Seattle vs San Francisco: where does a software engineer save more?
Best for saving: Seattle — about $7,008/mo after taxes and living costs.
Seattle US ★ Best for saving | San Francisco US | |
|---|---|---|
| Median salary | $189,468 | $194,950 |
| Take-home / mo | $10,988 | $9,887 |
| Income tax | ~30% | ~39% |
| Living costs / mo | $3,980 | $4,400 |
| Savings / mo | $7,008 | $5,487 |
| Savings rate | 64% | 55% |
| 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 software engineer, adjusted per city.
• Tax: each country's single-filer effective rate (e.g. US ~30%, US ~39%).
• Living costs: a single professional's baseline monthly budget per city.
Estimates, not financial or tax advice. Updated 2026.