Seattle vs San Francisco: where does a data scientist save more?
Best for saving: Seattle — about $6,201/mo after taxes and living costs.
Seattle US ★ Best for saving | San Francisco US | |
|---|---|---|
| Median salary | $173,186 | $176,777 |
| Take-home / mo | $10,181 | $9,098 |
| Income tax | ~29% | ~38% |
| Living costs / mo | $3,980 | $4,400 |
| Savings / mo | $6,201 | $4,698 |
| Savings rate | 61% | 52% |
| Verdict | Excellent | Excellent |
Single professional, after-tax. "Savings" = take-home − a baseline cost of living. A planning estimate, not financial advice.
How we calculated this
• Salary: BLS/OECD median for a data scientist, adjusted per city.
• Tax: each country's single-filer effective rate (e.g. US ~29%, US ~38%).
• Living costs: a single professional's baseline monthly budget per city.
Estimates, not financial or tax advice. Updated 2026.