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[quote=Anonymous]I am you. I moved from Chicago here three years ago for a job in finance/strategy. I was in Chicago for 10 years before that.

The positives:
- Chicago is a much more vibrant city in some respects. Its a mini new york. Michigan Ave and the downtown melange of restaurants, bars, clubs and high end shops just isn't quite matched with any area around here. The closest I think would be downtown bethesda in terms of feel. Lots of stores. 
- Public transportation options in Chicago are much much much much better. DC seems to have a metro that was designed randomly - and anything near the metro stop is exceptionally expensive. Chicago's metro runs throughout the city and being near a stop is not at all difficult to do, particularly if you are prepared to live in a condo or townhome. 
- Walkability is much much higher overall. DC has a handful of hot spots where you can live and walk to everything - arlington, dupont, georgetown, etc. They are all priced to reflect their uniqueness. Chicago is built north-south, so whether you are downtown, south loop, lakeview, lincoln park, edgewater, evanston, etc - most any area will have a high walkability score. There are exceptions, but the point is, unlike DC, you dont really need $1M to be able to live in a townhome across from a whole foods. 
- Similarly, in terms of COL, Chicago is exceptional for a big city. It's not Dallas, but you can get a nice home for $500K and if you want city living you can do quite well on a modest (by DC standards) budget.
- Compared to DC, it seems a lot less focused on money. I make good money by most any measure and I've never felt so judged in my life. DC is a wierd microcosm in that way. Chicago seems much more laid back. People don't ask what I do for a living as much, and when I dont mention some senators name or something, they dont care. Here.... I dont know, I get the feeling people size you up more. 
- The traffic is much better, although if you live in the suburbs, that can be a drag. Still, DC seems to somehow attract some of the worst drivers on the planet. I don't understand how its possible but every single day you hear about a half dozen accidents here. There's highways and lots of people in chicago, plus lots of snow, and yet accidents are comparably (it would seem) rare.
- Summers in chicago are very nice. There is an occasional hot day, but its not like DC where you would murder a puppy to get access to an air conditioner. For the most part, its warm, breezy, and temperate. 
- Chicago seems better for jobs in some ways. If you are a Fed, I imagine DC is *the* place to be. For me, I'm wondering if I shouldn't have stayed because of the hundreds of companies that have a base of operations out there. DC seems more immune to recessions, but I'm not sure the tradeoff is totally accurate. If I lost my job in DC, I'm not really sure where else I could apply other than perhaps a dozen or two dozen firms. In Chicago I think my option set might be a hundred.

There are drawbacks:

- Property taxes are higher in chicago
- The winters suck. Its not so much the cold (you get used to it) but the length will get to you. Its cold, dark, and gray from October through March. The sun sets at 4pm in the winter, so you get to the office while its dark, and you leave while its dark. Seasonal depression always sounded like a bunch of bullshit to me, but after ten years in chicago, I don't know anymore, maybe there's some truth to it. On the other hand, it makes you appreciate the summer months so much more.
- The seasons are imbalanced in general. Winter is long. Spring and fall seem to last two or three weeks. As someone who likes spring and fall, that sucks. 
- In terms of being able to do fun day-trips, there's a bit less- skiing and the beach arent exactly what Chicago's known for. Unlike DC where youve got whitetail, wisp, bryce, and if you dont mind a decent drive, killington, there's fairly little in Chicago. Similarly, while lakefront, its not like Bethany Beach or Ocean City or some of the other places around here. There's a few spots people go to, but by and large, its pretty limited.
- Theres an awful lot less green. DC is pretty exceptional in the number of trails, parks, trees and greenery that covers the city. Springtime here is fricking awesome. Chicago certainly has its share of green, but its more of a NYC green, in that most of the city is a concrete jungle and every now and then you find a big park (i.e. grant park) that is soft of "the" park in the city. In DC you can be hiking the Shenandoah in an hour, in Chicago, you might get to go for a nice bike ride along the lake. Its something but its not the same.
- DC is much more international - you will hear other languages in Chicago, but not like in DC. Here its french,  Spanish, Italian, Japanese, you name it. Not so much in Chicago.
- Free museums are a DC quirk. By and large, Chicago is a pay to play city.

My take is that if you like Bethesda, you'll like Chicago. In fact, I often say that we should haved moved to Bethesda.

That said, if you are in finance/strategy and want to stay here, my company is hiring. Email me cplwebinar@gmail.com[/quote]

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