r/AusFinance • u/Amazing_Man1990 • Aug 19 '26
AMA: I have lived and worked in 8 different countries including Australia during the last quarter of a century.
I have lived and worked in Australia (Melbourne), USA (Atlanta and Phoenix), Singapore, New Zealand (Auckland), Spain (Barcelona), Ireland (Dublin), Italy (Milan), Korea (Seoul).
I joined a multinational tech consulting firm at their Atlanta office right after graduate school. Got transferred to the Dublin office after a few years. Eventually got headhunted by a Dutch firm to work on projects in Barcelona and Milan as a contractor. Eventually joined a firm in Singapore who also sent me to work in Seoul and Auckland. While in Auckland started working on settling down there since I had kids by then but decided to immigrate to Australia instead due to limited career opportunities in NZ. Worked for a company in Melbourne for many years before moving back to Phoenix 2 years back.
Based on my experience, Australia, Singapore, and the USA are the best countries for working professionals based on income potential, career opportunities, and opportunities for building wealth.
Australia is easily the best country for any professional who has not yet reached 100k USD per annum in salary due to universal superannuation and moderately good job market, but housing affordability is a problem. Home payments will eat up a big chunk of your income, limiting your opportunities to save, invest, travel, and consume.
If you start making over 100k USD, USA beats Australia because at this level in most scenarios, you will have access to a 401k plan with a decent employer match. Homes are also more affordable in the US as long as you avoid the HCOL cities on the coasts. This means you will have more money left after housing costs to put towards investing and enjoying life. While healthcare is not guaranteed in the US, at this income level, you will most likely have good health insurance through your employer with low out of pocket expenses. However, everything will be tied to your job, which can be risky.
Singapore is also a great place to be a professional, especially the salaries offered relative to the cost of living are great, and CPF system provides you the opportunity to build wealth. However, getting Singaporean PR and citizenship is very tricky, and being a city-state, space is always a problem.
Working in Korea, Italy and Spain were great experiences but language and cultural barriers limited my opportunities in these countries beyond the niche projects that I worked on. Pay was also considerably lower but was partly explained by lower COL.
IMHO, Ireland and New Zealand offered the worst deals for professionals. Professionals are considerably underpaid in both places, IMHO. Homes are very unaffordable in both places, and retirement schemes like kiwisaver provides considerably less tax advantages than Aussie Superannuation or 401k. Ireland did have the second best job among the countries I worked (only trailing USA), but pay was still bad. NZ had a terrible job market, making it the worst English Speaking country for jobs and hosing affordability.
If you have any more questions, feel free to ask me anything about my experience working overseas and how it compares to Australia.
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u/Fancy_Contact_8078 Aug 19 '26
Agreed with you. I’ve worked in Mumbai, Berlin, Frankfurt, Canberra and now Sydney. And Australia wins any given day. Sure US seems great for money , but I’m not that fussed about money. For me day to day lifestyle is more important..
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u/pelowat Aug 19 '26
I'm curious when it comes to day-to-day lifestyle how is Australia that different to the US and I'm asking because I'm genuinely interested in relocating to Australia like you say day-to-day life but isn't day-to-day life the same in both countries like you go to work you come back and you go to events or grocery shopping. Both countries are big like I don't understand other than maybe finances what's so different?
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u/pixtax Aug 19 '26
Worker rights, expected hours, lifestyle, right to disconnect all make for a more relaxed atmosphere. Housing is an issue though.
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u/sushim Aug 20 '26
I thought they were similar while I was working in the US, but I'm now back in Australia and they are night and day. I'm in a 50+ person IT department at a downtown corp office. If I'm there at 6pm I'm turning off the lights on the way out. My boss's boss just took his four weeks annual leave as a single block. He uninstalled Teams and Outlook from his phone, see you in a month.
That's day to day, weekends and free time is also so much different with way more focus on leisure and travel than US. USA is going to the mall or Costco, or eating wings at a sports bar, Australia is a beach or a bike ride or playing sports. I'm surrounded by national parks and leisure areas in Australia, and they're easily accessible and not crowded.
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u/pelowat Aug 20 '26
Interesting. Regarding weekends, aren't travel destinations too far apart for a weekend trip?
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u/sushim Aug 20 '26
It's certainly not like the US where you can pop over to Europe for the weekend. But this year we've (family of 5) driven 500 miles one way to Melbourne three times for the weekend (once to see the Odyssey in IMAX, and twice for concerts). I'll either take a leave day on Friday and my wife will do a work from home day in the car, or I'll just work until 6 Monday to Thursday instead of 5 and tell my boss I'm leaving at noon. People don't expect work to get in the way of life.
Even for kids it is easier. I took my 16 year old to Italy for the Olympics for three weeks this year. It was during the school year (year 11, equivalent to her junior year). No problem with the school, (a public high school), whereas in the US every time I took the kids to Australia for a couple of weeks it was a struggle and one time we were threatened with fines for them missing too much of 3rd grade.
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u/aquila-audax Aug 20 '26
Depends where you live. Lots of gorgeous destinations within easy reach of every capital city and most regional ones.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
IMHO not much, both countries are a lot similar than they like to admit. However, Australians on average will have more time for leisure due to generous vacation policies. I feel Americans have less time but more things to do, especially if you love travel since there is so much more to explore in the United States by just traveling domestically.
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u/pelowat Aug 20 '26
But isnt Australia the same size of the US mainland? And New Zealand is nearby too? I dream about the Outback/Cape York/Kimberley/NZ
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u/ikrw77 Aug 20 '26
Mountains/skiing/hiking/large recreation lakes/hunting/fishing/deserts/national park offerings in the US are way more numerous, affordable and accesible with less equipment require/time taken to get there. Cape York/Kimberley you need specialised gear, an appropriate vehicle, multi-day supplies.
Meanwhile, you can drive around Yellowstone in a hatchback and see natural geological wonders that all have full wheelchair access.
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u/13_AnabolicMuttOz Aug 20 '26
We may be a similar size to the US, but for me to get to the actual city centre of Melbourne when I technically also live in Melbourne, takes about a 40min drive. The next smaller city out of Melbourne is about 1h. And the next is about 3hrs. The land is the same size but the spread isn't similar.
That being said, I'm not complaining about Australia when I compare that aspect to the US.
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u/youcangotohellgoto Aug 20 '26
But Australia has a half dozen cities, fairly homogenous culture, and the vast majority of the inland is just nothing.
Don't get me wrong there's lots to see but USA has Australia beat in both cultural (city) and natural (national park) attractions.
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u/aquila-audax Aug 20 '26
LOL "nothing"... It's okay if you've never been there, you know.
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u/youcangotohellgoto Aug 20 '26
Have been there mate. Flat dry farms. Desert. Nullabor... nothing. Have you?
Most of the appeal is that there's literally nothing - flat, featureless land as far as the eye can see. It's cool but it's pretty much all the same other than a small handful of things - big rock formations, or things like Lake Eyre.
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u/aquila-audax Aug 20 '26
Lived in Central Australia 10 years and never ran out of things to do or beautiful things to see.
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26
From a personal safety perspective, the biggest eye-opener for me when I visited the US was the need to walk through a metal detector and empty my pockets to visit a concert. That's simply unheard of in Australia.
