| Absolutely, I like it a lot! I am from Austria and moved here 2.5 years ago. In between I lived in Dublin, Ireland for 1.5 years (can't recommend unless you like rain). The main reason I moved to SF and why I also see myself here for the foreseeable future is the job market. No other place in the world can match the density of exciting tech companies of the SF Bay Area. I LOVE my job but if I would not, then there would be tons of other interesting companies I could work for. If you’re a good engineer, then you can basically choose which company to work for (assuming you’re good at the interviewing game). Recruiters reach out all the time, and over time you will also build up a network of friends at other companies. All these exciting opportunities attract great talent from all over, and companies try hard to attract and retain that talent. It’s a lot of fun to work on a strong team! The other thing that’s fairly unique to the Bay Area is the high total compensation for engineers. Based on what I hear and read, I would assume that the TC for a regular engineer with a few years of experience is at least $300k on average. AFAIK that’s impossible to find outside of the US, and only in a few other places inside the US (Seattle, NYC). Also, since the Bay Area is home to a lot of fast growing companies, the potential financial upside is huge if you're lucky enough to choose such a company! The best advice I can give is to choose the company you work for carefully. Ensure the business has the right trajectory, the hiring bar is high, and the compensation is fair. The city itself has been discussed here and elsewhere extensively. I agree with many of the points but overall I quite enjoy it. I live in a nice neighborhood (Inner Sunset) and for me the job market far outweighs the downsides of living here. At the moment I can not imagine moving back to Europe. In the end, it depends on what you’re looking for and which set of trade offs is the right one for you. |