Software engineers in Chicago receive the lowest wages in a study of salaries in 10 leading US tech hubs, but the Windy City becomes more attractive to techies when you factor in cost of living.
Chicago's software engineers earn an average of $108,000 per year, the lowest amount in a study by job search marketplace Hired that also looked at salaries in San Francisco, New York, Austin, Seattle and other markets.
Hired, a platform that facilitates the job search process from the initial interview all the way to the job offer, used its data to compare software engineer compensation across the US and the world. While Chicago fell behind its US counterparts, it still outpaced every other international market in the report, including London, Paris and Sydney.
Chicago saw software engineer salaries rise slightly (0.57%) compared to 2015, while other cities like San Diego, Washington DC and Denver saw compensation decrease year-over-year.
However, when you adjust for cost of living, the story somewhat changes.
When adjusted for the cost of living in San Francisco, Chicago software engineers are more in the middle of the pack, and the city becomes more appealing than New York, San Francisco, DC and Boston.
While you can certainly earn more as a software engineer outside of Chicago, the report shows that living in cities like Chicago, Austin, Seattle and Denver are attractive landing spots for aspiring technologists when you look at the cost of living.
"Our analysis shows it’s a great time for tech workers to consider a role outside Silicon Valley," Hired said in the report. "Whether looking to stretch their salaries or to be a part of a growing tech hub, companies across the globe are ready and willing to do what it takes to bring great candidates to their markets."
You can read the full report here.
