And you need to factor in that Danish people do not need to pay for health services. $50k after tax in Denmark needs to pay for fewer expenses than $50k after

And you need to factor in that Danish people do not need to pay for health services. $50k after tax in Denmark needs to pay for fewer expenses than $50k after tax in USA. So it is not a valid comparison to just compare income tax and VAT. In this case Denmark ends up not being more expensive for a nice middle class life. It's just that ill-informed people thinks otherwise. Quality of life in Denmark is higher: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/rankings/quality-of-life https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/rankings/quality-...