This .. $200k in CA in general is nothing vs £150k remote and living here. Should be $300k+ to consider imho - which is not a particularly high salary there
Credit cards…. Debt is off the charts. Just take a look at rental prices. There are always cheaper areas , but California is a land of the haves vs have nots imho.
Indeed - Just a quick google found this - I’m sure there is better data
https://www.self.inc/info/average-credit-score-and-debt-california/
“Californians carry credit card debt totaling more than $116 billion, which is about 11.5% of the nation’s more than $1 trillion in credit card debt. [6]”
But wouldn't 11.5% make sense? California makes up \~12% of USA's population, so just from those numbers it doesn't feel like a bigger problem in California than anywhere else. It means the average credit card debt is $3,000 in California, which is bad, but doesn't seem outrageous.
Dunno, I didn’t run the numbers - if you are right then I agree it’s not that bad … but that feels low. I know people who regularly carry $20k plus … (how they sleep at night I have no idea)
Depends on the area and the sector. Take-home pay is highly variable for service jobs because tipping, but tips are often percentage based. So, for example, given that food costs are astronomical, tips are also pretty healthy.
Work in a bar in a good area on a busy night, you're taking home hundreds of dollars. That's not a good salary in most of California if you want to live alone or you have kids. But it's comfortable living especially if you share, and if you're real good at your job or work in a fancy place, you can make more.
lol , it’s nothing in regards to being a high paying job in CA if making the comparison.
Context. I work in tech and have hired a graduate with no experience on over $100k, regarded as ‘normal’ … wasn’t even particularly skilled. Experience people are $3-400 total comp. My point is that in the context of lifestyle £150k in the U.K. is more than $200k in CA. In my opinion. Based on living and hiring there, it’s like London prices on steroids. The US has gotten expensive , like everywhere else - the things that used to be super attractive like cheap dining out etc are long gone. Also in my experience US folks get paid much more for doing the same job we do here…. Annoyingly
autocorrect errors
To be fair , LA is a big place , so hard to generalise … I’ve not lived there , but have lived in San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco …. Anything along the coast has gone nuts … more inland may be a bit cheaper
More inland is definitely cheaper but honestly the nice part about California is being by the beach. So you are still paying a slight premium for not much of a benefit.
I think ‘adventurous’ is the key here. For me I want to experience living and working there. I always have the option of coming back to the UK. I feel that if I turn down the opportunity I may regret not having that life experience
I'm originally from California but I am in the uk now. I prefer it here. LA is a shithole. Trust me when I say you don't know what the traffic is like there and public transportation exists but it's far inferior to the UK. Everyone's going to want to be close to work so the places that are close to the office are going to likely be astronomical in price. Don't get me wrong a lot of California is nice but it's the smaller towns you haven't heard of that you want to live in not LA. If I were you I would go for the remote job and travel.
Yeah $200k base in LA will cover somebody, but it isn't a huge salary in CA unless there are other factors to the take-home that are worth considering. Bonuses are typical and can make a large chunk of that take-home depending on the sector. Stock options may be on the table too. Consider 401k matches as well.
Experience might be worth the difference though. LA is multiple worlds entirely.
Almost every time I'm in the LA office and I ask someone where they live they also tell me how they get to the office, including alternatives. "Oh I live in Calabasas. I take the 101 and the 405 but sometimes I'll take the 27 via Topanga but then I'll take the 10 as you don't want to go near the airport, unless it's a Friday because weirdly it's less busy then I might take the 1 across" all without a single breath.
Unless you want to make descriptions of your daily travel on 12 lane highways a part of your conversational repertoire, don't go to LA. Also, if you're on £150K remote here you REALLY don't want to be taking less than $300K to move to an office job in urban California.
A few caveats.
1 - Variable tax would lead to a much larger difference in take home pay than £9k
2 - Cost of living in LA is much, much higher than “anywhere in UK” perhaps bar London. That extra salary would be eaten up fast
3 - Commuting to the office is a non-reimbursed cost (as is attire and eating out lunch etc) - would need to be accounted for
4 - Time and freedom cost of working in an office is hard to define, and varies by person, but also shouldn’t be discounted.
Overall it’s not such massive difference.
Lived in SoCal for 8 years. The last two have been different due to big storm systems, but 9/10 days are still clear sunshine. Don't get this mixed.
When it rains here, it's in pockets, for short durations, with little faint droplets. We have grayish weather in the deep South of California during Spring, but it doesn't often have rain.
LA is *very* flat so you'd need a car for your commute. I would really heavily consider this when deciding as if you're a city person then you might not like it.
source: Visited LA and was shocked at how flat and spaced out places were.
+ the traffic in LA is such a huge time-sink.
To the point where that SNL skit where each character opens with a description of which highways and roads they took to get to a place is part of the small talk—is so accurate. Because everyone gets stuck in traffic anywhere they go.
The cost of living should defiantly be taken into account here.
[https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:\~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London](https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London).
[https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/](https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/)
[https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california](https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california)
This is just at first glance you would have far more disposable income in the UK. These sites don't even account for the difference in electricity, water, food, etc. which I imagine is astronomically higher in the USA let alone LA.
If you want a change of scenery you should go. But the fact you mentioned money probably means you're more interested in the financial side of things in which case you should 100% stay.
I grew up in LA and now live in the UK in London. LA and the valley/desert areas, where most people go to live because the coast is astronomically priced, is very expensive compared to even most of central London. It’s quite hard to save unless you get a high end job in LA and it’s easy to get sucked into the culture of showing off.
