How to think about money - if you're a dev in Europe

What is money even for?

Money, money, money… Must be funny

Today’s article is about money:

• What is money for

• Why devs might be overly frugal

• Statistics from 600 European tech workers who shared their salary, saving rate, lifestyle expenses etc.

• How to build up wealth early in your career working in Switzerland

Money is taboo in Europe

We’re too “noble” to talk about it openly - unlike our American cousins who seem to have much fewer issues discussing it publicly.

It’s not all bad: not giving it too much space in our communications also helps give perspective and prioritise other things that as a society we probably value more.

But it’s also not that good.

Most of us live in free economies, and the world around us is to a somewhat large extent moved by offer and demand, desires and products - through the medium of money.

So, not learning, thinking or talking about it creates blind spots in an area that is undeniably important in our life.

"Money is something I have, not something I am"

The other day, I was talking to a friend of mine about how it seems to me that people in fancy SUVs in Zurich often look pissed.

His reply? "Happiness ≠ Economic Success"

Then we had a little chat about it.

My friend is a dev who started out with no uni degree, born in one of the worst hoods in Italy, and went on to be worth over $500k in his 20s.

I had a similar journey although at a smaller scale.

So we both know that not having money sucks - which is why at some point in our life we prioritised financial success.

Over the years though, we both realised that money only serves a few purposes.

It's not necessarily easy to understand this, and a lot of people end up chasing money on autopilot for many more years than necessary.

IMO, the less money you have, the more you should chase it, and vice versa.

Basically: what you are willing to sacrifice for money should be inversely proportional to how much money you have.

Also, beware of not equating your self-worth or persona to your financial achievements.

How to use money / The “frugality trap”

We’ve discussed how money is not THAT important, how ridiculous it is to identify ourselves with our net worth or income, and how dangerous it is to lead a life in a perpetual chase of a higher digit.

But we also agreed that being broke sucks.

And that money can help make several things in life substantially better.

I have a somewhat diverse background, and while I have spent a lot of time with engineers and people in STEM, I also have family members and friends in other fields.

In my opinion, software engineers are overly frugal

Why do so many engineers live like they're broke when they're earning six figures?

Stereotypes can be harmful, but some of them are true.

The one about engineers being frugal? It definitely holds in my experience.

In my career, I’ve met hundreds of engineers. I’d say at least 70-80% fit this stereotype.

Think:

• Living in a poorly furnished flat.

• Eating crappy food.

• Not going out to save a few bucks.

• Spending 90% of waking hours at the office to save on meals and gym memberships.

• Neglecting looks: teeth, skin, hair, wardrobe.

• Avoiding anything tasteful because it's "overpriced" or "unnecessary."

• Compromising dating life by insisting on splitting bills (to be fair, many things on this list don’t help dating either).

• Shying away from cleaning services or food delivery to "save money."

• Traveling is an exception, but some even cut that out too.

All while earning six figures.

Why?

To feel a sense of financial safety?

To reach FIRE faster?

To prove they "don't need much to be happy"?

If my engineer friends seemed happier, I'd just think, "whatever works for you."

But I see how this attitude directly and negatively affects their quality of life.

You work hard, get a good job, make good money—It’s okay to spend some of it to live well.

It’s okay to accept a lower-paying job for a better quality of life.

Coast-FIRE over FIRE

FIRE is overrated to me.

Personally, I prefer an approach where as you get more money, you allow yourself for more, while maintaining healthy finances.

With this approach, the goal would be to reach your 40s while you’re already doing your dream job that you would have otherwise only started looking for after FIRE, while still having healthy finances.

For me that’s a better way than FIRE. It’s more sophisticated and maybe more difficult to implement, but better.

Because it only employs delayed gratification to the minimum required, and gives life enjoyment as early as possible as much as possible.

FIRE can be disappointing

Not everyone ends up like that, but TechLead (the YouTuber)—a divorced, sociopathic millionaire living with his parents playing video games all day—doesn’t seem to have a very appealing life if you ask me.

Materialism vs culture

The point that I’m trying to make here is not that we should all be overly consumeristic: it's not just possessions or objects (which at times can also give joy), but also about experiences and expanding your life in many dimensions.

If one only engages in things that are free, it means that they're closing doors to a lot of things that can make life better.

The line between materialism and culture can be subtle sometimes.

