Boston vs NYC
My wife have option for relocation to boston or NYC (we are from europe. her job is not in tech). I am a sw eng. 6 yoe. I understand that in NYC I will more options, but is there a big difference? Or that in boston there are still many good opportunities? TNX
NYC for sure
Lived in boston area for 8+ years. You need to also evaluate the living cost. The closer you are to the city you pay more. But boston area traffic is better the NYC, so you could live a little far out and still commute. NYC- commute and rents are high, but gives you more opportunity in your non tech careers options.
NYC has better salary:COL ratio imo. Boston is cheaper than NYC for sure but not cheap enough to justify how much lower the salaries are. If you have no kids I say NYC
NYC has alot more opportunities, even for tech imo (and of course non-tech). Not saying Boston is bad but NYC is second only to Bay which is ridiculous to compare to anyways.
Tech wise I think it's comparable. Housing and taxes are where Boston is far and away better than New York. City wise I think Boston is much more European than New York.
I'll answer this with more of a lifestyle perspective. Also, where in Europe would you be moving from? NYC is a lot more crowded, fast-paced, lively. Closest comparison to a European city would obv be London. Fantastic and exciting if you're in your 20s/early 30s or if you're used to the mega-city lifestyle. I personally wouldn't live there if I was raising a family because of COL and commute (nearly all my friends with kids there have moved out of NYC to Long Island, but still have to commute to offices in the city). Boston is a lot more compact. Even though it's a lot smaller than NYC, it has a lot to offer culturally (huge sports base, great museums and arts scene, plenty of historical stuff, etc.). Neighborhoods like Cambridge and Somerville are right next to Boston, but they're their own cities with their own personalities. If you lived in one of those areas, you don't even need to go to Boston outside of work hours because they have plenty of entertaining and dining options. But Boston and surrounding areas aren't cheap either. They're cheaper than NYC, but still very expensive. Check out sites like hotpads.com (for rentals) or Redfin or Zillow (for home buying) to get an idea of prices. Weather-wise, eh. Both have shitty winters and humid summers. Boston's slightly colder and usually gets a bit more snow since it's more north. That being said, if you're into winter sports, living in Boston would get you up to Vermont, NH, and Maine a lot more easily than from NYC. Depends what you're looking for. Both are great cities but are quite different.
For tech only options, Boston. For tech and many non-tech options, NYC. Choice is simple.