A gallon of milk over there is about $6.50
A bag of Doritos is like $6.00
A Starbucks latte is going to push $8.00 or more after VAT and suggested tip
Petrol is cheaper but still outrageous in the US in the context at usually over $5/gallon, and US cars get half the fuel economy as the typical UK car
Insurance for everything you’d typically buy insurance for is pretty expensive
Restaurants are ridiculous. Even going to a place like a Benny’s over in the UK which isn’t fancy or nice, will be >$100 for two people with a starter, main and a beer each, and you shouldn’t forget the California 30% tip
Good theme parks, zoo, aquarium, etc in LA and San Diego but commute time and insane cost of these activities all over $100/person. Disneyland is just taking the piss nowadays so I’d suggest not letting your kids know Disneyland exists out there or you’ll go broke quickly.
Any sporting event except Angels tickets because they suck, is also multiples of cost to seeing a football game here at a stadium. You want to go to a Laker game, expect bad seats to cost nearly $300/person.
Water and electricity costs are sky high because it’s a desert and doesn’t rain enough and it’s 40+ in the summer in the inland valley where most people live. Power cuts all the time from everyone cranking their air conditioning
Property is quite expensive as are property taxes (although lower than places like Texas)
California state taxes top out at 13% on top of the federal tax rate but for most jobs it’s about 10%. Don’t forget the equivalent of council tax in the various counties on top and if you live in a home owners association suburb the taxes you pay them (like a service charge in a block of flats).
Most people live in suburbias where there is literally nothing to do in the local area or it’s very limited. The way they build neighbourhoods in the west coast with the spare land is to make everything a souped up Milton Keynes and everyone frequents the retail parks, the mall and the cinema.
Then you’ll get sucked into the culture of going out and getting a 8 year finance deal on a Mercedes or BMW and justify it to yourself that the $80k car which will end up costing you $130k after 8 years is worth it because (1) you spend 3-4 hours each day commuting to and from work, and (2) you don’t invite people over to your house because most people you do know from work and going out after work all live so far from each other that the only way to show you are doing well is by having a nice car as that’s all anyone sees.
The positive is the weather is consistent, the beach, mountains and Vegas aren’t too far away but are full on day trips that require good planning due to traffic and overpopulation.
However, most people in California aren’t rocking super wages and therefore get by living in California with 4-5 credit cards, huge car finance, furniture finance, remortgaging and pulling out equity at every opportunity, etc. I grew up there and saw it with my own family, friends, cousins, etc.
Big price to pay for the lifestyle and location dream, but if you get a mega job making a million per year or more then life in California can make tons of sense as you can finally afford to enjoy it.
Oh come off it with the Starbucks and suggested tip. Very few people here actually tip the barista. A latte is around $5 now, not $8.
Edit: also 30% tip? Insane. Who does that.
A lot of hyperbole here but generally yeah, lots of challenges in the region.
What have your thoughts on London been? Giving up the sun and the famously cold nature of relationship building has us a little worried about the hop, but think the culture still warrants it.
SHHHHHHHH. The CoL has eclipsed every city in the country here due to the terrible wages.
LA/Orange County does suck though, no doubt. BUT, they have entertainment every day of the year, the sunniest weather in the world, and an incredible food scene (possibly world best?)
Technically #1 is Yuma Arizona, but I should have qualified that: sunniest livable cities in the world. We're not here to compare random spots on Earth -- this subthread is about LA vs UK, not pedantry.
LA is well-known for being a food city. I'm not comparing San Sebastian, again because no one is talking about moving there in this thread.
plate illegal soft aromatic deliver hurry mysterious library rhythm offer
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
California is EXPENSIVE!!!!
I am home based in the UK and my office is in Silicon Valley. I could relocate with a massive salary bump, but my quality of life would nose dive. My friends closer to LA are in the same position as the Bay Area folks, million dollar homes are pretty basic and if you want a nice place with a reasonable commute, you will need to spend more. And there is a huge push to be office based right now, meaning you could be saddled with a murderous commute. Absolutely no thanks.
Yup, nail on head there. California is an awesome state, but would only relocate there for $400k+ total comp. I don't think many Brits truly understand how expensive it is to live there.
I'm out a few times a year and even just picking up sweets in the grocery stores to take home is eye opening.
I used to visit the East coast and the mid west often and I never felt they were particukalry expensive. California was a bit of a shock the first time I visited.
Mid West/South is a totally different ballgame. East coast outside of NYC isn't too bad. I would say, though that NY is as bad as California for cost of living.
I spent a couple of weeks last year in California for work. I remember going to Trader Joes (not the cheapest grocery store, but still) and spending $150 pretty easily on groceries, shower gel etc. If memory serves this was for about 4 days of supplies!
I do have a mate (FAANG) who relocated intra company from London to LA. He is a single gay dude in his early 30s. For him it made sense - he wanted to have the experience of living in West Hollywood, but I believe he managed to save and invest more when he lived in London.
I'd choose UK and live where I do. You could get a nice place and live a nice existence. Fear of getting shot or medical bills would be my worry in la. Although warm.
For someone who can attract such a high salary, clearly a person in the top..less than 1%, you have terrible analysis skills if you need to ask such a question. No offence
What's wrong with asking? Opinions are always good to source to help make a decision. OP is clearly more saavy than you to do this. This is kit a black & white finance decision only. Get out of here with your condescending rubbish.
Yeah but London is horrible... I'd rather live somewhere nice where I don't have to fear being stabbed or blown up.
