[nicolashahn]

I disagree. I'm nothing special as a developer and my disposable income (after rent, food, bills, etc. but not including savings) is more than OP's entire income, just from living in a tech hub and getting paid an average salary here. My work covers most of my health insurance costs, but I don't have a pension (aside from my own investment accounts) though I'd assume OP doesn't either. It's definitely a lucrative choice if you don't have kids, but it still might be even if you do and you're smart about how you live.

[lm28469]

Commute time, working hours, vacation time, job safety, there are many thing to take into consideration.

I'm not saying one is objectively better, it all boils down to personal choices, but it's much more complex than "Go to SV and make 10x the salary".

I worked in mountain view before, now I'm living 300 meters from my office in central Berlin paying <20% of my salary in rent, I'm missing the 365 days of sun but other than that I don't think anything changed for the worse.