Disagree. I'm from the Midwest and live in SF now. Couldn't be happier with my change.<p>Data point of one:<p>- $2200/mo 1BR apt in SF (Inner Sunset). Not trendy, but nice. I got it 3 years ago.<p>- Working for a major tech co.<p>- Roughly $275K/yr in total comp (salary/equity/bonuses). It goes up around $10-20k every year, as my equity bumps compound and I get raises.<p>- Putting away $18k/yr in 401k + $9k company match.<p>- Average bills of $1000/mo. Mostly leisure spending, but also includes the occasional Lyft, etc.<p>- Mostly eat at work for free. Minimal food in the house for dinner, which I don't eat that often (I snack a lot at work and don't feel hungry). I think I eat out about 2x/week.<p>- No car, though I occasionally ZipCar or mooch my GF's. CalTrain and Clipper card are paid by my company.<p>My net worth on Mint has increased roughly $50-100k/year since I began working here, due to cash savings and stock vesting. I take an international vacation every year, and visit my family 3x/year.<p>I previously worked in the Midwest and life wasn't nearly as fun, nor was I making as much money. More importantly, I didn't have job flexibility. The workplaces were terrible there (SV culture, silly as it can be, is much friendlier to employees), and there weren't as many jobs. They also didn't pay for public transport, give you equity bonuses, pay for your meals, or had office snacks. A spacious house couldn't make up for all of those differences.<p>I'm glad I came to SF, despite its downsides (like less space, commuting, etc). There is a big trend in bashing it, but if you're good at what you do and know how to manage your money, you can do pretty well here. Not to mention have a higher quality of life. And if I decide to move back (which is likely, so I can be closer to family) I'll go back with an amazing CV and probably better career options.<p>Stop listening to haters. Don't knock it till you try it.
I love seeing so many people re-package a news piece based on numbeo's cost of living model which is incredibly flawed and doesn't account for the wide variance of the cost of rent depending on whether one is single, is willing to live with roommates, is willing to deal with a longer commute, etc.<p>Trying to develop a salary + cost of living model that doesn't take into account one's personal priorities and preferences is foolhardy. And the piece Hired wrote did exactly that.<p>News flash: not everyone who lives in NYC or SF is paying $3000 a month in rent. Many of my friends in NYC are paying $800-1200 for a room in Brooklyn with a 25-35 minute commute on the subway. My friends in SF tell me that they pay more but certainly in the 1000-2000 range not the 2000-3000 range that's always quoted.<p>Get a significant other and move in together and you can split that in half.<p>But yes, if you want to live alone, 5 minutes walk from Mission Dolores park in SF or bring a family into Palo Alto then the bay is the worst paying place for you as a software engineer.<p>On the other hand, if you're willing to commute, or willing to have roommates, cook at home instead buying into the myth that you _have_ to go get brunch at some $12 avocado toast cafe, then you'll likely save more money in the long run in SF or NYC than in the Midwest, and yes, after cost of living and after tax. Unless during your job search you find yourself in the enviable position of finding salary offers in the midwest that are very close to the same salary offers you get in the high COL cities. If you do find that though then by all means live in the midwest. And those situations do exist but it's just that there are far fewer $100,000 jobs in Des Moines, IA than in Brooklyn, NY.
If I were a young software developer solely focused on saving as much money as possible, I would: move to SF in a heartbeat, work for Facebook, Google, or Amazon, pick a mission-critical team that exposed me to systems at massive scale, and live in a van a pleasant 5-10 minute bike ride from the office. After I felt comfortable I'd start to consult on the side on weekends for up to $53k of annual tax-free solo 401k sheltered income. Life doesn't present a ton of these "sell picks and shovels to gold miners" opportunities but this is definitely one of them.
All these data on SF salaries missing the point that SF is not about high salary etc<p>You have some of the brightest and intelligent people of the world in one place. It is like Athens in Ancient Greece,