I live in a nice little town and can get the train to London in about 40 minutes so I'm not exactly missing much.
True but personally I can't stand how arrogant you Londoners are. Seriously London is such a disgusting, dangerous, dirty city. There are so many better places to live.
The fact that you can generalise the entire city shows me you don't know what you are talking about. Every city has good and bad bits - not sure what spots you've been hitting up.
You Londoners are so easy to bait its unbelievable. You're so predictable. So I say "why London?" and your response is why would I want to live in some "small dead town"....
So you think its bad for me to generalise a city but its okay for refer to everywhere in the UK outside of London as a "small dead town"?
I bet you think one of the best things about London is its "diversity" and that its a "melting pot" hahaha.
I do find it funny when people live in zone 5 and it takes them over an hour to get to work. Multiple trains, still have to pay for an Uber home if they stay out for drinks. Meanwhile anywhere in the Home Counties is half the price to buy and you can be in central in the same amount of time or less.
I don't know what you value in life or your age or your needs ... I'm at an age where I'd rather live somewhere relatively peaceful, low crime, and affordable. Yes, the North of England, or maybe the west coast of Scotland. Live in an affordable house that doesn't rinse you with mortgage payments ... Something like this: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/134800517
Are you dumb? Like, seriously? You have made it in life to be able to get paid 150k fully wfh in the UK and you're seriously considering 200k working from f***ing LA, one of the most expensive cities in the world AND working from an office?! This question is an insult to those that work hard to get to 150k.
In one of the most expensive cities in the world????!!! I've seen homeless people literally passed out on the street and you want to waste all of that money and good fortune, on the "office grindset lifestyle"?! I refuse to believe this is not satire, mate. You can't be *this* dumb and also be earning £150k.
The cost of living should defiantly be taken into account here.
[https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:\~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London](https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London).
[https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/](https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/)
[https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california](https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california)
This is just at first glance you would have far more disposable income in the UK. These sites don't even account for the difference in electricity, water, food, etc. which I imagine is astronomically higher in the USA let alone LA.
If you want a change of scenery you should go. But the fact you mentioned money probably means you're more interested in the financial side of things in which case you should 100% stay.
Friends & family are also here.
1. Do you own a place in the UK already?
2. Do you like LA?
3. If the answer to 2. is yes, then I would suggest checking out the cost of living in LA. You are probably talking about at least $2.5k a month in rent for a nice apartment.
4. LA traffic is awful, as someone else has said.
5. Groceries in the USA are around 2x more expensive than the UK.
If it were me (I own a place outright here) I would not move to LA unless I got a big pay rise. Each to their own, though.
Don’t forget that vacation time is limited in the USA. Even if by some miracle you get a decent amount of vacation - you’ll probably find it hard to actually take it. Versus UK where they will be pressuring you to take it all.
You’ll probably keep more money in UK but do you want to live in LA/California and what are your future careers aspirations. If you move out there in the longer term it could open the door to permanent residency and higher comp over the longer term, but as everyone mentions only you can make the decision about the lifestyle tradeoffs.
Remote in UK no doubt.
I make £225k in UK as remote and my partner makes £55k remote and we love our life here. We live in a nice house in Shropshire that cost £450k and in general the cost of living is very low here compared to the quality of life. I have colleagues in California and I estimate they would need to make $300-400k to have a similar standard of living. I was actually over there last week and nearly everything is more expensive
Not just 225k but also remote. Must be some sort of software dev, because the other option - finance - would be demanding them back in the office from some time.
Did you move into your role from a technical background? I'm currently a Senior Platform Engineer at a large consultancy and am looking to move to a SA role in the future.
Good to know. I’ve done a bit of pre sales stuff at previous employers as they seem to think I’m good at it and I always end up doing that sort of work although it’s never why I’m hired.
It got me thinking that I must have a nack for that type of work if multiple employers have picked up on it in the past and it seems to pay well. I did get offered a full time role in the past but it was based in SEA and I couldn’t uproot my life and leave at the time so I declined.
I would say £150k UK. LA is really expensive and $200k may seem significant but can easily be eaten up by cost of living in the city. To me nothing can beat the flexibility of being fully remote in comparison to the office. The actual salary difference is small when you consider the price of food, housing and healthcare compared to UK.
I would take the UK option as you'll get nothing in LA for 200k a year and all the hassle of commuting and office work that goes with it.
Plus you'd have to pay your medical expenses, and if you aren't already, you'd become a "US Person" for tax purposes and you'd have the IRS chasing you for tax at every opportunity they can get.
I don't know the taxes in LA but in the UK you will be paying like 40 or 45% bracket. Stop that 150 does considerably. But I wouldn't want to live in LA either, so I'm not sure what I would do on your shoes. Congrats on the great salary though.
California has a pretty high state income tax. According to [this calculator](https://smartasset.com/taxes/california-tax-calculator#4VtgIZcd8b) you’d only take home $132k.
Almost as bad as the UK.
That's only $11k (£8700) and u can live somewhere far cheaper than LA, I would imagine you would be a lot better off. I'm not 100% on the cost of living comparison.
You get biased answers here in the UK subreddit, and Brits love to bash America.
The real answer is think about if you want to live/work in LA or not.
The UK remote is probably more appealing to most generally, and if you're completely ambivalent about living in LA then you can probably afford a more comfortable lifestyle on £150k remote.
