Software Engineer Salary: Seattle vs Vancouver
Annual median salary comparison (2024). All figures include local currency, USD equivalent, and PPP-adjusted purchasing power.
🇺🇸 Seattle
United States
$175K USD
$175K USD
$175K PPP
Higher Purchasing Power
VS
USD Difference
+115%
Seattle vs Vancouver
🇨🇦 Vancouver
Canada
CA$110K CAD
$81K USD
$99K PPP
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Seattle | Vancouver | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Currency Salary | $175K USD | CA$110K CAD | — |
| USD Equivalent | $175K | $81K | +115% |
| PPP-Adjusted SalaryWINNER | $175K 🏆 | $99K | +76% |
| 25th Percentile | $140K USD | CA$88K CAD | — |
| Median | $175K USD | CA$110K CAD | — |
| 75th Percentile | $219K USD | CA$138K CAD | — |
| Annual Mean | $189K USD | CA$119K CAD | — |
What Does This Mean?
Seattle offers a Software Engineer salary of $175K USD, while Vancouver offers $81K USD — a difference of +115% in raw terms.
After adjusting for purchasing power parity (PPP), Seattle's salary is worth $175K in US purchasing power terms, versus $99K for Vancouver. 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.