Top 10 cities for Software Engineers in Europe

Third article of a series that explores how tech opportunities are distributed across Europe.

Oct 13, 2023

In the previous article of The European Engineer newsletter, I talked about what I believe are the top 3 cities in Europe for software engineers.

In case you haven’t seen it, the 3 cities were: Zurich, London and Amsterdam. If you are curious about those cities, you should check that article out, as I go into detail for each one of them, and I also look at specific numbers regarding salaries, taxes and cost of living.

Today we’ll talk about the 7 other cities that I believe should make the top 10 for the best cities in Europe for software engineers. I will list them in no particular order.

Enjoy!

Dublin

Dublin has a very large pool of quality tech companies operating there, with positions in both engineering and business, thanks in large part to the advantageous corporate taxation the country offers and the consequential choice of many (big) tech companies to set-up shop there.

If you want to work in marketing, finance or sales within big tech, Dublin is probably the best place in Europe.

For engineers, it offers similar conditions to London and Amsterdam (check Top 3 Cities in Europe for Software Engineers for more details on London and Amsterdam): comparable salaries and taxes, good pool of valid companies with a sizeable office in the city, comparable weather and standard of living.

As for the lifestyle, it receives mixed reviews, particularly among young people. Some enjoy it, while others do not. If you're into pubs and going out, you'll love it.

Regarding engineering roles, I’ve heard that many teams in Dublin are more on the ops side (think Site Reliability Engineers or Production Engineers), which can be good or bad depending on how interested you are in these topics. AWS has a very large office here.

In the end, Dublin is a great place for software engineers in Europe. You might consider adding it to your list of potential cities when applying for jobs. For instance, if you receive a job offer from a big tech company in Dublin, you could accept it, try living there for a while, and if it doesn't suit you, explore the option of transferring to another office within the company in Europe, the U.S., or leverage the experience to apply elsewhere.

Companies having notable offices in Dublin

AWS
Microsoft
Google
Mastercard
Workday
Salesforce
Meta
Stripe
VMware
LinkedIn
Etsy
ByteDance
Coinbase

Oslo & Stockholm

I'm grouping these Scandinavian capitals together because they offer a similar package: a great work-life balance, strong welfare systems, high security, the presence of tech companies, high taxes, and cold weather.

People's opinions about these places vary. If you value living in a caring society, where excessive wealth display isn't encouraged, don't mind cold weather and enjoy cozy indoor gatherings with close friends, prioritise work-life balance, relationships, equality, and hobbies, then this could be an ideal choice for you.

However, if you prioritise individualism, personal freedom, low taxes, or a lively, sunny climate, these cities may not be the best fit.

Working for a local company here means experiencing a different corporate culture compared to American companies. It's less competitive, more collaborative, slower-paced, with less focus on metrics and stock performance, and fewer working hours. However, it may also come with lower pay, less cutting-edge tech, and potentially slower career growth.

If you're seeking an alternative to corporate America, considering a move to Stockholm to work for a reputable local tech company might be the change you're looking for.

Companies having notable offices in Stockholm

Ericsson
Ubisoft
Spotify
Klarna
PayPal
Warner Bros
King
Google
Oracle
AWS
Microsoft
Wolt

Local tech companies in Oslo and Stockholm may offer a lower saving potential compared to cities like London, Amsterdam, Zurich, or Dublin. However, if you work for a major tech company, your savings rate could be comparable (though still smaller than in the aforementioned cities). It's worth noting that Oslo typically offers higher salaries, while Stockholm boasts a relatively more robust job market with greater opportunities.

Companies having notable offices in Oslo

Microsoft
Cisco
Cognite
Sopra Steria
Aker Solutions
Arm
TietoEvry
Mastercard
Meta

Madrid & Barcelona

Madrid and Barcelona, the two largest cities in Spain, offer a 'canonical European' lifestyle characterised by numerous leisure activities, affordable dining options, a rich cultural scene, and sunny, warm weather for most of the year. With a relatively contained cost of living, these cities promote a relaxed outdoor lifestyle where socialising and sports are popular pastimes.