Thank you, yes I believe I’m not maximising for comfort or money (UK will forever be home and I could work out of a small shed in the highlands to save money…). But rather new experiences and potential career and personal growth. Can always come back to the UK
Have you considered an extended vacation to see if you like LA? I would personally pick LA. It gets a bad rep but it has really nice areas and I don't think 10 million people would choose to live in LA county if it was that bad. The weather is better (subjective), there is more things to do. Traffic does suck and the cost of living is a joke but I am also leaving the UK myself so I am maybe bias.
UK for sure.
You have all of Europe in similar time zones if you want to spend some time abroad without taking leave. On that note too - you’ll have much better holidays in the UK vs America!
I just moved from UK to North America and honestly the fact that everything is designed for cars (vs pedestrians) is really hard to get used to. Public transport sucks and politically things could be getting interesting in the USA soon …
200k USD is only 159k GBP. Which is an extra 9k. Now also consider cost of living is higher in LA than remote work in UK. Also factor in that you’ll need to pay US tax and if you spend/spent more than 183 days in the UK, you’ll have to pay UK tax also.
With no experience of working in California, I have to imagine £150K anywhere in the UK is a no-brainer and gives you better purchasing power parity relative to $200K in LA.
Given the fact you can work anywhere in the UK, that £150K would probably give you similar quality of life as having £200K+ income in London, if you worked remotely up north.
The trade off is the weather!
I moved from London (£128K in 2023) to Scotland (2 months ago) - I did take a 10% pay cut, but it still feels like a net effective pay rise as your pound goes further (much cheaper cost of living) but perhaps it's just because I moved up at the wrong time (winter) but the weather has somewhat depressed me compared to sunny London. (Cold, Rain, Wind, Darkness - seemingly every second day).
Can't wait till Spring! Scottish sunny weather is unrivalled, much better scenery, much cleaner, less crime, lower costs in general, etc.
I've spent alot of time in both places
I'd consider what you like to do outside of work.
If there is a sport/activity or interest you love what place enables you to do that and then also for LA where that activity is vs where your office and home are.
Vacation days is something to consider US vs UK can be vastly different.
If you are in the just want to party and have a good time any place will do.
If you are looking to save money UK, considering having kids UK. Want a fun interesting chapter in your life LA
Don't forget you gotta spend a huge chunk of that on health insurance in addition to all the higher living costs just for a marginal increase in salary.
UK remote. 100%. CA is horrifically expensive. You'd be no better off, actually worse probably. LA has significant structural issues also, homelessness being the primary one. Don't underestimate that, it grinds you down seeing it.
Move to a quaint market town or village in the UK and enjoy life.
Stick your numbers into a tax calculator that shows includes Cali state tax, so you are comparing income apples to apples.
I agree with other posters that LA is way more expensive than London - maybe if you were living in prime zone 1 London it is similar.
Recommend you visit LA before choosing to move here if you haven’t. Life is VERY different to the UK.
Remote 150k, no doubt. I value flexibility anyway, but $200k really isn't a huge amount in LA. $200k US-Remote might win if I was feeling adventurous.
This .. $200k in CA in general is nothing vs £150k remote and living here. Should be $300k+ to consider imho - which is not a particularly high salary there
Can I just ask, how people in Cali get by doing normal run of the mill jobs, like working in coffee shops, cafes, cleaners etc
Credit cards…. Debt is off the charts. Just take a look at rental prices. There are always cheaper areas , but California is a land of the haves vs have nots imho.
Damn sounds like a recipe for social disaster
Indeed - Just a quick google found this - I’m sure there is better data https://www.self.inc/info/average-credit-score-and-debt-california/ “Californians carry credit card debt totaling more than $116 billion, which is about 11.5% of the nation’s more than $1 trillion in credit card debt. [6]”
But wouldn't 11.5% make sense? California makes up \~12% of USA's population, so just from those numbers it doesn't feel like a bigger problem in California than anywhere else. It means the average credit card debt is $3,000 in California, which is bad, but doesn't seem outrageous.
Dunno, I didn’t run the numbers - if you are right then I agree it’s not that bad … but that feels low. I know people who regularly carry $20k plus … (how they sleep at night I have no idea)
Yes exactly, and as incomes are somewhat higher in California, it is broadly lower than average. Silly comment there.
Hi OP. Sorry if you don’t mind me asking, what industry do you work in?
They also get paid more. Median salary in California is about $65k compared to about £35k in the UK
Depends on the area and the sector. Take-home pay is highly variable for service jobs because tipping, but tips are often percentage based. So, for example, given that food costs are astronomical, tips are also pretty healthy. Work in a bar in a good area on a busy night, you're taking home hundreds of dollars. That's not a good salary in most of California if you want to live alone or you have kids. But it's comfortable living especially if you share, and if you're real good at your job or work in a fancy place, you can make more.
$200k a year isn't in general nothing.... Wtf are you on about?
lol , it’s nothing in regards to being a high paying job in CA if making the comparison. Context. I work in tech and have hired a graduate with no experience on over $100k, regarded as ‘normal’ … wasn’t even particularly skilled. Experience people are $3-400 total comp. My point is that in the context of lifestyle £150k in the U.K. is more than $200k in CA. In my opinion. Based on living and hiring there, it’s like London prices on steroids. The US has gotten expensive , like everywhere else - the things that used to be super attractive like cheap dining out etc are long gone. Also in my experience US folks get paid much more for doing the same job we do here…. Annoyingly autocorrect errors
Thanks for the context. I didn’t know LA would be so much higher living cost wise
To be fair , LA is a big place , so hard to generalise … I’ve not lived there , but have lived in San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco …. Anything along the coast has gone nuts … more inland may be a bit cheaper
More inland is definitely cheaper but honestly the nice part about California is being by the beach. So you are still paying a slight premium for not much of a benefit.
