> Yes, healthcare and the cost of living are more expensive in the US
I feel Europeans looking in on the US from the outside consistently have a misleading view on healthcare. I'm saying this as a European in the US working in big tech.
My plan's maximum out-of-pocket in a year is ~$3k, which I can pay pre-tax thanks to an HSA. It is less than 2% of my total comp in the worst case (in 2020 I spent less than $300 on healthcare). In return I get coverage that is generally better than the free public healthcare back in Europe.
I think CoL is similar, but not as clear cut. One thing CoL discussions often miss is that many expenses are independent of the local CoL; for example, a Macbook Pro costs the same in every US city. If your salary adjusts exactly for CoL, you're actually doing better because of this.
I feel Europeans looking in on the US from the outside consistently have a misleading view on healthcare. I'm saying this as a European in the US working in big tech.
My plan's maximum out-of-pocket in a year is ~$3k, which I can pay pre-tax thanks to an HSA. It is less than 2% of my total comp in the worst case (in 2020 I spent less than $300 on healthcare). In return I get coverage that is generally better than the free public healthcare back in Europe.
I think CoL is similar, but not as clear cut. One thing CoL discussions often miss is that many expenses are independent of the local CoL; for example, a Macbook Pro costs the same in every US city. If your salary adjusts exactly for CoL, you're actually doing better because of this.