- Compare what you save, not what you earn. A big salary in an expensive city can save less than a smaller one at home.
- $120,000 in New York against ₹40 LPA in India: after 10 years, staying in India leaves you about ₹38 lakh ahead.
- The same $120,000 in Austin or Dallas puts the move ₹7.7 crore ahead, because rent is less than half.
- Your Indian alternative matters too: against ₹25 LPA instead of ₹40 LPA, New York comes out ₹1.86 crore ahead.
An offer of $120,000 a year sounds like ₹1.15 crore at ₹96 to the dollar, nearly three times a ₹40 lakh package in India. That conversion is where most comparisons start and stop. It is also where they go wrong, because you will be paying American tax and American rent, and giving up the Indian salary you would otherwise have earned.
The honest way to compare: savings, then net worth
A fair comparison follows both paths for several years:
- Take-home pay after tax in each country (US federal, state and city tax, against Indian tax and PF).
- Living costs: rent and everything else, in each place.
- What’s left to save each year, and how it grows, including retirement accounts such as a 401(k) or EPF.
- The exchange rate over time: the rupee has tended to weaken, which raises the rupee value of savings abroad.
- One-off costs: the move itself and trips home.
Then compare the net worth at the end, in rupees.
New York: a big salary, and a bigger rent
The take-home in New York is more than 2.5 times higher, but living costs of about ₹5.47 lakh a month eat almost all of it. After 10 years, staying in India leaves you about ₹38 lakh ahead. The move would need a salary of about $122,700 just to break even.
Open this example →Same salary, cheaper city: a different answer
Now keep the $120,000 and move it to Austin or Dallas, with rent around $1,800 and other costs around $1,500 a month. Texas also has no state income tax.
In today’s money, that is about ₹7.2 crore against ₹2.9 crore. The break-even salary here is only about $73,000.
Open this example →Same country, same salary, opposite conclusions. That’s why “is the US worth it?” has no single answer: the city decides.
Don’t forget what you give up at home
Your Indian alternative is the other half of the comparison. Many people compare a foreign offer with their current salary, when the realistic alternative is the next job they would get in India.
| $120,000 in New York vs… | After 10 years |
|---|---|
| ₹40 LPA in India | India ahead by ₹38.1 L |
| ₹25 LPA in India | New York ahead by ₹1.86 Cr |
Indian salaries in tech and finance have risen fast, often faster than salaries abroad, which is why the calculator lets you set different yearly raises for each path (8% in India and 4% abroad by default).
Try ₹25 LPA in India →Europe: lower take-home, lower rent
Continental Europe has high income tax and social charges, and the state pension you pay into isn’t a pot you can take with you. Against ₹40 LPA, a €75,000 job in Berlin leaves you about ₹1.71 crore behind after 10 years on our assumptions. Many people move to Europe for other reasons, like work-life balance, public services and a path to residency, and those are real. The money just isn’t usually the reason.
See the Berlin example →Things the comparison can’t fully price
- Visa risk: on a work visa, a layoff can mean leaving quickly, sometimes selling at a loss. Our moving back guide covers how to prepare.
- Family: a partner who can’t work at first, children’s schooling, and parents in India who may need support or visits.
- Healthcare: US costs vary hugely with your employer’s plan.
- Career: some roles and experience abroad raise your earning power for life, wherever you live later.
- The rupee: the default assumes it weakens 3% a year against the dollar. If it stays flat, savings abroad are worth less in rupees.
Your comparison in ten minutes
- Choose the country and city in the move abroad calculator, and enter the gross salary offered.
- Replace the rent with real listings for the area you’d live in.
- Enter the Indian package you could realistically get, not just today’s.
- Read the 10-year result, then try a partner’s income, a flat rupee and a higher rent to see how solid the answer is.
Frequently asked questions
Is $120,000 a good salary compared with Indian salaries?
It depends on the city and your Indian alternative. In our example, $120,000 in New York saves far less in the first year than a ₹40 LPA job in India, while the same salary in Austin or Dallas saves about twice as much as the Indian job.
Should I convert a foreign salary at the exchange rate?
Only as a first step. Compare take-home pay after tax and living costs in each place, then what you can save and how it grows over several years.
Does the calculator use purchasing power parity?
No. It uses the rent and living costs you enter, with starting estimates for each city, and the market exchange rate with a yearly change you can set.
Are retirement accounts abroad counted?
Yes. 401(k), RRSP, superannuation and UK workplace pensions are counted in net worth where they apply, and EPF on the Indian side.
Got an offer abroad?
Compare it with staying in India over 10 years, in rupees, with your own rent and costs.
Compare abroad vs India →An estimate under the assumptions shown: exchange rate $1 = ₹96 (October 2026) with the rupee weakening 3% a year, salary growth 4% abroad and 8% in India, returns 7% abroad and 10% in India, single earner. US state and city taxes are simplified. Tax rules, rents and exchange rates change.