Those who have moved to the US, salary in the US compared to the UK

We're not there yet, but have done a budget based on average rental costs, and all other necessary needs, including being able to go out. We've got all this info by visiting and basically asking those who already live in the area we are planning on moving too. I think healthcare costs and amount of cover will depend on the employer.

What are your plans?

PS - The British Expat forums are very handy for this sort of thing

Thanks for answering Taffie.

It (unfortunately) isnt that we are moving over there, it is more that a job is moving from the US over to the UK, which I should have said in my original post.

There are two roles being created, one in the US and one in the UK.

I guess the real question is, how would the same job role salary compare in the UK to the US one. Would you expect the UK wage (on paper) to be say, 50% less than the US one?

It really is a 'how long is a piece of string' questions isnt it ? I am not putting the question across at all right. Stupid fuzzy Sunday morning brain.

Its very hard to tell and depends on a lot of factors.

The website www.salary.com would give you an indication of what you would get paid in the US, but ultimately it depends on the job.

My experience is that you generally get paid more in the US, but you only get 2 days holiday a year, work 8-5 instead of 9-5, less public holidays, medical should be at least 75% paid by the company but in many places you have to contribute 25% which for a single person is about $100 a month, about $275 for a family. All companies over a certian size have ot pay 75% of medical for the induvidual and most do for the entire family but that is not required by law and can make a huge difference if they don't as family medical is well over $1000/month.

The cost of living varies hugely by location. e.g. to live where I live in Boston, a 1-bedroom, 70 sq.m flat costs about $470,000. I could buy the same space 45 mins up the road in Southern NH for about $130,000. Also each state has differing taxes on top of the federal taxes, e.g NH has no state income tax but in MA is is 5%, so salaries need to be 5% higher to compensate. What state is the US company located in? If its MA or NH, I can gve specifica advice as I have lied and worked in both. Anywhere else and I am clueless!

The comparisons would surely be heavily driven by where the jobs are. So in the same way a £50k job gives you a higher standard of living in Lancashire than London, a $80k job will get you more in Kentucky than Manhattan.