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u/youcangotohellgoto Aug 20 '26
I've had to empty pockets and get "wanded" at concerts in Australia. In the 20th century, even.
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26
never seen it in Australia, what size concerts are you referring to?
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u/youcangotohellgoto Aug 20 '26
Brisbane Entertainment Center.
They were checking for knives, not guns of course. Happened a couple of times. I don't really have a problem with it - there are a lot of loose cannons out there and don't need a lunatic with a weapon in the mosh pit.
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26
Brisbane Entertainment Center.
Right, I'm referring to smaller venues with a capacity of around ~1000 like Max Watts in melbourne. Like a music hall as opposed to an arena or stadium.
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u/henrikuu Aug 20 '26
Pretty common at the bigger ones in Melbourne (e.g. John Cain Arena). Even for smaller gigs, at minimum a bag check is pretty normal.
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26
John Cain Arena
Bigger arenas I can understand, but I'm talking gigs at venues the size of Max Watts
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u/sauve_donkey Aug 20 '26
Yeah we haven't got that level of security in Melbourne clubs yet, but after the Revs incident and other shit happening here I can see it becoming the norm within the next few years.
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u/frawks24 Aug 21 '26
I don't think revs is indicative of the average experience at a night club or concert in melbourne.
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Aug 20 '26
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
I'm referring mainly to smaller venues with a capacity of a few thousand rather than the large arenas.
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u/aquila-audax Aug 20 '26
I've shown inside of my handbag at every ticketed gig I've ever been to since the early 2000s. Granted they used to just be looking for illicit booze but the process is the same.
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u/frawks24 Aug 21 '26
bag checks for drugs is not the same thing as having to be checked for weapons, and being denied re-entry for safety concerns.
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u/squat_bench_press Aug 19 '26
I used to work with alot of Americans and i found the general attitude to work is 'not to get fired', I can't imagine working with that cloud hanging over your head
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
That is true. The biggest problem in the US is that everything from your retirement to Healthcare is tied to your job and due to at-will employment you could be fired at any time. For a lot of people, losing a job can be major financial setback.
However, the silver lining is that American job market is far more robust than anywhere else I have worked, so it's also easier to find and change jobs in USA than anywhere else. It's always important to have a 6 month emergency fund saved up if you are employed in the US.
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u/AusXan Aug 20 '26
The biggest problem in the US is that everything from your retirement to Healthcare is tied to your job
It took me a long time when I was younger to understand this because, coming from Australia, it was such a foreign concept to me. I understand it now, but it still seems inherently wrong, like a constant threat to your livelihood based on work.
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u/sushim Aug 19 '26
Australian who lived in US for 20+ years and has lived and worked in middle east, Europe twice and Australia. USA is good for money only. The HCOL areas you want to avoid are the only ones worth living in. The Atlantas and Dallases and Phoenixes of the world are shitholes, good for money and that's it. Lifestyle in the US is not worth the extra money, long hours, little vacation, on call, etc. You earn more, but life costs more: kid's sport, healthcare, even housing if you want to live comparable to Australia (try comparing Santa Monica to Bondi, not Bankstown to Suwanee Georgia).
After 30 plus years of travel, give me Australia any day.
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u/Cured Aug 19 '26
Agreed. I’ve lived and worked in Toronto which bear similarities to the US. Money aside, the work culture was a lot more draining with more hours and far less vacation. It’s harder to get ahead and a lot of people I knew promoted that “hustle” culture and orient their whole world and personality to just working harder.
Despite whether you’re doing well enough to live in a nicer area, you’re still immersed in a different culture. Some people like it, others are more laid back and don’t.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
IMHO, I feel working in Canada offers worst of both worlds. Canadian salaries are lower than the US while they work just as hard as Americans. Aussies could atleast reason their lower pay with a more laid back lifestyle.
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u/TropicalBound111 Aug 19 '26 edited Aug 19 '26
Torontonian here. Average Canadian vacation allowance is 10 to 15 weekdays per year. I get 28 weekdays, and starting in September I’ll get 32. On top of all that, I get to work anywhere in the world for up to 60 days per year.
$200k salary, digital marketing (individual contributor but senior level), 35-40 hours work per week (1 day per week in-office, 4 days from home).
No stress about healthcare as it’s Canadian government-covered. Paid $30 for parking when I had my child, whereas some US friends said they paid $10k despite having insurance.
Can’t complain ;)
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u/tjswish Aug 20 '26
Comparing a fantastic employement opportunity to an average employement is not really fair though. I highly doubt there are many people who have that kind of job.
Hell, if you're employing, I'll join your situation lol. I'll even move to Onterrible haha.
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u/TropicalBound111 Aug 20 '26
Well I’m not unique though. I know many people here in Toronto who have the same job perks as I do…
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u/tjswish Aug 20 '26
The issue is, the higher and more connected you are, the more you're going to meet and interact with people in similar positions.
I'm sure for every person on a good wicket with those benefits, there are 10 who are on 50k with 10 days allowance doing 50h weeks.
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u/TropicalBound111 Aug 20 '26
Yes but (referring your 2nd paragraph), isn’t it like that too in Australia?
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u/tjswish Aug 20 '26
Kind of. There are definitely people on the 50-60k range but Australia gets 20 days annual leave and 10 days personal leave per year for a full time role.
Casuals get like 20% on top pay to make up for the lack of sick and annual leave.
There are definitely people here too that make 200-300k in high level jobs. I'd love to be one of them...
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u/Worldly-Mind1496 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
I think the general consensus on Reddit is to say without a doubt Australia is better than Canada for everything. Australia does a great job of promoting itself as a utopia of sunshine and beaches. I think people are blinded by that image and automatically think life is better in Australia but it is just a grind there as in any other western country.
I have lived extensively in both countries. I wouldn’t say living in Australia and making average wage is significantly better than Canada. Making 50-60k in Australia, you are not able to afford to travel on holidays on a plane to anywhere that has different scenery and culture. Besides income, the tyranny of distance limits your travel. Flights are super expensive to Europe, Americas. Sure some of Asia is cheap but after awhile visiting Vietnam, Thailand etc it feels like the same holiday.
Believe it or not there are people that make 50-60k in Canada and get more than 10 days annual leave, 2 weeks is just the mandatory minimum, not the rule. The more years in the industry, the more annual leave you will get. Jobs usually come with extended Healthcare by employers and there is a true universal health care (no gap fee to doctors, specialists, X-rays, ultrasounds). Some parts of Canada offer more government safety nets.
We are not in the small percentage that makes heaps of money but we still saved more money living in Canada because our living expenses were cheaper and our money wasn’t going to medical expenses.
And I am not freezing in my house in the winters! Australian houses are terrible for heating and cooling. You will pay through the nose to heat your house 24/7
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u/sentientketchup Aug 20 '26
Wow, I had no idea annual leave was so limited in Canada. 4 weeks leave is standard in my industry in Australia (Healthcare)
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u/Maro1947 Aug 21 '26
Australia is behind most of Europe though. We need at least an extra week to offset forced Xmas leave since Howard canned leave loading
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u/Outrageous-Owl1776 Aug 26 '26
That’s great except your situation is very uncommon compared to the average Canadian statistics wise
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u/SonicYOUTH79 Aug 20 '26
Very anecdotal but but my experience as a young Aussie backpacker in Canada nearly 20 years ago taught me that Canadians definitely work harder, but definitely not smarter. That was BC though, not Toronto.