Both cities also host a significant presence of tech companies. While post-tax salaries may be lower compared to some higher-paying European cities, the lower cost of living still allows for a comfortable lifestyle.

For tech professionals working at big tech companies or in high-paying remote positions, substantial savings are possible. Senior or staff engineers working in big tech, for instance, can earn around 200k USD per year, resulting in approximately 120k USD in after-tax income. After accounting for living expenses (around 2.5k USD per month, equivalent to 6.5k USD per month in NYC), this can lead to yearly savings of approximately 90k USD.

It's worth noting that those in entry or mid-level roles or working for local companies may save less. However, the higher salary opportunities (restricted to certain companies at certain levels) in these southern European cities make them attractive options for those seeking a sunnier destination without compromising on ambitious savings goals.

Companies having notable offices in Madrid

Amazon
Datadog
Microsoft
Apple
Google
Indra
Twilio
Glovo
VMware
Meta
Oracle
Revolut

Companies having notable offices in Barcelona

Glovo
Amazon
Apple
Microsoft
N26
Criteo
Adobe
Thoughtworks
Oracle
eDreams ODIGEO
NTT DATA
Meta

Berlin & Paris

Berlin and Paris, forming the second cluster of cities, offer a classic European lifestyle. While they boast higher salaries than Spanish cities (somewhat resembling Scandinavian conditions), they present varying cost-of-living dynamics. Berlin tends to be more affordable than Paris, although sometimes may feature lower salaries.

In terms of financial conditions, Berlin and Paris align somewhat closely with the Spanish capitals and Scandinavian cities.

These cities don't enjoy Mediterranean sunny weather but still provide rich and enjoyable lifestyles with diverse indoor and outdoor activities throughout the year.

Both Berlin and Paris, akin to Spanish and Scandinavian locales, have robust employee protection laws that make termination relatively challenging and offer generous vacation days (up to 40 days in France).

While taxes are not low, they are generally lower than those in Scandinavian countries. Services and welfare are commendable, though they may not reach the same level as Scandinavian nations and perhaps parallel or slightly surpass London and the UK. Many services are available for free, but not always at a superlative quality.

Berlin boasts one of the largest tech markets in Europe, second only to London. Many major tech giants, including AWS and Amazon, maintain substantial offices here. Additionally, successful US tech companies like Wayfair and Snowflake have a strong presence in the city. It's a rapidly growing market, making it worthwhile to keep an eye on, as increased competition may drive up engineers' salaries in the future.

However, it's important to note that, at present, salaries in Berlin are not as competitive as those in higher-paying European cities like Zurich, Amsterdam, London, and Dublin.

Companies having notable offices in Berlin

Zalando
Delivery Hero
SoundCloud
AWS
Microsoft
Wayfair
HelloFresh
Google
Meta
Apple
HubSpot
Google
Stripe
NVIDIA
Snowflake
Shopify
Datadog
Databricks

While Paris has a smaller tech market compared to Berlin, it is showing signs of growth. Companies like Meta AI and Google AI are expanding their presence in the city, and businesses like Datadog are establishing significant European operations in the French capital.

Companies having notable offices in Paris

Google
Meta
Datadog
Criteo
Microsoft
Airbnb
Amazon
Google
Societe Generale
Capgemini
Atlassian

In the end, the choice of the best European city for you is a personal one. In my top 3 list, I aimed to rank cities based on factors most people will appreciate, such as high salaries, low taxes, quality of life, infrastructure, and leisure options.

In this other article, I wanted to highlight some other cities in Europe that also offer great conditions for software engineers: I tried to depict what ‘edge’ each city has, and “where to go for what”.

I also hope that the companies’ lists that I provided for each city will be useful for job seekers in their application process.

Keep in mind that there are many other excellent European cities for engineers, which I plan to cover in the future. If you're interested in staying updated on all things related to software engineering in Europe, including job markets, locations, salaries, taxes, trends, technologies, and interview strategies, consider subscribing.

I aim to publish a new article every Friday, though there may be occasional breaks.

Last but not least, if you have any topic related to tech and software engineering in Europe that you would like me to research or write about, or have any feedback or recommendation for this newsletter, please let me know in the comments!