Sure, who doesn't want unlimited money? That's decidedly different from "needing" it (I could in no way manage to live on the West Coast on a Spanish salary, for example)

Well then why do the people who do earn that much there need it?

Sky-high cost of living (property prices, mostly). Shitty apartment with a commute in the bay costs $3,000/month. Starter home in Seattle costs a million plus.

It's also a vicious cycle: high tech salaries in those areas have driven up the cost of living.

> Shitty apartment with a commute in the bay costs $3,000/month. Starter home in Seattle costs a million plus.

The prices in Madrid/Barcelona are not exactly far off already (through no fault of high tech salaries).

But a high tech salary in that area doesn't put them in the percentile we were discussing.

> But a high tech salary in that area doesn't put them in the percentile we were discussing.

Not on the West coast, no, but my contention is that my comp when I worked for a FAANG in Seattle (5 years ago) would put me well into the top 0.2% of Spanish earners