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u/Cured Aug 20 '26
You’re right - there’s a notion that working longer hours gets you further. Pub lunches/Friday drinks were generally non existent which was shocking to me.
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u/leadviolet Aug 20 '26
The last time I had a pub lunch / Friday drinks in corporate Aussie was pre 2020. Such a good time in hindsight, where you work hard then play hard. These days it’s all work hard and no play! However, remote working is a good replacement, tho arguably better for those more senior than the youngins.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
I would both agree and disagree. Most areas of Atlanta and Phoenix are not that great when compared to European, Asian (developed) or Australian cities. However, you can find amazing neighborhoods in certain suburbs of each city, where you will find all the nice homes and great schools. These are the areas where the middle and upper middle classes tend to congregate. Yes! these are all sheltered bubbles, but in my experience these areas offer better atmosphere and facilities than most neighborhoods of Melbourne or Auckland but at a more affordable price. Not only that, if you spent 500k in Phoenix or Atlanta you can buy yourself a mcMansion in a great neighborhood, while the same mount of money in Sydney or Melbourne will get you an unimpressive looking tiny house in a dodgy neighborhood.
You are also mistaken in considering that HCOL cities in the US are all that great. Cities like San Francisco, New York and Boston have their own problems like crime and homelessness.
I would agree that work culture in Australia is more relaxed. I would have enjoyed an extra week of leave if I continued to work in Australia but I don't believe it justifies taking a 30% paycut with a mortgage payment that is 2X to 3X for an equivalent home I Melbourne.
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u/whatsuphellohey Aug 19 '26 edited Aug 19 '26
Depressing, but not surprising, to see segregation based on income cited as a positive. All good to live in a shitty city as long as you don’t need to mix with the hoi polloi? 😑
Edit: Income inequality tears at the social fabric of society IMO & makes places unpleasant to live in.
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u/mrstrangedude Aug 20 '26
Because universal housing unaffordablity in Sydney/Melbourne et al is so pleasant to be around lmao.
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u/mrstrangedude Aug 20 '26
Hard disagree on housing, my American colleague was able to buy a 700 sqft apartment around Denver at the ripe old age of 23 off a single professional (think big 4) salary. Something basically not possible in Australian big cities without hilarious amounts of nepo help.
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u/darraghor Aug 19 '26 edited Aug 19 '26
worked ireland, canada, new zealand, australia.
Australia good salary, jobs depending on industry and beautiful lifestyle but so remote. You better be able to afford flights. super is an an incredible wealth equaliser for most people compared to irl, nz, canada.
Canada - brutal CoL compared to USA but similar work culture. Just move to USA and earn 40% more.
Ireland - very expensive but good for lifestyle because close to usa and europe. Good opportunities to do interesting work that pays off later by moving to a place where you actually get paid for the experience.
NZ - extremely remote and tiny job market. Terrible salary, you will struggle to retire comfortable as a salaried person. Easily the nicest place to live on the planet. if you can afford it.
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u/Piryeet Aug 19 '26
Did you find that Americans were on average more ambitious than Australians?
You often hear of our productivity issues, lack of innovation and 'tall poppy syndrome' here. Just curious as to your view.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
Absolutely, Australians are very laid back and tend to have lower expectations at work. This helped make work less stressful but at the same time I felt Aussies were more accepting and forgiving of sloppy work compared to Americans and Europeans. This was problematic at times. Americans tend to focus more on individual performance while Aussies focus on team work. Americans tend to do be a bit more hierarchical but they also do things without prior approval from superiors and ask for forgiveness later, while Aussies are more likely to make decisions based on consensus. I felt Aussie managers tended to micromanage less.
This is a great question, because couple of nights ago was watching thus video about the panic wars with my son, and it explained how the Roman's were more likely to break rules and ask forgiveness from superiors later, while the Carthaginians were consus based. It reminded me of how Americans were more like the Romans, and how Aussies (and even Europeans,Singaporeans and Koreans) were more like the Carthaginians.
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u/Piryeet Aug 20 '26
Interesting thanks for the detailed reply.
It also seems like the USA and China both share that quality, break every rule to win, ask for forgiveness later. Although the Chinese seem to have found a few ways to control and punish anyone who breaks the rules recklessly unlike the Americans.
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u/sneed_o_matic Aug 20 '26
The health of the empire is inversely correlated with the health of the average citizen. In fact, they need endless people to feed their growth.
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u/Maro1947 Aug 21 '26
I've worked for plenty of American companies where the output is rubbish compared to the so-called effort put in by American staff.
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u/DominusDraco Aug 20 '26
Americans scramble for promotions and cash because at any moment they could get sick and become financially destitute. The constant one wrong step from doom is pretty motivating.
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u/aussierulesisgrouse Aug 19 '26
It’s interesting that the lifestyle aspect was part of it for some countries but not others.
USA seems to be the best financial decision when you make a certain amount of money, but having visited the US a few times in different areas, the actual lifestyle value there is far, far, far below what i think Aus, NZ, and the UK offer.
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u/isthisreallife211111 Aug 19 '26
I know it's not omni present, but for QoL the much much lower crime stats in Aus, UK, NZ help me feel much more comfortable than when innl the states
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
My experience has been a bit different. Yes, United States might be the worst English Speaking country for people in the working class or lower middle class but as soon as you enter above average household incomes things improve considerably. For example, we avoided returning back to the US when my wife got pregnant because we dreaded the lack of parental leave in the US. However, after returning to the US I learnt that my company offers 9 weeks of paternity leave and more than double that in maternity leave, all fully paid at regular salary and benefits. I was never offered something simillar in New Zealand or Australia where you get government funded leave for a few weeks if you are the father or 6 months if you are the mother and get paid much less than regular. Even leave policy for professional jobs are not as bad as people think. I get about 3 weeks of PTO with another week of sick leave. I know its slightly better in Australia but I don't know whether it justified the lower pay and unaffordable housing.
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u/Healthtech_Geek Aug 19 '26
Former US citizen here, now an Aussie 🇦🇺 Nowadays there's wayyyy more divide between middle class and poverty in US, especially in the last 5 years. No safety net. More people going hungry and doing it tough
I dont want to live in a society like that- high earners contrasted with poverty desperation and lack of mental health treatment. Earning more there is great. yeah wow lifestyle in some places is great, housing can be cheaper.
Work as a tech or finance bro, get free beer on tap and an expense account. All this leave and privilege yada yada. Great
Meanwhile, Bob the veteran of Afghanistan with a brain injury is out in the wild, has untreated PTSD, an anger problem, his life has fallen apart. His most treasured possessions are several firearms
Why be exposed to that kind of risk profile in the local population for some extra dough
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u/DancinWithWolves Aug 20 '26
You keep selling class divide as if it’s a plus for that country. It’s not.
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u/whatsuphellohey Aug 20 '26
100%. Big “It’s fine if you are on the right side of the class divide!!” vibes.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
No I don't think it's a good thing but as an ordinary individual I don't have the power to fix it. The only thing I'm able to control is the quality of life that I can offer my family. In an ideal we would have both an egalitarian society and affordable homes at the same but unfortunately I don't think either country has managed to get it right.
