US vs Europe for FANG: Would you move for extra $$?

New
rndm137

New

rndm137
Dec 27, 2020 75 Comments

Note: talking about complete immigration, want to settle somewhere.

Let’s say you have a really nice job in Europe, some of the following, around L4 level:
- London, Facebook, around $160k TC
- Zurich, Google, $230k TC
- Germany, Google, $160k TC

In contrast, you have an opportunity to move to California or Seattle and earn more in FANG.

Would you consider making the move? Why and why not? Is that extra $$ worth it, given that:

Europe Pros:
- proximity to my home country in better in Europe
- don’t need to deal with immigration overhead for my fiancée
- almost free education and healthcare (not necessarily better, probably worse actually)
- nice PTO
- harder to get laid off
- live a more family-focused life
- travel possibilities

US pros:
I’d say US wins in these aspects:
- salary, savings
- more tech opportunities
- more investment opportunities
- i’m heavily influenced by American culture
- weather in Cali is great

But, Europe cons:
- lower pay
- high taxes in UK or Germany
- language is German in Switzerland and in Germany
- harder to blend in Swiss society
- NHS (healthcare) in UK is okayish at best
- housing in London is crap and expensive
- hate the commute in London
- weather is okay, but not great
- Switzerland basically only has Google as a top employer, everything else is worse than UK and Germany

US cons:
- far away
- traffic because I’d need to drive
- cost of living is huge, but probably reasonable given the huge TC increase
- Seattle weather is ... something
- education is paid and expensive, would need to save up for kids
- honestly not sure if this is valid but I see violence regularly, “defunding the police”, and other things like this, I’m just going to say that Seattle doesn’t seem very safe, in my opinion...

Soooo, what do you say? Europe vs US? Let’s discuss.

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TOP 75 Comments
  • I’ve lived in Zurich, London and parts of USA. There’s no way I’d settle in the uSA.

    Zurich is good if you have a family and kids. Otherwise boring. However, if you work at Google there, you’re at risk of getting stuck, as it’ll extremely hard to find a company paying the same there.

    The USA will get you with money, but you lack everything else. Security, Education, Healthcare, Cultural differences, etc.

    I really like London. It sucks to be paid way less than US colleagues, but you can live a great life without the US cons.
    Dec 27, 2020 14
    • New
      trying718

      New

      trying718
      “Kind of generic” = kernel and virtualization development? Hah.
      Jan 29, 2021
    • Ahah .. I’ve looked for positions for friends before. The only positions i saw were for computer vision
      Jan 29, 2021
  • Jefferies / R&D
    Copcoder

    Go to company page Jefferies R&D

    BIO
    Develop computer vision algorithms. Coached a European country’s team for IOI 2020.
    Copcoder
    Even if the USA offer paid minimum wage, I’d choose USA
    Dec 27, 2020 11
    • Any example that shows US government is efficient?
      Dec 28, 2020
    • I don't understand how you can write stuff like that and not pause to think about it. The ability to become a superpower is determined by a lot of factors outside of a nation's own control or their form of governance.

      I'm going to guess troll or severely intellectually challenged.
      Dec 28, 2020
  • Ignore the media. US is the least racist country in the whole world. This is from a person who lived in several countries across Asia and Europe. No other country comes close to the opportunities and lifestyle that US provides, including money and life experiences.
    Dec 27, 2020 5
  • New
    D8azJk™️

    New

    D8azJk™️
    Europe has more racism

    (You only discover this after you’ve lived in both places for 1+ year)
    Dec 27, 2020 2
  • I voted for Switzerland because that sounds fancy af
    Dec 27, 2020 5
    • New
      rndm137

      New

      rndm137
      OP
      FB only has Oculus, which is an acquisition. They are obviously doing mostly AR/VR there; not many SWE openings.

      For Microsoft, I’m not sure. Could you tell us how many SWEs are there? Or is it specialty office, just like FB’s oculus?
      Dec 28, 2020
    • Switzerland is beautiful, but can get boring. The people around you are also pretty homogenous for the most part. I'd be worried about making friends.
      Dec 28, 2020