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How far do startup salaries stretch outside SF?

  • 1.  How far do startup salaries stretch outside SF?

    Posted 03-30-2023 14:06
    Edited by Brent Devey 03-30-2023 14:07

    Do you adjust employee salary based on their location? 

    Private companies pay the highest salaries in San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, and New York, according to Carta's latest look at the state of startup compensation. But many other cities aren't far off. Base salaries in more than two dozen other metro areas are at least 80% of what they are in San Francisco.


    Part of the reason for pay differentials across metro areas is to account for differences in cost of living. Buying a home and raising a family in San Francisco is a more expensive endeavor than in most other cities. For the 84% of companies on Carta that adjust their compensation by location, doing so aims to tie wages to the local cost of labor and ensure that workers filling the same role in different cities are paid in a way that allows them to achieve similar standards of living. 

    Startup salaries vs. cost of living

    The chart below ranks cities with at least 75% of San Francisco's base salaries from least to most affordable for startup workers, using the following metrics:

    • % San Francisco salaries: The average percent of San Francisco salaries that startup employees receive in each metro, according to Carta Total Comp data.
    • % San Francisco cost of living: The average percent each metro scored in three proxies for cost of living and spending power: median household income, median gross rent, and the EPI's family budget calculator.
    • SCI score: The differential between each city's percent of San Francisco salaries and its average percent of San Francisco's cost of living.

    Metro % SF salaries % SF cost of living
    SCI score
    San Francisco 100% 100% 0
    San Jose 100% 99% 1
    Oxnard, CA 85% 73% 12
    San Diego 91% 76% 15
    Santa Maria, CA 86% 70% 16
    Boston 94% 77% 17
    Seattle 100% 79% 21
    Tampa 75% 53% 22
    Washington, DC 97% 74% 23
    Boulder 92% 69% 23
    Las Vegas 75% 52% 23
    Nashville 80% 55% 25
    Denver 91% 65% 26
    Orlando 80% 54% 26
    Minneapolis 85% 58% 27
    Atlanta 84% 57% 27
    Phoenix 81% 54% 27
    New York 100% 72% 28
    Los Angeles 94% 65% 29
    Portland 93% 64% 29
    Charlotte 85% 56% 29
    Austin 91% 61% 30
    Bridgeport 85% 55% 30
    Salt Lake City 84% 53% 31
    San Antonio 80% 47% 33
    Philadelphia 86% 52% 34
    Baltimore 85% 51% 34
    Provo, UT 80% 46% 34
    Chicago 92% 56% 36
    Dallas 87% 51% 36
    Miami 90% 53% 37
    Houston 88% 48% 40
    St. Louis 85% 44% 41
    Cleveland 85% 37% 48

    View the underlying chart data and methodology.

    Read the entire city-by-city guide here: https://carta.com/blog/startup-salaries-cost-of-living/



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    Colleen Lowder
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