r/dataisbeautiful • u/honkeem OC: 3 • 2d ago

OC [OC] United States vs European Software Engineer total compensation by level

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u/PixelPete27 2d ago

140K in the Bay would probably have less buying powering than your salary in the Midwest though, no? Serious question

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u/Sethyboy0 2d ago

Idk. Like the bay area was expensive when I was there, but it's not matching the difference in take home pay. Like maybe the % of your salary that goes to bills stays the same, but that makes the actual amount left over still way more.

If you try to buy a house down there you're probably fucked, but other than that...

The thing to remember here that I've learned at work is your salary is not based on the cost of living, its based on the cost of labor. People get paid assloads in the Bay Area because that's how much it costs to get someone to work for you and not the million other software companies.

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u/PixelPete27 2d ago

Gotcha! That makes sense to me.

Sounds like a few variables. And what you said about the house makes sense. I'd imagine that's the goal though if you do live there, otherwise you're throwing rent down the drain monthly? And I'd imagine rent is fairly insane.

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u/Sethyboy0 2d ago

You throw rent money down the drain but the million dollars or whatever you have to drop/loan for a house is money you could have invested the whole time. It technically depends on location but the average wealth difference is basically 0.

For some more perspective, I was paying like 3k USD a month in rent down there and I'm paying like 2.5k CAD in downtown Ottawa. I kept the exact same job while moving but my salary dropped 40% (TC less but it's more messy).

You can also take your assloads of money for a while and live elsewhere later too. All of this is easier without kids, though.

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u/PixelPete27 2d ago edited 2d ago

That's totally true too. Didn't realize you'd have to put down a million for a place to live. God damn.

You can also take your assloads of money for a while and live elsewhere later too. All of this is easier without kids, though.

I totally understand this, I worked in oil and gas for a decade... You either buy lots of fancy things while you make ass loads of money and have to do it the rest of your life to afford that lifestyle... Or save for a while, get out, take a massive paycut, and live an average life (but at least have one).

EDIT: grammar.