Data Scientist Salary: San Diego vs Seattle
Annual median salary comparison (2024). All figures include local currency, USD equivalent, and PPP-adjusted purchasing power.
🇺🇸 San Diego
United States
$170K USD
$170K USD
$170K PPP
VS
USD Difference
-15%
San Diego vs Seattle
🇺🇸 Seattle
United States
$201K USD
$201K USD
$201K PPP
Higher Purchasing Power
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | San Diego | Seattle | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Currency Salary | $170K USD | $201K USD | — |
| USD Equivalent | $170K | $201K | -15% |
| PPP-Adjusted SalaryWINNER | $170K | $201K 🏆 | -15% |
| 25th Percentile | $136K USD | $161K USD | — |
| Median | $170K USD | $201K USD | — |
| 75th Percentile | $213K USD | $252K USD | — |
| Annual Mean | $184K USD | $217K USD | — |
What Does This Mean?
San Diego offers a Data Scientist salary of $170K USD, while Seattle offers $201K USD — a difference of -15% in raw terms.
After adjusting for purchasing power parity (PPP), San Diego's salary is worth $170K in US purchasing power terms, versus $201K for Seattle. This means Seattle offers better real purchasing power for this role.
PPP adjustment accounts for differences in local prices — for example, housing costs 3x more in San Francisco than in Warsaw, so a San Francisco salary needs to be much higher to provide an equivalent standard of living.