That seems true. However it also needs to be considered that salaries shouldnt be so low that people just leave. For example consider Berlin, rapidly rising rent but not so much for salaries. So people just leave. In such a case you do get more bang for your buck as a company but theres a limit on how much.

That’s happened for sure but companies like Amazon, Zalando, Fyber pay well enough for a seriously good lifestyle here.

Companies maybe, but there’s zero reason for me to move back to the Netherlands if they’re not going to pay me at least what I earn in Japan, and Japan isn’t even particularly high paying.

Well you left one of the happiest countries in the world to live in a not very happy country (according to research). Without knowing anything about you I find it hard to believe your day to day is any happier than it was in the Netherlands. I moved to the Netherlands from a country that pays developers very good money but had a million other problems...so it's really not all about the money.

Wow, that's the first time I hear this. Care to share why did you choose Japan out of all places?

Global and a few Japanese companies in Tokyo pay well compared to Europe. E.g. you can make 200+k$ total comp if you have skills in demand (ML, etc.), which is hard in Europe outside management consulting/finance.

How that compares to the US depends on your life choices, etc. I am aware I could "easily" earn 2x in SV, but I hate living in suburbs while I can cycle to work in Tokyo and live in one of the most vibrant city in the world.