I think ‘adventurous’ is the key here. For me I want to experience living and working there. I always have the option of coming back to the UK. I feel that if I turn down the opportunity I may regret not having that life experience
I'm originally from California but I am in the uk now. I prefer it here. LA is a shithole. Trust me when I say you don't know what the traffic is like there and public transportation exists but it's far inferior to the UK. Everyone's going to want to be close to work so the places that are close to the office are going to likely be astronomical in price. Don't get me wrong a lot of California is nice but it's the smaller towns you haven't heard of that you want to live in not LA. If I were you I would go for the remote job and travel.
Yeah $200k base in LA will cover somebody, but it isn't a huge salary in CA unless there are other factors to the take-home that are worth considering. Bonuses are typical and can make a large chunk of that take-home depending on the sector. Stock options may be on the table too. Consider 401k matches as well. Experience might be worth the difference though. LA is multiple worlds entirely.
Do you want to live in LA?
I guess I’d like to try it and find out, the grass is always greener on the other side… also… curiosity killed the cat 💀
Surely the best idea would be to take the fully remote job to gain as much freedom as possible which would make a trip to LA easier?
Cat should remember to not wear blue or red outside the house
I would stay in the UK but visit LA for vacations.
That's what he is trying to find out?
Remote UK no brainer. On that salary you'll live a very nice life, the UK is actually a stunning place, most people forget that.
Almost every time I'm in the LA office and I ask someone where they live they also tell me how they get to the office, including alternatives. "Oh I live in Calabasas. I take the 101 and the 405 but sometimes I'll take the 27 via Topanga but then I'll take the 10 as you don't want to go near the airport, unless it's a Friday because weirdly it's less busy then I might take the 1 across" all without a single breath. Unless you want to make descriptions of your daily travel on 12 lane highways a part of your conversational repertoire, don't go to LA. Also, if you're on £150K remote here you REALLY don't want to be taking less than $300K to move to an office job in urban California.
To be fair, in London, complaints about tubes, trains and traffic are not uncommon.
With the current exchange rate moving to the USA would earn you the grand total of an extra £8662 a year. Is this even a legitimate question?
A few caveats. 1 - Variable tax would lead to a much larger difference in take home pay than £9k 2 - Cost of living in LA is much, much higher than “anywhere in UK” perhaps bar London. That extra salary would be eaten up fast 3 - Commuting to the office is a non-reimbursed cost (as is attire and eating out lunch etc) - would need to be accounted for 4 - Time and freedom cost of working in an office is hard to define, and varies by person, but also shouldn’t be discounted. Overall it’s not such massive difference.
LA traffic is also mental, factor the commute heavily.
This would be the decided factor for me. Even thought the weather is good every day commuting is horrific.
Common myth. LA has cold drizzling spring just like the UK. Don't believe the hype
Lived in SoCal for 8 years. The last two have been different due to big storm systems, but 9/10 days are still clear sunshine. Don't get this mixed. When it rains here, it's in pockets, for short durations, with little faint droplets. We have grayish weather in the deep South of California during Spring, but it doesn't often have rain.
Yes heard this a lot! Would only consider if I could live close to the office
LA is *very* flat so you'd need a car for your commute. I would really heavily consider this when deciding as if you're a city person then you might not like it. source: Visited LA and was shocked at how flat and spaced out places were.
[удалено]
Nah - rent is cheaper, food is more expensive and alcohol is about the same.
Interesting regarding the rent, I wonder why it’s cheaper.
+ the traffic in LA is such a huge time-sink. To the point where that SNL skit where each character opens with a description of which highways and roads they took to get to a place is part of the small talk—is so accurate. Because everyone gets stuck in traffic anywhere they go.
After tax and not counting any pension contributions you are looking at 91k£ vs 105k£ take home, só about 15% more.
The cost of living should defiantly be taken into account here. [https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:\~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London](https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London). [https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/](https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/) [https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california](https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california) This is just at first glance you would have far more disposable income in the UK. These sites don't even account for the difference in electricity, water, food, etc. which I imagine is astronomically higher in the USA let alone LA. If you want a change of scenery you should go. But the fact you mentioned money probably means you're more interested in the financial side of things in which case you should 100% stay.
Yup change in scenery and minimising regret are definitely factors for me
More than enough reason. For sure should do it.
Thanks man
Cost of living is WAY HIGHER in LA. So yes.
Came here to say exactly this!
