with $100k coming in, swapping out of Portland
changea dispatch from
san jose
CA
37.34°N
121.89°W
San Jose is Silicon Valley's anchor city, much bigger than San Francisco by population, and culturally underrated because everyone drives through it on the way somewhere else. The Vietnamese food scene (especially in Little Saigon) is one of the best in the country. The weather is impossibly mild, the Santa Cruz Mountains rise to the west, and the tech money funds a genuinely excellent restaurant scene.
the verdict
the monthly premium over Portland
San Jose doesn't pretend to be affordable. Move here for what San Jose is, not for what it leaves on your monthly ledger.
a quick ledger.
$3,470/mo
95% more expensive than Portland(vs $1,781/mo)
9.3%
$46/mo more in state tax than Portland
vs 8.75% in Portland
$4,088/mo
$1,735 less than Portland
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$1796k
219% more expensive than Portland
vs $562k in Portland
1.9M
vs 2.5M in Portland
field notes, weather & such.
283
pleasant days a year, in san jose.
Portland barely cracks 178 pleasant ones.
But the calendar thins out: Portland stays 2.0× busier.
70/100
20% lower than Portland
vs 87/100 in Portland
Closest outdoor draw: Pinnacles National Park, 69.2 mi.
95/100
5% lower than Portland
vs 100/100 in Portland
29
49% fewer than Portland
vs 57 nonstops in Portland
compare san jose with:
