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If you work as a software engineer outside of a handful of cities, you earn much less. E.g. a software engineer working in Tulsa makes a lot less than one worki
by eloff 7y ago
If you work as a software engineer outside of a handful of cities, you earn much less. E.g. a software engineer working in Tulsa makes a lot less than one working in San Francisco. But if you work remote from Tulsa, you can work for a company in one of the top cities and will make a higher salary, on average than your local peers. I don't think remote workers in the valley make more than their peers - maybe less.
I've worked remote my whole career, and the main reason I do that is I get a substantially higher salary than my local peers because I don't live in the USA.
- Consultant32452 7y agoThis is similar to my anecdote. I hit the local salary ceiling but was unable to move due to family obligations. That's how I became a remote worker.
- cgh 7y agoYes, I've said exactly this a bunch of times. My advice to young programmers is always this: work for a while in a city with high salaries and lots of demand, then after some years when you are experienced and high value (genuinely so), make the jump to remote, move to a smaller, less expensive place and buy a house. I honestly think this is the best life advice I can give and I wish I'd done it a decade sooner than I did.
- JMTQp8lwXL 7y agoIf anybody living in Tulsa can do this, the arbitrage opportunity will at some point end and Tusla will get more expensive and SF less expensive.
- inapis 7y agoNot true. Not everyone is cut out for remote work. It needs a certain set of skills and a frame of mind which are not available to everyone or take time to develop.
- eloff 7y agoExcept that for whatever reason people don't do this so the advantage continues to exist. Possibly because there aren't enough remote jobs?
- ewi_ 7y agoAlso people may not want to live in Tulsa, even if they are better paid.