Are wines materialism or culture? They can be both. And the same thing can be said for a lot of things.

It’s also not about impressing others

If one thinks that “nice things” are just for that, maybe they could use some learning on how to appreciate them.

It’s also a skill. Or taste. Which needs work and development.

Part of it is also related to being social

For example, being presentable, having an hospitable home, being happy to invite someone over dinner or over a drink - these are all things that can enrich our social life and which can ultimately improve our life experience.

Anyway, this is just my perspective

And I wouldn’t want to impose my world view on anyone.

If you’re happy being frugal and you have some good reasons to do that, by all means do that.

I just wanted to share a perspective that in my opinion is a little bit “unrepresented” in tech circles.

Maybe it can be interesting for someone.

Money transparency

Remember how I mentioned that money is taboo in Europe?

Now, that’s not good.

If one wants or needs money, it would very much help them to understand where money is and/or how to get it.

If we keep it a taboo topic, it’s gonna be hard for people to learn about it.

In the US they’re much more open about it, and IMO products like levels.fyi really make a difference.

Some months ago, I also started a salary and saving rates shared document for tech workers in Europe.

Since it’s reached almost 600 data points, I thought I’d share some results here today.

Here’s what you need to know about European tech workers' compensation in 2024:

💰 Top Markets (Total Comp):

1. Switzerland 🇨🇭: €165K

2. UK 🇬🇧: €142K

3. Germany 🇩🇪: €89K

4. Netherlands 🇳🇱: €87K

5. France 🇫🇷: €78K

📈 Average Pay by Experience:

• Junior: €52K

• Mid-Level: €75K

• Senior: €98K

• Staff/Manager: €125K

💶 Highest Yearly Savings Rates:

1. Switzerland 🇨🇭: €50-70K

2. Poland 🇵🇱: €30-45K

3. Romania 🇷🇴: €25-40K

4. Lithuania 🇱🇹: €20-35K

5. Portugal 🇵🇹: €15-25K

🔍 Key Trends:

• Remote work enabling significant geo-arbitrage.

• Eastern European markets showing the fastest growth.

• FAANG/Big Tech still paying 2-3x the market rate.

• Strong savings potential in lower-cost tech hubs.

💡 Insights:

• High-paying Western European locations are still attractive for those wanting high salaries and good public services.

• Remote work from Eastern/Central Europe is great for saving rates and purchasing power.

• Switzerland leads in almost every tangible metric, including salaries and savings rates—but might lag behind remote workers in Eastern Europe when it comes to local purchasing power.

Does this match your market experience? Are these numbers aligned with what you see in your region? Let me know!

If you're a tech worker in Europe and want to contribute (anonymously) with your data, consider adding to the shared doc and sharing it with your friends!

• Here’s the Google Form to contribute.

• And you can see the entire document with all the data points here.

If you're a developer in Europe aiming for financial freedom, Switzerland should be on your radar.

Why?

It's the best location to grow your capital as an early-career developer in Europe.

Especially if big tech isn’t in the cards for you.

Switzerland's central location also offers great opportunities for geo-arbitrage—whether it’s for life, investments, or setting up an international European lifestyle.

If you're adaptable, you can use these regional differences to your advantage, optimizing both lifestyle and financial growth at different stages of your career.

Start in Switzerland, and you could save $100k+ in just a few years.

With that base—especially if invested wisely—you can choose more flexible jobs down the line.

Benefits of starting your career in Switzerland:

• Excellent quality of life: infrastructure, stability, services.

• Great networking opportunities.

• Central connectivity, making it easy to explore Europe.

• Career options ranging from smaller firms to big tech—allowing savings from $50k to $1M+, depending on your path.

Switzerland isn’t the only route to a successful European career.

But it's one of the best and most straightforward—especially early in your journey.

What are your thoughts on Switzerland? 🏔️

BTW, if you want to go deeper, check out this article on Switzerland for devs.

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That’s all for today folks. Let me know if you find these longer articles valuable or if you prefer shorter ones!

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Whenever you're ready, there are 2 ways I can help you:

Euro Top Tech Jobs: 4000+ top paying tech jobs in Europe in addition to 50+ fully-remote companies paying $100-600k per year and private guides like this one.

Coaching Program: Check it out if you want to work 1:1 with me to boost your career as a dev in Europe or remote.

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