]]
*[[List of television shows set in Seattle]]
*[[USS Seattle|USS ''Seattle'']]—two ships
*[[List of songs about Seattle]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*{{cite book |last=Jones |first=Nard |author-link=Nard Jones |year=1972 |title=Seattle |publisher=Doubleday |location=New York |isbn=978-0-385-01875-3}}
*{{cite book |last=Morgan |first=Murray |author-link=Murray Morgan |year=1982 |orig-year=1951 |edition=revised and updated, first illustrated |title=Skid Road: an Informal Portrait of Seattle |publisher=University of Washington Press |location=Seattle and London |isbn=978-0-295-95846-0}}
*{{cite book |editor-last=Ochsner |editor-first=Jeffrey Karl |year=1998 |orig-year=1994 |title=Shaping Seattle Architecture: A Historical Guide to the Architects |publisher=University of Washington Press |location=Seattle and London |isbn=978-0-295-97366-1}}
*{{cite book |last=Sale |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Sale |year=1976 |title=Seattle: Past to Present |url=https://archive.org/details/seattlepasttopre00sale |url-access=registration |publisher=University of Washington Press |location=Seattle and London |isbn=978-0-295-95615-2}}
*{{cite book |last=Speidel |first=William C. |author-link=Bill Speidel |title=Doc Maynard: The Man Who Invented Seattle |year=1978 |publisher=Nettle Creek Publishing Company |location=Seattle |isbn=978-0-914890-02-7 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/docmaynardmanwho00spei/page/196 196–197, 200] |url=https://archive.org/details/docmaynardmanwho00spei/page/196}}
*{{cite book |last=Speidel |first=William C. |title=Sons of the profits; or, There's no business like grow business: the Seattle story, 1851–1901 |year=1967 |publisher=Nettle Creek Publishing Company |location=Seattle |isbn=978-0-914890-00-3 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/sonsofprofitsort00spei/page/196 196–197, 200] |url=https://archive.org/details/sonsofprofitsort00spei/page/196}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |last=Klingle |first=Matthew |title=Emerald City: An Environmental History of Seattle |location=New Haven |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-300-11641-0}}
*{{cite book |last=MacGibbon |first=Elma |title=Leaves of knowledge |publisher=Shaw & Borden |year=1904 |oclc=61326250 |chapter-url=http://www.secstate.wa.gov/history/publications%5Fdetail.aspx?p=63 |chapter-format=DJVU |others=Washington State Library's Classics in Washington History collection |chapter=Seattle, the city of destiny}}
*{{cite book |last=Pierce |first=J. Kingston |title=Eccentric Seattle: Pillars and Pariahs Who Made the City Not Such a Boring Place After All |location=Pullman, Washington |publisher=Washington State University Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-87422-269-2}}
*Sanders, Jeffrey Craig. ''Seattle and the Roots of Urban Sustainability: Inventing Ecotopia'' (University of Pittsburgh Press; 2010) 288 pages; the rise of environmental activism

==External links==
{{Sister project links |b=no |q=no |v=no|voy=Seattle}}
*{{Official website}}
*[http://www.historylink.org/ Historylink.org], history of Seattle and Washington
*[http://content.lib.washington.edu/seattleweb/index.html Seattle Photographs from the University of Washington Digital Collections]
*[http://cdm15015.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15015coll4 Seattle Historic Photograph Collection from the Seattle Public Library] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023064210/http://cdm15015.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15015coll4 |date=October 23, 2013 }}
*[http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/index.htm Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070615032507/http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/travel/seattle/ Seattle, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary]

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