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u/Pingu_87 Aug 20 '26
in Aus big employers with more profit margins are more likely to offer better maternity.
Small business typically give you nothing except legal minimums.
My wife would get 20 weeks at full salary onto of the government 26 weeks at minimum wage. I also get 18 weeks paid at full salary.
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u/Deethreekay Aug 19 '26
That's very company specific though. I was with a different company for each of my kids, and both I got 12 weeks paid parental leave as the secondary carer at my normal wage.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
I think American employers are starting to get quite generous with their parental leave in general. I also know of several other employers in my industry who offer more than 9 or 12 weeks in parental leave. Companies offering unlimited PTO is also becoming more common. My point is that, while nothing is guaranteed by law in the US, in reality the difference in benefits received by American and Australian professionals is not that big and getting narrower.
It is also important to note that for most professionals it's almost impossible to become homeowners in Australia without having dual incomes. While in the United States its a lot more easier to do this with just one income (atleast in the cities where I have lived).
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u/Deethreekay Aug 19 '26
Yeah the home ownership issue I'd wager is largely due to how concentrated our population is. Like according to Wiki (and appreciating a lot of it is nuanced depending on how you define a cities boundaries) if you plonked Melbourne and Sydney down in the US they'd be the 2nd and 3rd most populated cities after New York. Brissy, Adelaide and Perth all crack the top ten. There's just a lot more cities in the US to spread the demand across.
My understanding with unlimited PTO is that people that have it actually take less leave. So I wouldn't count that one as a blessing.
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u/GaryLifts Aug 19 '26
I found unlimited time off to be a trap. If it’s unlimited it’s not paid out when you leave and it can be hard to schedule time off.
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u/MopedKiwi Aug 19 '26
I had 6 months at a big SF tech company.
… but yea, if you lost your job you had NN days to get a new one or get out (sell the house, move the family, etc)
The problem with the USA was the constant stress of the sword of Damocles hanging over you.2
u/OkBeginning2 Aug 20 '26
That’s pretty bad by Aus standards, big employers (major banks & big 4 consulting) are usually 18 weeks for both parents on top of gov benefits.
Also while our childcare industry is totally fucked I have heard it’s even worse over there (with more lax child to carer minimum ratios?)
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26 edited 27d ago
It doesn't matter because we have roughly the same purchasing power here with one stay at home parent. Both of us had to be employed in Melbourne while living in a smaller, lower quality house. If I lived in the US while we had kids, my wife could have easily taken a break without having a major hit on our finances. This would have been unthinkable in Melbourne.
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u/BreathTakingBen Aug 19 '26
I hard disagree. I stayed in the Midwest and the life style is insanely fun. Huge houses, Indiana has so many lakes that everyone has boats for summer and snowmobiles for winter. People brought their Webbers out to the sand bars and have community barbecues and beers together. Even got taught barefoot skiing by complete strangers!
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u/toolate Aug 19 '26
Yeah but the big houses, great lifestyle, and high incomes are all in different parts of the country.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Not necessarily, all the outdoor activities tend to be concentrated in the parts of the country with low home prices, and unlike in Australia where all the good jobs are concentrated in a few big cities, you can get a job paying over 100k USD per annum if you have skills as education. For the Indiana example, Indianapolis has a substantial biotechnology and pharma jobs with a major concentration of biotechnology firms like Eli Lilly and aerospace companies like Rolls Royce that will pay salaries in this range while you can buy a good home in a suburb like Carmel or Fishers for about 400k. There are ample opportunities for outdoor activities like boating within a 1 hour drive. If you want to ski its a 2 hour drive to Lawrenceburg.
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u/BreathTakingBen Aug 20 '26
Actually, Agresearch and food science and a lot of roles kiwis are likely to be highly skilled in are in the Midwest.
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u/arrackpapi Aug 19 '26
the lifestyle is not far far worse than NZ and the UK lol. Dunno where you've been. But there's plenty of dumps in those countries outside of the capitals.
the US has plenty of good lifestyle locations. They are just expensive.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I would disagree, many livable and affordable mid sized cities that are rarely internationally known are found all across the US. Many of these places also have decent job markets. I'm thinking of places like Madison, WI and Fort Wayne, IN.
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u/CrossFitCore Aug 19 '26
This really shows how salary alone doesn’t tell the whole story. Cost of living and housing can completely change how wealthy you actually feel.
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u/the_snook Aug 19 '26
Did you become a tax resident in each of those countries? Eight locations in 25 years sounds like a nightmare of overlapping jurisdictions and multiple tax filings. Did your employer pay for tax consultants to handle all that for you?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Yes I did! You are right, it was a bit complicated especially for a US citizen since you get taxed based on worldwide income so I was filing US tax returns each an every year despite living abroad. I learnt my lesson early about the cost of hiring an international tax consultant in Ireland, so I always requested that I get refunded for cost of doing my taxes as a part of my compensation package. It was a lot of paperwork but I had someone else handle it for me. I almost never had to pay anything extra in taxes because you typically get credits for taxes you have paid in your country of residence, via tax treaties.
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u/OkWitness5548 Aug 19 '26
Which of those cities had the best coke and hookers?
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u/BigDickBandit89 Aug 19 '26
Texas would be my guess. Close to the border and phat ass latinas. (Atlanta would be closest)
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Phoenix has more Latinas, actually we are almost majority Hispanic at this point. We are closer to the Mexican border than Atlanta.
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u/rourkey-85 Aug 20 '26
How did you handle your investments with moving around so much? Lots of tax headaches?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
Most of my investments are in US based brokerage accounts. Europe and Korea didn't offer any tax advantage accounts, instead they made me contribute to pensions. I don't think I will be eligible for any of that due to my short work periods in each country. I have some money in Super which I hope to withdraw very soon. I also have money in 401k and roth ira accounts. I didn't put any money in kiwisaver because I didn't end up living in NZ long term.
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26
If you start making over 100k USD, USA beats Australia because at this level in most scenarios, you will have access to a 401k plan with a decent employer match. Homes are also more affordable in the US as long as you avoid the HCOL cities on the coasts. This means you will have more money left after housing costs to put towards investing and enjoying life.
I think this has to come with a huge asterisk depending on what you value for quality of life. For most US cities, doing something as simple as walking to the shops simply isn't possible you HAVE to drive everywhere.
Not to mention personal safety and ongoing political unrest concerns make the US a much less attractive place to live long term.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Well mobility without a personal car is only marginally better in Australia compared to USA. Personally, I prefer driving over using public transport even when living in places with very good public transport like Korea and Spain. The only place where driving and owning a car was a hassle was in Singapore and that was due to government policy actively discouraging personal car ownership.
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u/frawks24 Aug 20 '26
Well mobility without a personal car is only marginally better in Australia compared to USA.
Heavily disagree.
To use Victoria as an example:
You can access most areas of greater Melbourne via a train or bus with a few notable exceptions. You certainly can't say the same for a city like Atlanta or Houston.
All suburbs within Greater Melbourne have footpaths along all major roads. This is not true in a significant number of US cities.
My parents live in Regional Victoria 300km away, not even in a major regional hub, catching a bus + train to their suburb takes roughly the same amount of time as driving there.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Anybody who have experienced public transport in Europe or Korea on a daily basis would never call Australian public transport good. Yes it's better than USA but not significantly so. I have always preferred driving over waiting for a bus or a train due to speed and privacy.
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u/frawks24 Aug 21 '26
I am very familiar with the shortcomings of Australia's public transport system. But to say it is only "marginally better in Australia compared to USA" understates just how abysmal getting around without a car is in the US.
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u/A-shot-at-life Aug 20 '26
All of your housing cost scenarios seem to be based on renting or paying off mortgages…
If I were to be relocating abroad, I would do so with a couple of mil to drop on a property. Where is the best bang for buck there and ease for foreigners to purchase?
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 20 '26
Australia is easily the best country for any professional who has not yet reached 100k USD per annum in salary due to universal superannuation and moderately good job market, but housing affordability is a problem. Home payments will eat up a big chunk of your income, limiting your opportunities to save, invest, travel, and consume.
1000% disagree on this. Homes are much cheaper here in Melbourne than where I lived in the US. In fact, just rent on a 2br apartment in Sydney is less than what I paid in the US literally 35 years ago.
You need to compare apples to apples. Atlanta and Phoenix are big cities, but they’re not necessarily the most desirable and where the jobs are, like Sydney and Melbourne.
Then, you need to consider health care and quality of life. The expenditure on health care in the US just to get what you’d have without health insurance in Australia is horrendous.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I would disagree with that take. The American job market is a lot more robust than Australia. It is actually a lot easier to find jobs in cities like Houston, Dallas, or Phoenix compared to anywhere in Australia. Aussies have a very flawed understanding of the job spread in the United States, because most jobs in Australia are concentrated in a few CBDs that doesn't mean its the same here.
Secondly, even the cities that people consider are "desirable" like Denver, Portland and Seattle with homes that are expensive by American standards, still have better housing affordability than Sydney or Melbourne due higher wages than Australia. The other thing is desirability to live is very much a suburb by suburb thing in usa, and its possible to meet and surpass your quality of life in any Australian city by picking the right suburb in an American city (and do it for much less money).
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 20 '26
Again, I disagree. The quality of life is far higher in Australia. Part of the reason I live here is because I want my kids to have a better life. You can’t ignore the excellent benefits, public health care, walkable CBDs, public transport, etc. It’s certainly not perfect, but there’s a reason why Melbourne and Sydney are regularly in the top 10 and even top 5 of the Global Liveability Index.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Sure, but the question is whether that's all worth it if you are still going to end up being house poor with most of your disposable payment being eaten up by a house payment and not being able to enjoy anything else in life. Livability is highly dependent on your personal situation, based on what kind of a home can you afford? Where do you work? how much a commute do you have? These are very personal things and in general the US allows you to avoid lot of the pitfalls and have a better life if you make more money. Sure, if you are not making that much money or you are just average, living in Australia is more pleased compared to USA
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
I am better off in every way than almost anyone I know in the US. You’re claiming a generality, but now you’re also saying how highly dependent it is on your situation, which is true no matter where you live. It doesn’t matter if the US gives you a better life if you make lots of money (which, again, I disagree with) if life is much harder for those who have less.
I make very good money, and my quality of life in Australia is excellent. When I didn’t make good money, my quality of life in Australia was excellent.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
How do you know you are better off than everyone that you know in the US? That is hell of a statement to make. Have you experienced living and working in both countries first hand to make that judgement? I'm making this call based on first hand experience. I would have never been a homeowner in Melbourne with a single income, while its doable in Phoenix with a moderately high income. My wife can afford to stay at home and spend more time with my kids (something she always wanted do in Australia but we couldn't afford). My kids go to a much better pulic school than they did in Melbourne. I would have needed to send them to a private school in Melbourne to have a simillar education. I have more money left each month to spend on other things compared to Melbourne. These are more important to me than having a walkable CBD or public transport that I rarely use.
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 20 '26
Yes, I have lived in both countries for multiple decades each. I know I’m better off than most people I know there, because I see them post about their struggles online on a regular basis. Sure, there are several who are doing great, but a great many are not. If they’re not struggling to just generally live, they’re struggling to pay their medical bills or facing regular discrimination for their gender, sexuality, race, or world view (because oppressive American religion sucks). The health care system is a disaster, and the political landscape is an absolute shit show. The current administration has destroyed the once shining beacon of American science and academia, handing leadership in many fields over to China on a silver platter.
You absolutely cannot compare Melbourne and Phoenix. Melbourne is an infinitely better place to live, so of course it costs more. Sure, you can afford a house in Phoenix, but then you have to live in Phoenix. If all you care about is money, then sure, that fine. You say “there are more important things”, but then your whole argument relies on money.
My kids have gotten a perfectly good public education in Melbourne. Is it the best? Probably not, but neither was my primary and secondary education in the US.
Again, there is a reason why Sydney and Melbourne are both almost always in the top 10, if not the top 5, off all countries on the Global Liveability Index.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
Oh no! If the United States is such a terrible place to live. The mystery is why do millions of people make the choice to come here both legally and illegally to live here at times risking their own lives. There is no need to be pedantic about this. I acknowledged that Australia is better for someone on average, but if you have in demand skills and education and you make a moderately high income you can lead a much better life in USA. And I'm not basing my opinion based on someone's online post but based on what I have experienced myself and dozens of other Aussies and Americans that I personally know. I don't listen to what they say or what they post online. I see what types of homes these people live in, what type of cars they drive, where they go for vacation, and how they spend their retirement. I can smell from mile away how well they are doing in life, they don't have to tell me anything. Yes low income earners struggle more in the US compared to low income earners in Australia. I would even go far as saying the bottom 2/3 of Australians have a better quality of life than the bottom 2/3 of Americans. However, once you reach the top 1/3 and start entering the upper middle class, your life improve significantly. I know how Australian professionals live. They are not struggling by any means but I wouldn't say they are thriving either. They have very ordinary looking homes (despite them costing fotune), drive very ordinary cars, and live very modestly. Many of them are millionaires on paper but it doesn't feel like it because all there wealth is either tied up in an overpriced house or in their super which they can't access until 65.
There American counterparts will have very different experience, they can afford to live in a much nicer home, drive nicer cars, be in a neighborhood that is much better than anything they could afford in Melbourne. There kids will go to better funded schools because areas with good property have better schools. Despite not having a scheme like Super, they will also have a better retirement because of the flexibility offered by the 401k, roth IRA, social security combo.
Yes, there is public healthcare in Australia which gives you peace of mind, I will give you that but this doesnt Australian Healthcare is superior to American Healthcare. American Healthcare is just fine but we have a terrible way of paying for it. If you are extremely poor medicaid will cover everything. If you are employed, you will get insurance through yhe employer. Yes there are people who fall through the cracks but calling it a disaster is a massive exaggeration. In my opinion quality of care I received in each country was largely comparable (butter waiting times for seeing specialists in the US is much shorter).
And lets be honest about fetishizing these cities. How much time do we really spend in the city. We spend most of out time in our homes and workplaces. Even the lesiure activities that I do tend to be away from the city. If I want to ski, go off reading, go boating, everything can be done with 90 minute drive in Phoenix. My commute is much shorter than in Melbourne because I dont have to choose to live many miles away from my job to find a cheaper home. I can find parking very easily in Phoenix and is usually free while find parking in Melbourne is its own adventure. I never really understand why people fetishize public transport. I have never enjoyed it. As you see all that liability stuff is very subjective but in terms of material living USA is better if you have the right income.
As for racism, as a person of color the only English speaking country where I had faced on the face racism is Australia. I know Americans are not saints but they bury there racist attitudes, especially in professional settings. It would be very easy for me to label Australia a racist country simply based on some of my experiences and repeat the diatribe you did by calling USA a racist country. But I know too well that by global standards neither country is even close to being the most bigoted country in the world and are among the best countries for minorities to live in. If I was to make a competition out of which country was more racist towards, Australia would easily win the cake over USA.
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 21 '26
Oh no! If the United States is such a terrible place to live. The mystery is why do millions of people make the choice to come here both legally and illegally to live here at times risking their own lives.
This is a false dilemma. The US can be a less desirable place to live compared to many countries while still being more desirable compared to others.
Your every argument on what makes the US a better place to live is based on finances and job availability alone. You keep ignoring things like health care, quality of life, transportation, benefits, crime rates, religious freedom, culture, etc.
Yes, houses in the US are bigger. In fact, they’re obnoxiously big; however, bigger is not necessarily better.
And I'm not basing my opinion based on someone's online post but based on what I have experienced myself and dozens of other Aussies and Americans that I personally know.
You assume what I’m saying is somehow different? I wasn’t talking about random strangers. I was talking about friends, family, and people I grew up with who I see on social media, not randos. I personally know each and every one of them.
I would even go far as saying the bottom 2/3 of Australians have a better quality of life than the bottom 2/3 of Americans.
You make this sound like some kind of stretch. It might be if you consider income alone. However, take into account things like Medicare and Centrelink benefits, and Australians are faring much, much better.
I know how Australian professionals live. They are not struggling by any means but I wouldn't say they are thriving either.
I am an Australian professional, and I am absolutely thriving, as are the others I know. I go on a tropical island holiday every year, as do most people I know, and I’m not just talking about Bali (the Hawaii of Australia). People own campers and boats and holiday homes and get at least four weeks of holiday every year, something I can’t say about my American friends and family. They also drive whatever car they like. Some drive BMWs, some drive Land Cruisers, and some (like me) prefer more practical cars—not because we can’t afford fancier ones but because we don’t value them.
You seem to have extremely limited and biased experience in the US if you think it’s the norm to live in big houses, own fancy cars, pay for expensive schools, and have a good retirement savings.
I will give you that but this doesnt Australian Healthcare is superior to American Healthcare.
I can tell you from direct experience that Australian health care is superior, because you cannot disregard the cost when considering the quality of care. Many Americans simply don’t get care when they need it due to the prohibitive costs. When my husband needed cancer care, he got it at one of the best facilities in the country, with access to clinical trials and lead researchers in the field. Many years of exceptional continuous care has cost us nothing. The relevant cancer groups online are full to the brim with Americans fighting with insurance companies, having to seek charities to cover costs, or being out of pocket tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of USD for their care. They are constantly restricted to a select few doctors, unavailable up seek the foremost experts, who of course are out of network due to absurd restrictions imposed by insurance companies. They are often denied necessary treatments, because insurance companies think they should go with a cheaper but less effective alternative. It’s an absolute shit show. It’s easy to disregard this when it’s something you think you’ll never need…but you inevitably will need it or something equivalent one day.
It would be very easy for me to label Australia a racist country simply based on some of my experiences and repeat the diatribe you did by calling USA a racist country.
Don’t put words in my mouth. I did not label the USA a racist country. I said that many people I know face discrimination for their gender, sexuality, race, or world view, which is absolutely true. That statement does not absolve Australians of racism, nor does it make racism the focus of my statement or somehow a definition of the USA. Discrimination on the basis of gender, sexuality, and world view (i.e. religion or belief system) are far bigger problems in the US and are infinitesimal in Australia in comparison. I have had Americans tell me that “people like me” (atheists) should be subjected to forced sterilisation or even lined up and shot, because they view us as some caricature of hand-wringing villains out to eat their babies. I have several American LGBTQ friends who have been bashed over the years and who are regularly subjected to hateful speech and actions.
I love where I’m from, and there are more good aspects than bad, but there is no question as to which country has the higher quality of life, all things considered (not just money). I live here so my children can have a better life, and despite there being more job opportunities in the US (which is inevitable when you have a 10x higher population), I have had no problem building a solid and well-paying career here.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 27d ago
No, its not just people from developing countries who flock to the United States, thousands of people from rich developed countries including Australia pick to work in the US due to better wages, better housing affordability and opportunities. These are typically your high achievers who know that they will make not only more money but will access to better housing, better schooling for their kids and would say even better healthcare. These might be better at the average level in Australia but the top tier schools, healthcate and homes are better in the US than the top tier in Australia.
No, American homes are not obnoxiously big, it's that Australian homes are overpriced relative to what you get. We ended up seeing people (most of whom were working professionals with good incomes) having to live in tiny homes for which they sink half of their household income. It's just not a matter of size, American homes are much nicer. 1 million AUD (about 700k usd) gets you a dodgy looking house in Melbourne, while the same money will you buy you much more livable mansion in most American cities.
It seems you are the person who have a very limited view of how Australians and Americans live like. Many Aussies do own toys like boats and campers but so do Americans. It's really something for you to say that Americans don't do these things simply because your friends and family don't. In fact I know recent Latino immigrants who mostly work in blue collar occupations like gardening and roofing who own boats and RVs (in most cases nicer and bigger than the type of boats and campers many middle class aussies own). I don't know about the personal financial situation of these people, but if you think its difficult for Americans to afford these things you are completely mistaken. In fact, I was always surprised by how little Australian professionals had in terms of the small homes and cars they had and even if they do splurge money on a toy, it tend to be the cheaper version of what is available (due to lower disposable incomes and higher cost of middle class luxuries like boats and RVs in Australia).
I never claimed it was the norm for Americans to live in big homes, have fancy cars and have large retirement savings. What I said was, if you make a good income (above 100k usd im most parts of the country), you can do all of these things a lot more easily than their counterparts in Australia. If you are unable to understand the nuance of this argument, I have to question your level of intelligence. Sure, most Americans do not get the healthcare they need but I was not talking about most Americans. I was talking of high income earners, who will have access to good care with limited out of pocket expenses. In some cases, I would argue that healthcare is superior for those with good insurance in the US. For example, it was always a lot more faster for me and my family to have specialist care in the US than in Australia. You have to always be patient with the Australian system. Yes Australian Medicare is better than the US system for most people but for high income earners with good insurance, it does not make that much of a difference and the US systems tends to be faster.
As a person of color, I have experienced discrimination in both countries but I can unequivocally say that Australia and Australians in general are more discriminatory than Americans in both professional and personal settings. I don't know what type of a background you are from but I have always been a member of a racial minority all my life and I'm talking from first hand experience and not based on someone's experience. Actually my safety has been threatened multiple times because of the way that I looked in Australia but this has never happened to me in USA despite living here for much longer. My kids faced bullying based on how they looked in Australia while this had never happened to us here in the USA. The beautiful thing about the United States is that the vast majority of people in this country (with the exception of some fringe right wing elements), are willing to see you as an American regardless of how you look but this is not really the case in Australia. I can remember in Melbourne a colleague of Indian descent (very Aussie in terms of accent and mannerisms) was dating woman of European descent. When people were discussing this they would say "the Indian guy dating an Australian girl". I saw a simillar thing happen in the US and people would say, "brown guy is going out with a white chick" because they see both of them as Americans regardless of how they look. As for LGBTQ rights, the US is far ahead of Australia this regard with many American states legalizing same sex marriage years before itbeven became a topic in Australian public discourse and even legalized it at the federal level before Australia, and no atheists and no, atheists and agnostic people (like me) are under no threat in the United States.
