Thanks for your perspective. I don't know a lot about Canada but from what I know, I think most of what you say is true. Except:

> 35% less taxes

I'm not so sure. In a state without income tax, if you are single and make $100K, your average federal tax is 18%. In California, you probably own another 7%. So 1/4th of your income goes to tax. How about Canada?

> Better health care

Everywhere I read, healthcare in Canada can't possibly be worse than in the US. I remember a research pointed out that the per capita cost for healthcare in Canada is like half of that of the US.

> I'm not so sure. In a state without income tax, if you are single and make $100K, your average federal tax is 18%. In California, you probably own another 7%. So 1/4th of your income goes to tax. How about Canada?

According to this [1] website (for an income of $100,000 in my province):

"Your average tax rate is 35.3% and your marginal rate is 51.8%."

Add 15% sales tax on top of that.

> Everywhere I read, healthcare in Canada can't possibly be worse than in the US. I remember a research pointed out that the per capita cost for healthcare in Canada is like half of that of the US.

You read that from people who don't know. I've been waiting years for a family practician. An appointment with a specialist (i.e., a dermatologist) can easily take 6 months. You'll wait years on a list to get a non-urgent surgery. Average waiting time in emergency rooms is 21 hours. If you can't wait, you need to pay $200-300 per visit at private clinics.

In the US, a private insurance would give me MUCH better services, and might even cover non-basic treatments, eye care and dental care.

[1] http://www.tax-services.ca/income-tax-calculator-canada/

I think it is more than that. My tax rate probably comes out to 35% total.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Income_tax_in_the_United_State...

You're right. Per this calculator [1], the tax is 36% for single filer making 100K annually. Canadians can't possibly be taxed higher than this, can they?

[1] http://www.esmartpaycheck.com/freecalculator/free_calculator...

You can't get Super Bowl ads in Canada? That one's easy. Wait an hour after the game, and they're on YouTube.

>Canadian here. ... >Too bad immigration is so difficult.

What about TN1 ?

They won't let "Software Developers" get one. I would need to somehow demonstrate that I'm a "Computer Analyst". Doesn't seem to easy from what I read, on top of the fact that it's unreliable and arbitrary.

Also [1]:

> Canadian citizen must demonstrate an intention to return to his/her home country upon the expiration of the TN visa.

[1] http://www.canadiansinusa.com/Working-in-the-US/tn-visa.html

Software Engineers are covered by TN visas though, under the 'Engineers' category. That might be easier for you instead of 'Computer Analyst'. You need a degree and a job offer (where the title is Software Engineer). I think most large software companies in the US will happily hire TN visa people. Also large companies usually have immigration lawyers on tab which makes the visa process much more reliable.

> - Amazon.com

Really??

What's so surprising about that?

Amazon.ca barely has 0.1% of what's available on Amazon.com, and most items are 50% to 100% more expensive there. Shipping is rarely free.

I don't think you realize how convenient being able to shop on Amazon.com is. If anything, that would be in my top 3 reasons to move.

This is surprising for me because access to a specific online business is not typically on a list of requirements to relocate, for me anyway.

Is there an online business, equivalent to Amazon, that is killing it in Canada?

I would be surprised as well, but then i moved to the middle east. Want to buy a closet rod...fly to Dubai to get it, or pay $30 to have a $4 item shipped internationally. Want to buy a particular brand of children's clothing, pay a 150% premium.

You dont realize how good you have it until you lose it!

There's no equivalent here.

I still use Amazon.com, but it costs around $50 of shipping for each item.