At least in Google they pay almost all of the health insurance. Taxes are slightly lower. So yes you can save a lot. It is very suburban so you will have a larger house then London, but it is not a city. Prices for apartments/houses are high, but you can find something that doesn't eat the whole salary and if you buy a house you hopefully can sell it for more later.
I was a bit shocked at first how dated silicon valley looks at least compared to the price. And the commute is soul killing. Public transport is worse then British trains, with the added problem that the stations are in useless places.
But the weather is great and the job opportunities for software engineers are fantastic. Dating also sucks I have heard.
All the top tech companies will cover the health insurance bill. This does not come out of your compensation. You do not get taxed on this benefit.
Taxes in California are high, though not higher than in the UK.
Bigger house? Better schools for kids? Not really. Maybe if you're in the top 5% of engineers.
Holidays? You can do pretty much anything you want anywhere you want for holiday. Almost everywhere in the world is cheap compared to living costs in the Bay Area.
It depends on the level you're talking about. At the lower levels, then the difference might be spent on rent. (Although it's not like London is a cheap place to live.) At the higher levels, this is obviously going to be totally swamped by the absolute differences. If you take home $300k/y and a holiday in St Moritz is a priority, it is certainly affordable. (Although honestly it's not that great of a ski resort, even if it is posh. Come check out Colorado and Utah.)
A lot goes to rent/mortgage and taxes (US salaries are quoted pre-tax, in the income bands under discussion the marginal tax rate is around 50%), but especially for two-income households there's plenty left over for nice vacations. I prefer Zermatt, personally.
As sibling notes, all of these firms pay nearly all insurance costs for the employee. Employee contribution will be a few tens of dollars per month typically.
I was a bit shocked at first how dated silicon valley looks at least compared to the price. And the commute is soul killing. Public transport is worse then British trains, with the added problem that the stations are in useless places.
But the weather is great and the job opportunities for software engineers are fantastic. Dating also sucks I have heard.