Software Engineer Salary: Boston vs Buenos Aires
Annual median salary comparison (2024). All figures include local currency, USD equivalent, and PPP-adjusted purchasing power.
🇺🇸 Boston
United States
$155K USD
$155K USD
$155K PPP
Higher Purchasing Power
VS
USD Difference
+1515%
Boston vs Buenos Aires
🇦🇷 Buenos Aires
Argentina
AR$8.0M ARS
$10K USD
$32K PPP
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Boston | Buenos Aires | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Currency Salary | $155K USD | AR$8.0M ARS | — |
| USD Equivalent | $155K | $10K | +1515% |
| PPP-Adjusted SalaryWINNER | $155K 🏆 | $32K | +384% |
| 25th Percentile | $124K USD | AR$6.4M ARS | — |
| Median | $155K USD | AR$8.0M ARS | — |
| 75th Percentile | $194K USD | AR$10.0M ARS | — |
| Annual Mean | $167K USD | AR$8.6M ARS | — |
What Does This Mean?
Boston offers a Software Engineer salary of $155K USD, while Buenos Aires offers $10K USD — a difference of +1515% in raw terms.
After adjusting for purchasing power parity (PPP), Boston's salary is worth $155K in US purchasing power terms, versus $32K for Buenos Aires. This means Boston 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.