Tech workers’ salaries ranging from $33K to $160K, depending on the city

Tech professionals from San Francisco enjoy the largest salaries in the US, reaching an average of $135,500. But these aren’t the most impressive earnings globally.

Doha, the capital of Qatar, is the top-paying city for tech professionals. Here, annual salaries average almost $160,000, according to an analysis of 28 cities conducted by Business Name Generator.

Doha is a leading technological transformation location that has attracted the likes of Microsoft, Oracle, and Amazon. Data Science workers, the highest-earning profession, can expect a lucrative $451,000 per year.

On the opposing end is Rome, the capital of Italy, where tech professionals earn a quarter of Doha’s average, just $36,000 annually.

US cities dominate the top ten tech salaries, with six entries. San Francisco is second with $135,500.

“Home to Silicon Valley, one of the world’s most famous centers for technological innovation, this US city is known for attracting tech talent from around the world,” the report reads.

Los Angeles and New York took the fourth and fifth places with $117,000.

Washington, Chicago, and Las Vegas are paying tech pros $110,000, $103,000, and $100,000, respectively, taking 7th-9th places.

Tech pros outside the US should also look for the highest salaries in Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Cities with the lowest salaries include Milan and Madrid, with averages of $40,000 or below. Budapest, Bangkok, Barcelona, Seoul, and Paris came up with salaries of $40,000-$50,000 per year, followed by Tokyo and Dublin, offering slightly above that range.

Salary alone doesn’t tell the whole story

Not only do salaries differ worldwide, but the cost of living in the city affects a tech pro’s final disposable income, which is what’s left after essential bills are paid.

Doha still looks like an unbeatable place. With a respectable annual cost of living in the city being reported as $32,911, including rent and utilities, tech workers can pocket $126,626 yearly or $10,550 monthly.

The cost of living in New York is twice as high, leaving tech workers with a disposable income of $50,400, or $4,200 per month.

Still, in all the top ten cities, technology professionals can expect to save $43,732 after necessary expenses or more.

Meanwhile, in Milan, where salaries are the second lowest, and the cost of living almost matches them, the average annual disposable income for tech professionals is left at $6,700, or $560 per month. That was the lowest disposable income among the lowest ten paying cities.

Places analyzed in the study include the world’s top 28 cities, taken from World’s Best Cities index. Average salaries per role for data scientists, software developers, information security analysts, computer systems analysts, and web developers were found using Glassdoor.