8 upvotes, 1 direct replies (showing 1)
The Twin Cities metro area population is 3.7 million, Seattle metro area is 4 million.
Comment by nerevisigoth at 02/02/2025 at 22:29 UTC*
2 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Yes, Seattle is also a midsize city. These aren't important global cities like NYC, LA, or Chicago.
However Seattle is a major global player in the software industry. The talent pool here is attractive enough that companies from elsewhere want to set up shop regardless of high costs, which attracts more talent and reinforces the effect. It's called agglomeration and it's why some cities can keep booming despite policies that upset big business.
Minneapolis-St Paul doesn't really have an industry like that. They have a few big corporate headquarters like every other notable American metro area, but if you want to run a retailer or an insurance company you can do so just fine without opening an outpost in Minnesota.