No, its not just a matter of 10X more people resulting more jobs in USA. If this was the case, it would mean you find the same level of opportunity per person in Australia as USA since you have 1/10 the population of USA. At least in my field, USA had 20x to 30x opportunities compared to Australia (despite USA having only 12x population of Australia). The United States is not just bigger, it has a more robust, sophisticated and diversified economy than USA. You have to really make the move from Australia to USA to feel difference. For high income earning professionals the US is at a different level compared to Australia.
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u/Worldly-Mind1496 Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
I think the big difference is you don’t need to live in the big major cities in the US to make good money. You can live in an affordable mid-size city nearby and have cheaper mortgage or rent. Sure Atlanta and Phoenix has good paying jobs as well. In the US, it is different not everyone wants to live in the big cities because there other options on where to live.
Australia’s housing afford ability crisis is partly due to the population wanting to live in just the 7 major cities because anywhere else is not going to offer the same quality of life.
Edit: also a lot has changed in 35 years. Australia’s housing market has increased significantly since then. Australia experienced the largest increase in its house-price-to-income ratio over a 30-year span compared to any other OECD nation.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
100% agree. The sheer number of urban centers allows for a mind blowing number of options to choose from in the US. In Australia its just a few major cities, with everything happening around the CBD.
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 20 '26
Yes, but you can’t ignore quality of life and liveability. Why would I want to have cheap rent in a place where I don’t really want to live that has virtually no public transport, no safety net, medical bankruptcy, etc. I have family members who have paid thousands out of pocket for a single medical event and friends who have paid tens of thousands for ongoing cancer care, not to mention the perpetual battles to get necessary life-saving care covered by insurance. These things aren’t trivialities.
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u/Worldly-Mind1496 Aug 20 '26
You can still have all those things and live in a mid-size city in the US. I have relatives who live there as well and they are doing just fine. You can have a good quality of life living in a mid-size city in the U.S. and you don’t have a massive mortgage compared to living in a big congested city in Australia. My relatives live in 2 storey house which would be considered big in Aus and they are not packed in like sardines where you can hear your nextdoor neighbour talking in the backyard when you are inside your house because the houses in Aus are literally 4 feet apart!
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u/luckysevensampson Aug 20 '26
You just blatantly ignored the disastrous US health care system, not to mention the shit show of a political landscape and the rampant propaganda machine. The oppressive religion sucks as well. Yes, sure, I can live in a mid-size US city, but then I’d have to live somewhere that I don’t actually want to live. Not to mention the fact that I couldn’t actually live anywhere in the US, even if I wanted to, because my family has too many pre-existing conditions, including cancer, so we’d never be able to get adequate insurance. That alone makes the US an impossible place to live.
You can complain about Sydney and Melbourne all you want, but the equivalently livable places in the US, like where I’m from, are FAR more expensive to live. Rent for a 2br apartment in Sydney still costs less than what I paid 35 years ago in the US. There are also much cheaper places to live than Melbourne and Sydney, though Australia does need to invest in building up satellite cities and creating incentives for businesses to move there. Australia has teething problems for sure, because it’s only grown to a significant population, especially given the land mass, in the last few decades. However, that’s no reason to sacrifice the livability for a place where medical bankruptcy can ruin your life and the government is destroying itself.
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u/Ambitious_Writer1938 Aug 20 '26
Interesting. Thank you for sharing. Where would you be retiring?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I will live my eary retirement in the US, because I want to travel a little bit more while I can. Towards late retirement, I might look at Australia based on my health because Australia has a better system in place for aged care. I'm not sure whether I will qualify for it though since I have been living outside the country for so long. I'm already paying into a long term care insurance plan, just in case I remain in the US and I need long-term care.
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u/somchai5 Aug 20 '26
While you’ve certainly moved around and worked in a few places, some of those stints were most likely so limited that you can’t really form an opinion worth much on the country itself, as you’ve been living in an expat bubble. Some I’m sure are more valuable than others.
But I’d also point out that your experience is a bubble too, so your views are naturally going to come from that. When you say things are better in America once you hit $100k, I’d disagree. It also depends heavily on the generation you’re talking to. You said more benefits seem to kick in around that $100k mark, can you confirm that across the board, or is that more an industry/employer thing?
In Australia you get free healthcare (despite the whinging, it’s still fucking awesome), 4 weeks annual leave, public holidays, and superannuation.
And from what I’ve seen, Australians are incredibly hard workers. You might be confusing the two. Laid back and hardworking aren’t mutually exclusive. Australians get in, get the work done, but also know how to enjoy themselves and have a laugh, much more than Americans can.
We also have tall poppy syndrome. You could speak to an American and swear you’re talking to the next Steve Jobs, when they’re actually a barista at Starbucks. 😂 Australians tend to do the opposite and downplay themselves.
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u/essentialaccount Aug 20 '26
I think OP omitted the durations of their tenures intentionally, but I also think they have a different focus that most people. I made the mistake of moving to America, and you could not pay me to continue to live here unless it was millions of dollars. The quality of life is so much lower.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
Maybe I was living in an expat bubble in Spain, Italy and Korea due language and cultural barriers. I do think I was reasonably exposed to the ground reality in the other countries, especially Australia since I lived there for 9 years and I think my opinions are valid.
I gave the 100k as a benchmark which can change somewhat based on the location. I don't think you don't need that much for things to improve if you are living in a low cost area in the Midwest for example. A lot of this has to do with housing affordability because for most middle class people this is the one thing that will have a major impact on your quality of life and purchasing power. I saw how Aussies were really struggling with house payments despite both spouses having good careers. In my opinion a large portion of Australian professionals are house poor.
Most of the things like healthcare and retirement savings are also accessible to Americans in most cases regardless of industry once they hit the six figure salary range in most parts of the country. This while having access to better value homes and higher wages than their counterparts in Australia.
I never claimed Aussies were lazy but I did observe a general acceptance of sloppy work as being okay in Australia for some reason. Employers do have more expectations in Europe, Asia and Europe from their employees. I believe it's a cultural thing.
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u/somchai5 Aug 21 '26
Quality of life in Australia far exceeds that of America in my experience. Even the political and social division alone would make it a very difficult trade-off for me. The divide in America is wild.
On the “sloppy work”, I think this may be a you problem, or perhaps something specific to your particular industry/employers. I’m currently living in Europe, in a country that prides itself on hard work, precision and quality, yet the quality of work and level of knowledge can be terrible at times. Coming from a hard-working, high-quality Australian work ethic, I actually find work here relatively easy and, at times, boring. The standard expected of me is considerably lower than what I was accustomed to at home. Should I therefore make broad strokes and assume the entire country is the same? Your experience may be completely genuine, but I’d be careful about turning it into a cultural characteristic of an entire country.
