What does a $100K software engineer salary buy in different cities?

A $100,000 software engineer salary yields vastly different purchasing power across cities. After taxes, rent, and living costs, you keep the most in cities with low taxes and affordable housing — often $3,000-4,000/month in disposable income in affordable cities vs under $1,000 in expensive ones like San Francisco or New York.

Which city has the best purchasing power for software engineers?

Cities with no state income tax and moderate living costs tend to offer the most purchasing power. Austin and Dallas in Texas, Dubai (0% income tax), and cities in Poland and Portugal often leave software engineers with the most disposable income relative to local prices.

How much do software engineers pay in taxes worldwide?

Effective tax rates for software engineers vary from 0% in Dubai to over 45% in Belgium and Denmark. US engineers typically pay 25-35% depending on state. European rates range from 20% in Poland to 42% in Germany. ShouldIMove calculates exact take-home pay for 45 countries.

What is the average rent for a software engineer in major tech cities?

City-center 1-bedroom rents in major tech hubs range from $800/month in Warsaw and Lisbon to over $3,000/month in San Francisco and New York. London averages $2,200, Berlin $1,100, and Dublin $1,800. Rent is typically the largest expense after taxes.

How is the Software Engineer Salary Index calculated?

The index applies the same salary to 25 cities worldwide, then calculates net pay using country-specific 2026 tax rates, subtracts 1-bedroom city-center rent from Numbeo data, and estimates monthly living expenses using cost of living indices. The result shows actual monthly disposable income in USD.

2026 Edition

What Does a $100K Salary Actually Buy You in 25 Cities?

We took the same $100,000 salary and ran it through local taxes, rent, and living costs in 25 cities worldwide. The result: how much money you actually have left each month. Enter your own salary to personalize.

Most money left over

🇦🇪 UAE / Dubai

$4,189/month after all costs

Lowest tax rate

🇦🇪 UAE / Dubai

0% effective tax rate

Cheapest rent (1BR)

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,211/month city center

Methodology

By default we apply the same salary ($100,000) to every city so you can compare what that money actually buys. You can also switch to local median salaries from levels.fyi or enter your own number. For each city we calculate:

Net salary: After income tax and mandatory social contributions using ShouldIMove's country-specific tax calculators (2026 rates, single filer, no dependents).
Monthly rent: 1-bedroom apartment, city center, from Numbeo rent data.
Monthly expenses: Estimated from Numbeo's Cost of Living Index, scaled to a NYC baseline of ~$3,000/month (excluding rent).
Healthcare adjustment: US cities include a $300/month deduction for employer-sponsored health insurance (employee share + avg out-of-pocket). European and Middle Eastern countries fund healthcare through payroll taxes already deducted from net salary.
Money left over: Net salary minus rent minus expenses minus healthcare adjustment — what you actually keep each month.

All figures in USD. Exchange rates as of February 2026. US metro areas use state-specific tax rates.

Cite this data

"Software Engineer Salary Index 2026" — ShouldIMove.co. https://shouldimove.co/software-engineer-salary-index. Accessed 01 Jun 2026.

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