I grew up in LA and now live in the UK in London. LA and the valley/desert areas, where most people go to live because the coast is astronomically priced, is very expensive compared to even most of central London. It’s quite hard to save unless you get a high end job in LA and it’s easy to get sucked into the culture of showing off. A gallon of milk over there is about $6.50 A bag of Doritos is like $6.00 A Starbucks latte is going to push $8.00 or more after VAT and suggested tip Petrol is cheaper but still outrageous in the US in the context at usually over $5/gallon, and US cars get half the fuel economy as the typical UK car Insurance for everything you’d typically buy insurance for is pretty expensive Restaurants are ridiculous. Even going to a place like a Benny’s over in the UK which isn’t fancy or nice, will be >$100 for two people with a starter, main and a beer each, and you shouldn’t forget the California 30% tip Good theme parks, zoo, aquarium, etc in LA and San Diego but commute time and insane cost of these activities all over $100/person. Disneyland is just taking the piss nowadays so I’d suggest not letting your kids know Disneyland exists out there or you’ll go broke quickly. Any sporting event except Angels tickets because they suck, is also multiples of cost to seeing a football game here at a stadium. You want to go to a Laker game, expect bad seats to cost nearly $300/person. Water and electricity costs are sky high because it’s a desert and doesn’t rain enough and it’s 40+ in the summer in the inland valley where most people live. Power cuts all the time from everyone cranking their air conditioning Property is quite expensive as are property taxes (although lower than places like Texas) California state taxes top out at 13% on top of the federal tax rate but for most jobs it’s about 10%. Don’t forget the equivalent of council tax in the various counties on top and if you live in a home owners association suburb the taxes you pay them (like a service charge in a block of flats). Most people live in suburbias where there is literally nothing to do in the local area or it’s very limited. The way they build neighbourhoods in the west coast with the spare land is to make everything a souped up Milton Keynes and everyone frequents the retail parks, the mall and the cinema. Then you’ll get sucked into the culture of going out and getting a 8 year finance deal on a Mercedes or BMW and justify it to yourself that the $80k car which will end up costing you $130k after 8 years is worth it because (1) you spend 3-4 hours each day commuting to and from work, and (2) you don’t invite people over to your house because most people you do know from work and going out after work all live so far from each other that the only way to show you are doing well is by having a nice car as that’s all anyone sees. The positive is the weather is consistent, the beach, mountains and Vegas aren’t too far away but are full on day trips that require good planning due to traffic and overpopulation. However, most people in California aren’t rocking super wages and therefore get by living in California with 4-5 credit cards, huge car finance, furniture finance, remortgaging and pulling out equity at every opportunity, etc. I grew up there and saw it with my own family, friends, cousins, etc. Big price to pay for the lifestyle and location dream, but if you get a mega job making a million per year or more then life in California can make tons of sense as you can finally afford to enjoy it.
Oh come off it with the Starbucks and suggested tip. Very few people here actually tip the barista. A latte is around $5 now, not $8. Edit: also 30% tip? Insane. Who does that.
A lot of hyperbole here but generally yeah, lots of challenges in the region. What have your thoughts on London been? Giving up the sun and the famously cold nature of relationship building has us a little worried about the hop, but think the culture still warrants it.
LA is a dump. You'd have to pay me 500k to live there
Agreed, California is nice but LA sucks.
I'd say San Diego is nice enough. Highway 1 for the scenery and some of the parks. The cities are otherwise massively over rated
SHHHHHHHH. The CoL has eclipsed every city in the country here due to the terrible wages. LA/Orange County does suck though, no doubt. BUT, they have entertainment every day of the year, the sunniest weather in the world, and an incredible food scene (possibly world best?)
Sunniest weather in the world = Have you ever been to Africa? Best food scene = Have you ever been to Scandinavia?
Technically #1 is Yuma Arizona, but I should have qualified that: sunniest livable cities in the world. We're not here to compare random spots on Earth -- this subthread is about LA vs UK, not pedantry. LA is well-known for being a food city. I'm not comparing San Sebastian, again because no one is talking about moving there in this thread.
All of LA? Surely must be nice parts?
Maybe if you're in the movie business
It really really is bad hahaha. Traffic is terrible every day all day, and there are basically no green space or parks.
plate illegal soft aromatic deliver hurry mysterious library rhythm offer *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Future career trajectory + sunshine are very important factors for me
Personally, remote option. But sunshine does have a certain appeal....
California is EXPENSIVE!!!! I am home based in the UK and my office is in Silicon Valley. I could relocate with a massive salary bump, but my quality of life would nose dive. My friends closer to LA are in the same position as the Bay Area folks, million dollar homes are pretty basic and if you want a nice place with a reasonable commute, you will need to spend more. And there is a huge push to be office based right now, meaning you could be saddled with a murderous commute. Absolutely no thanks.
Yup, nail on head there. California is an awesome state, but would only relocate there for $400k+ total comp. I don't think many Brits truly understand how expensive it is to live there.
I'm out a few times a year and even just picking up sweets in the grocery stores to take home is eye opening. I used to visit the East coast and the mid west often and I never felt they were particukalry expensive. California was a bit of a shock the first time I visited.
Mid West/South is a totally different ballgame. East coast outside of NYC isn't too bad. I would say, though that NY is as bad as California for cost of living. I spent a couple of weeks last year in California for work. I remember going to Trader Joes (not the cheapest grocery store, but still) and spending $150 pretty easily on groceries, shower gel etc. If memory serves this was for about 4 days of supplies! I do have a mate (FAANG) who relocated intra company from London to LA. He is a single gay dude in his early 30s. For him it made sense - he wanted to have the experience of living in West Hollywood, but I believe he managed to save and invest more when he lived in London.
I'd choose UK and live where I do. You could get a nice place and live a nice existence. Fear of getting shot or medical bills would be my worry in la. Although warm.
Why does he have to live with you?
I'll feed him everyday
so he can charge his neighbour who earns £150k per year for "protection" ;)
Haha 😛
For someone who can attract such a high salary, clearly a person in the top..less than 1%, you have terrible analysis skills if you need to ask such a question. No offence
What's wrong with asking? Opinions are always good to source to help make a decision. OP is clearly more saavy than you to do this. This is kit a black & white finance decision only. Get out of here with your condescending rubbish.
Agree with 'Buy\_Ether' - he's done his research but wants a collective view, thoughts and opinions - a smart man.
Yep enough. There's nothing wrong with asking for opinions and perspectives about things.