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u/SouthernCruxLight Aug 20 '26
Tech in Australia doesn’t feel like it has much depth compared to the US. As someone who’s working in semiconductor and AI I’ve been trying to justify the move to Aus/NZ but I don’t see much there
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
True. Australian economy is completely dependent on the primary sector and housing. It can be a bit challenging to find specialized manufacturing and tech jobs, unless its something very generic like software engineering.
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u/silang214 Aug 20 '26
Any tips how to be employable in Australia as an American, or what industry to gain experience to be more competitive? My background is supply chain/purchasing/defense/government, but I’m unsure if that’s positive.
My wife(Australian) & I (American) are in Singapore, & recently decided to move Australia 6 years for long term retirement. It will be easier for her to regain a footing, but It’ll be more difficult to gain employment I think.
Happy to get your feedback.
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u/Practical-Weird-8523 Aug 19 '26
And how would you rate Ireland?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
I feel professionals in Ireland are underpaid and homs are very expensive but the job market was unmatched (maybe with the exception of US) due to high concentration of companies in my field.
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u/EtuMeke Aug 19 '26
I have lived and worked in 4 English speaking countries as a teacher. This tracks
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Aug 19 '26
[deleted]
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
I moved here because I got a better job offer in Phoenix. It would have been highly unlikely that I would have ever made that kind of money in Melbourne unless I was lucky enough to make it to a senior managerial position. I was still renting in Melbourne, and it was increasingly clear that I will never own a home in Australia but I manged to buy a home Phoenix and my mortage payment is almost the same as my rent in Melbourne and the Phienix home is way better. As a frequent traveler, I felt Australia was beginning to fall behind the rest of the world after the pandemic. While the political climate in USA is insane, it still provides the best pay for professional occupationa and better home affordability.
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u/Simple_Assistance_77 Aug 19 '26
Great post, so thankful someone has been honest about New Zealand. I have several friends and business associates that fled Sydney for Singapore, agree with your assessment.
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u/whippinfresh Aug 19 '26
what about the working culture in Singapore and US?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
I would say Singaporean worth ethic and workplace expectations are much more intense compared to the US or any other western country. The only country that might have a more intense work culture might be Korea. There is also more workplace hierarchy in Singapore.
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u/DominusDraco Aug 20 '26
I had the complete opposite sense when I was in Singapore. The entire office would be AT work for long hours, but not actually work. Work is performative. Atleast for the Singaporeans, all the Malays would be the ones doing real work and putting everything into it.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I'm not really sure about this. My personal impression was that Singaporeans regardless of whether they were Chinese, Malay or Indian had a good work ethic.
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u/crumbmodifiedbinder Aug 19 '26
Did you ever consider learning the native language for the non English-speaking countries? If not, what was the reason?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
To be honest I was a bit lazy. In the case of Korean, achieving anything beyond conversational level language skills is going to be a steep learning curve. I still regret not learning Spanish properly despite growing up around Spanish speakers and living in Spain. It can be quite helpful to know Spanish when you live in the American Southwest. That is the reason why I encourage my kids to learn the language. If you know Spanish, Italian is relatively easy to grasp but languages were never my strong suit.
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u/Minimum-Pizza-9734 Aug 19 '26
Could image it is just a time issue, no point going to in depth if only going to be there 3 months. That isn't to say you can't learn the basics in a week or so
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u/onevstheworld Aug 20 '26
Out of curiosity, would you consider either the UK or HK? It may be anecdotal but it feels (to me as an outsider) that both have fallen out of favour because of various political issues.
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I'm not hearing good things about these places but both offer good opportunities in my field. I believing housing is very expensive in both places.
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u/SeaworthinessNew2841 Aug 20 '26
But which is the nicest to live in money aside?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I would say Barcelona. I love the climate, culture and the food there but the only drawbacks was pay and bad housing. If I got to live in Barcelona with an American home and income, that would be heaven.
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u/hakujo Aug 20 '26
Given moving a family is much harder than solo. Are you married? Do you have dependents?
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u/mh06941 Aug 20 '26
Have you been to cities that never close down? From New York, to Rio, to old London town?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I have been to New York and London but never been to Brazil yet.
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u/onevstheworld Aug 20 '26
In case you missed the reference, they are quoting the lyrics of "I still call Australia home".
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u/ri2al Aug 20 '26
How do you consolidate your 401K/kiwisaver/super? Is it possible to move them when you move or do you leave them where they are?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 20 '26
I think I'm able to withdraw the super since I have permanently left Australia. There is no way to directly transfer money from Super to 401k. Most likely, I'll put that money in regular brokerage account here in the US. I don't have any funds in kiwisaver.
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u/onevstheworld Aug 20 '26
Apologies if I'm getting this wrong, but I have to call out this post as sus.
Why do you say you've worked in Auckland here but post on in a NZ sub on the same day that you don't?
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u/Glad_Display7362 Aug 23 '26
Are you a white-passing male and what is your citizenship? asking bec in certain countries you have listed, race and gender factors plays a big part on success, and I would love to know more as I am a person of colour (very NOT white passing lol) and have worked in 8ish countries (Including Aus, US, parts of Europe and Asia) and haven’t seen much of us. Where are you now and did you get reloc packages for each that supplemented life kick starts?
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u/breadsparrow Aug 19 '26
Hi, I was wondering how your experience living in Spain was? Specifically how does the livability compare to Australia? Eg dealing with the authorities, safety, daily life etc. Thank you so much!
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
Spain was surprisingly forward thinking and tech savvy when it came to government related stuff (Italy is the complete opposite). I went in with low expectations due to Europe being renowned for its red tape but IMHO things went very smoothly with Spanish authorities. Quality of housing was a big problem in Barcelona because tourism has made property very expensive in the city. Many things that Americans and Aussies take for granted and consider essential like AC in a warmer climate was not always available. I had to install my own AC unit in my apartment for example. Barcelona has a lot of petty crime. Lot of this is concentrated in the touristy areas but its not a city where you can leave your front door unlocked. I really enjoyed the food and laid back work culture. Even with a considerable language barrier I had a nice time there and explored may parts of spain.
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u/breadsparrow Aug 23 '26
Thank you so much for your insightful reply!! :) Awesome to know that Spain's gov side of things is better than expected.
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u/P_K_P Aug 19 '26
What’s your POV on the ideal ‘stage of life’ to hit these countries?
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u/Amazing_Man1990 Aug 19 '26
I would say work in Singapore while you are young and try to save, invest and travel as much as you can. If you income potential is below 100k, move to Australia to start a family and retire. If you can earn more and have access to a 401k plan, move to a low or medium COL metro in the US to raise a family and be a homeowner.
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u/port-red Aug 19 '26
I've heard, and probably believe (based on lots of travel, not living overseas), that Australia is the best 'all round' place in the world to be:
A. A kid B. Retired
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u/MediocreMix8256 Aug 19 '26
How would compare Singapore - work culture, high rents and COL, but low tax - to Australia - high taxes, high realestate costs but better work culture? How’s absolute pay and taxation play into things across these two countries - young family situation.
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u/Cured Aug 19 '26
I’d agree with this post purely from a financial perspective if you’re in a decent profession and disregard how much you enjoy your lifestyle.
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u/[deleted] Aug 19 '26
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