You can get a remote job in your pay range for example in the UK, but I'll focus on the US market in my answer. (I'm a European developer, lived in the Silicon

You can get a remote job in your pay range for example in the UK, but I'll focus on the US market in my answer. (I'm a European developer, lived in the Silicon Valley for a while, and now I'm back in Europe, working remotely for an early-stage US startup, making a lot more than the upper limit of the pay range you mentioned). First of all, $80-100k isn't considered a high pay in the Silicon Valley, but rather an intern salary. So $100k for a remote job is a reasonable ask, even at an early stage startup. In my experience, most of the small startups don't conduct interviews with an algorithm gauntlet like FAANG (or is it MANGA?) companies do; there could be some of that stuff, but not exclusively, and you're of course allowed to communicate that it's not your strong suite. The market to hire good developers is so tough right now, that smart companies are willing to cut you some slack on the "formal" knowledge part if you're able to prove you can be an asset in the "real world" for them. In my experience, the biggest pain points in hiring Europeans are the time difference, bad English skills, and cultural differences. This varies a lot by company, so take it with a grain of salt, but here's a breakdown of these three things: 1. The time difference is what it is, so you might be required to work in the evenings with some companies. If you live in the Western Europe and work for an East Coast company, the time difference shouldn't be that big of a deal, as you can have a comfortable overlap in your afternoon and their morning. Eastern Europe to West Coast, on the other hand, is a 10h difference, so you might expect to work the late shift. 2. Language skills can be practiced. In your case, I'd say your written English is perfectly sufficient, but in case you're shaky on the spoken level, it might be wise to sharpen your skills there. You don't have to be on a native level, not even close (and Americans in general are used to immigrants and different accents and whatnot), but you don't want it to be a clear weakness either. As long as you're able to understand others and communicate your thoughts in a clear manner, you're good. 3. What I mean by cultural differences is that many European cultures lack the sort of self-promotional and positive aura that comes naturally to most Americans. If you ever visited the US, you know what I'm talking about. US employers aren't necessarily accustomed to reading people who aren't good at this, so it might throw them off. Being able to relax and smile and get past the usual small talk takes you a long way. It might be easier to get into a company where there are other European remote employees already, as "offshoring" for the first time can be a scary thing for a small startup, especially if the candidate doesn't tick off all boxes.