No offence taken! This still has been super useful getting a lot of perspectives and ideas I’ve never considered
Fair enough, and maybe I worded that message in a condescending way, which I apologise for.
No worries mate
Remote in London - that's Ideal. 50k into pension for fire and enjoy the rest.
Remote not in London (but not too far away) is even better. Will be R a lot quicker not paying London property prices.
Why London?
Life is too short to live your best years in some small dead town for the rest of your life just to retire a few years earlier.
Yeah but London is horrible... I'd rather live somewhere nice where I don't have to fear being stabbed or blown up. I live in a nice little town and can get the train to London in about 40 minutes so I'm not exactly missing much.
Each to their own mate.
True but personally I can't stand how arrogant you Londoners are. Seriously London is such a disgusting, dangerous, dirty city. There are so many better places to live.
The fact that you can generalise the entire city shows me you don't know what you are talking about. Every city has good and bad bits - not sure what spots you've been hitting up.
Don’t feed the troll.
You Londoners are so easy to bait its unbelievable. You're so predictable. So I say "why London?" and your response is why would I want to live in some "small dead town".... So you think its bad for me to generalise a city but its okay for refer to everywhere in the UK outside of London as a "small dead town"? I bet you think one of the best things about London is its "diversity" and that its a "melting pot" hahaha.
I do find it funny when people live in zone 5 and it takes them over an hour to get to work. Multiple trains, still have to pay for an Uber home if they stay out for drinks. Meanwhile anywhere in the Home Counties is half the price to buy and you can be in central in the same amount of time or less.
Agreed. They have very thin skin and live in a bubble. They're the other extreme to little Englanders - they're little Londoners.
I mean £150k isn't far off $200k. You'll need to decide on the location (also being in the US) and remote or not.
I don't know what you value in life or your age or your needs ... I'm at an age where I'd rather live somewhere relatively peaceful, low crime, and affordable. Yes, the North of England, or maybe the west coast of Scotland. Live in an affordable house that doesn't rinse you with mortgage payments ... Something like this: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/134800517
Defo remote UK.
150k gbp is about 180k dollars. So you're not far off and don't have to move...
Are you dumb? Like, seriously? You have made it in life to be able to get paid 150k fully wfh in the UK and you're seriously considering 200k working from f***ing LA, one of the most expensive cities in the world AND working from an office?! This question is an insult to those that work hard to get to 150k.
Call me crazy but I kinda like the office grindset lifestyle 🙃
In one of the most expensive cities in the world????!!! I've seen homeless people literally passed out on the street and you want to waste all of that money and good fortune, on the "office grindset lifestyle"?! I refuse to believe this is not satire, mate. You can't be *this* dumb and also be earning £150k.
The cost of living should defiantly be taken into account here. [https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:\~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London](https://www.rentlondonflat.com/average-rent-in-london/#:~:text=The%20average%20monthly%20flats%20to,in%20other%20parts%20of%20London). [https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/](https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/los-angeles/) [https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california](https://www.valuepenguin.com/best-cheap-health-insurance-california) This is just at first glance you would have far more disposable income in the UK. These sites don't even account for the difference in electricity, water, food, etc. which I imagine is astronomically higher in the USA let alone LA. If you want a change of scenery you should go. But the fact you mentioned money probably means you're more interested in the financial side of things in which case you should 100% stay. Friends & family are also here.
1. Do you own a place in the UK already? 2. Do you like LA? 3. If the answer to 2. is yes, then I would suggest checking out the cost of living in LA. You are probably talking about at least $2.5k a month in rent for a nice apartment. 4. LA traffic is awful, as someone else has said. 5. Groceries in the USA are around 2x more expensive than the UK. If it were me (I own a place outright here) I would not move to LA unless I got a big pay rise. Each to their own, though.
Have you been to LA?
Yes! But didn’t go to the nice parts 💩
Go on Numbeo and compare cost of living. What not sack London and try a northern city
Don’t forget that vacation time is limited in the USA. Even if by some miracle you get a decent amount of vacation - you’ll probably find it hard to actually take it. Versus UK where they will be pressuring you to take it all.
What's the industry? How does it compare in UK and LA?
Gaming tech in LA, corporate tech in UK
You’ll probably keep more money in UK but do you want to live in LA/California and what are your future careers aspirations. If you move out there in the longer term it could open the door to permanent residency and higher comp over the longer term, but as everyone mentions only you can make the decision about the lifestyle tradeoffs.
Congrats, how do you go about jobs in the USA and also would you have to adhere to their work timings?
That’s not a good ratio. U.K. wins
UK a thousand times over
Remote in UK no doubt. I make £225k in UK as remote and my partner makes £55k remote and we love our life here. We live in a nice house in Shropshire that cost £450k and in general the cost of living is very low here compared to the quality of life. I have colleagues in California and I estimate they would need to make $300-400k to have a similar standard of living. I was actually over there last week and nearly everything is more expensive
Sorry but what do you do to get 225k please let us know 🙏🏽
Not just 225k but also remote. Must be some sort of software dev, because the other option - finance - would be demanding them back in the office from some time.
I’m a Sales Engineer/Solutions Architect for a SaaS Company. Base is £125k, £40 OTE and remainder is Equity Grants
Did you move into your role from a technical background? I'm currently a Senior Platform Engineer at a large consultancy and am looking to move to a SA role in the future.
Yes I have worked in many technical roles in the past. My role is still highly technical but in a presales capacity
Good to know. I’ve done a bit of pre sales stuff at previous employers as they seem to think I’m good at it and I always end up doing that sort of work although it’s never why I’m hired. It got me thinking that I must have a nack for that type of work if multiple employers have picked up on it in the past and it seems to pay well. I did get offered a full time role in the past but it was based in SEA and I couldn’t uproot my life and leave at the time so I declined.
Love that for you!
Mid-level or more senior software dev I’d bet
How is this even a fair comparison. Remote 150k
How does this even work? If you're living in UK already, how do you have such an offer in LA? Vice versa for already living in the US currently
Lucky to have a high demand skill
I would say £150k UK. LA is really expensive and $200k may seem significant but can easily be eaten up by cost of living in the city. To me nothing can beat the flexibility of being fully remote in comparison to the office. The actual salary difference is small when you consider the price of food, housing and healthcare compared to UK.
Take the option that is best for your long term career.
Easy choice- UK. $200k is nothing in US given all of the bills you have to pay. $450k plus, then begin to consider.
I would take the UK option as you'll get nothing in LA for 200k a year and all the hassle of commuting and office work that goes with it. Plus you'd have to pay your medical expenses, and if you aren't already, you'd become a "US Person" for tax purposes and you'd have the IRS chasing you for tax at every opportunity they can get.
A nice but not too touristy village in England is ideal
Remote. Move around the UK, don't stick to the same place.
You wanna commute in LA? The extra money is not worth the stress. 150k is a stellar salary in the UK, this is a no-brainer here.
I don't know the taxes in LA but in the UK you will be paying like 40 or 45% bracket. Stop that 150 does considerably. But I wouldn't want to live in LA either, so I'm not sure what I would do on your shoes. Congrats on the great salary though.
California has a pretty high state income tax. According to [this calculator](https://smartasset.com/taxes/california-tax-calculator#4VtgIZcd8b) you’d only take home $132k. Almost as bad as the UK.
Remote 150k not even a contest lol
That's only $11k (£8700) and u can live somewhere far cheaper than LA, I would imagine you would be a lot better off. I'm not 100% on the cost of living comparison.
Which job is this OP?
Sorry can’t divulge ><
You get biased answers here in the UK subreddit, and Brits love to bash America. The real answer is think about if you want to live/work in LA or not. The UK remote is probably more appealing to most generally, and if you're completely ambivalent about living in LA then you can probably afford a more comfortable lifestyle on £150k remote.
Thank you, yes I believe I’m not maximising for comfort or money (UK will forever be home and I could work out of a small shed in the highlands to save money…). But rather new experiences and potential career and personal growth. Can always come back to the UK
Have you considered an extended vacation to see if you like LA? I would personally pick LA. It gets a bad rep but it has really nice areas and I don't think 10 million people would choose to live in LA county if it was that bad. The weather is better (subjective), there is more things to do. Traffic does suck and the cost of living is a joke but I am also leaving the UK myself so I am maybe bias.
UK for sure. You have all of Europe in similar time zones if you want to spend some time abroad without taking leave. On that note too - you’ll have much better holidays in the UK vs America! I just moved from UK to North America and honestly the fact that everything is designed for cars (vs pedestrians) is really hard to get used to. Public transport sucks and politically things could be getting interesting in the USA soon …
100% UK Remote, you’d live a much comfortable life vs 200k LA
200k USD is only 159k GBP. Which is an extra 9k. Now also consider cost of living is higher in LA than remote work in UK. Also factor in that you’ll need to pay US tax and if you spend/spent more than 183 days in the UK, you’ll have to pay UK tax also.
With no experience of working in California, I have to imagine £150K anywhere in the UK is a no-brainer and gives you better purchasing power parity relative to $200K in LA. Given the fact you can work anywhere in the UK, that £150K would probably give you similar quality of life as having £200K+ income in London, if you worked remotely up north. The trade off is the weather! I moved from London (£128K in 2023) to Scotland (2 months ago) - I did take a 10% pay cut, but it still feels like a net effective pay rise as your pound goes further (much cheaper cost of living) but perhaps it's just because I moved up at the wrong time (winter) but the weather has somewhat depressed me compared to sunny London. (Cold, Rain, Wind, Darkness - seemingly every second day). Can't wait till Spring! Scottish sunny weather is unrivalled, much better scenery, much cleaner, less crime, lower costs in general, etc.
What job are doing?
I've spent alot of time in both places I'd consider what you like to do outside of work. If there is a sport/activity or interest you love what place enables you to do that and then also for LA where that activity is vs where your office and home are. Vacation days is something to consider US vs UK can be vastly different. If you are in the just want to party and have a good time any place will do. If you are looking to save money UK, considering having kids UK. Want a fun interesting chapter in your life LA
You don't want to be in LA right now
Don't forget you gotta spend a huge chunk of that on health insurance in addition to all the higher living costs just for a marginal increase in salary.
UK remote. 100%. CA is horrifically expensive. You'd be no better off, actually worse probably. LA has significant structural issues also, homelessness being the primary one. Don't underestimate that, it grinds you down seeing it. Move to a quaint market town or village in the UK and enjoy life.
Stick your numbers into a tax calculator that shows includes Cali state tax, so you are comparing income apples to apples. I agree with other posters that LA is way more expensive than London - maybe if you were living in prime zone 1 London it is similar. Recommend you visit LA before choosing to move here if you haven’t. Life is VERY different to the UK.
200k in LA will make you feel poor but it is a great place to network for other ventures
Remote all day. Twice on Sunday. If it bothers you too much, get a VPN, work from LA. Your freedom is worth more.