Comment by zeku | Hacker News Reader

Comment by zeku | Hacker News Reader

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I have to post this every time we talk about salary and Europeans get in on the convo. This forum is absolutely DOMINATED by SF/LA/Seattle SWEs. Their cost of living is extremely high and their salaries are extremely high.

The US is huge.

I work in the Southeast. Where I'm working Junior SWEs start around 60k. Mid Level Start Around 75k. Senior start around 95k. Manager/Our new "Super Senior" level start around 120k.

Our cost of living is still higher than yours. In my area a 3 bed/2 bath home with a small yard within 1 hour drive of my work costs 450k minimum and that would be a full hour out and the siding would be vinyl.

We have horrible public services, many of us are in debt to have obtained our CS degrees, child care is soo expensive, healthcare is crazy expensive even after we get our employer healthcare plans. Going to a local soccer match costs me $50 for nosebleed tickets, a beer is $14, and nachos are $15. Parking costs me $25 at the game and you have to pay for gas here too which is close to $5 a gallon(but keep in mind we drive further, to EVERYTHING, and owning a car is a requirement unless you're in NYC or SF).

I just want to represent for what is probably the majority of US SWE's.

I think you are misrepresenting in the other direction (ie posting salaries that are unrepresentative in the low direction).

Just out of a job hunt and had two offers in Atlanta, one in person with a TC of $180k and one fully remote with a TC of $235k. This is with 2 YoE

The costs you post also seem really high. Atlanta United tickets are $35 for the cheapest, food/drink is around $25 total. I generally would take transit or uber into games but I see parking for $10-20 within a half mile. I'm not as familiar with housing costs but a few quick searches show 3 bed/2 bath in decent neighborhoods for around $500k, and to be within an hour of Atlanta is definitely doable for less.

I think Atlanta is fairly high CoL for the Southeast and still find the expenses to be less than you're claiming

I'm in Nashville. Our salaries seem to be the same or lower than ATL and our cost of living is for sure higher. I think we are getting a bad deal here compared to ATL.

It's possible that I am hilariously underpaid and need a new job.

> It's possible that I am hilariously underpaid and need a new job.

If you're willing to work remotely, then absolutely. :) There are plenty of fully remote jobs in the US paying $180k+. I interviewed at all sorts of random companies last year (all remote), and the lowest offer I got was $150k (plus equity). For reference, most of them were senior frontend engineer positions, but there were some generalist gigs in there as well.

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