Why are salaries in the UK so ... low ... compared to Aus?

[syd]

In Aus, average salaries in the digital space are around $100-130k and often $140/$150k too.

 

In the UK, the same jobs are in the £35-40k range, which is $65-$85k. That's almost half of what you can earn in Aus.

 

How do people manage to work and live and commute and save in London at £35k, when it's hard enough doing so at double the salary in Sydney? Is London cost of living HALF that of Sydney's? The rents aren't much cheaper, that's for sure.

 

Or am I missing something?

[movingback]

It's profession dependent. In mine you're lucky to make $80,000 in Sydney but have had offers in the UK of 40,000-50,000 pounds. And this is in the north. I'm much better off back in the UK.

[Marisawright]

What movingback said - it's very profession-dependent. Some occupations are better paid in the UK, others are better paid in Australia. It's one consideration people have to take into account when considering a move.

[syd]

Ah ok, that makes a lot of sense.

 

The question then, is how much could an average 2-person household look at saving on a £40k salary, living in London and living somewhere within an hour's commute?

 

Trying to see side-by-side how much I could end up saving realistically on either salary, in a standard 2 bed house within an hour of work.

[Bungo]

Ah ok, that makes a lot of sense.

 

The question then, is how much could an average 2-person household look at saving on a £40k salary, living in London and living somewhere within an hour's commute?

 

Trying to see side-by-side how much I could end up saving realistically on either salary, in a standard 2 bed house within an hour of work.

 

You are comparing London with Australia as a whole? :err:

 

Or are you trying to compare London with Sydney? In which case I would probably work on the basis that cost of living is much the same amd take it from there.

[syd]

You are comparing London with Australia as a whole? :err:

 

Or are you trying to compare London with Sydney? In which case I would probably work on the basis that cost of living is much the same amd take it from there.

 

Quite right, I should edit my first post. I'm looking at London vs Sydney. Apples and apples, it seems from what you're saying.

[Bungo]

Quite right, I should edit my first post. I'm looking at London vs Sydney. Apples and apples, it seems from what you're saying.

 

Ok well yes I think London and Sydney are comparable and I have personally lived in both. If someone is on £35-40k in London this is comparable with about $80-90k in Sydney in terms of purchasing power. I guess you are using current exchange rates but this does not make any sense, it was not that long ago the exchange rate was 1:1.45 and there is no way you would compare a London salary of £40k with a Sydney salary of $58k.

 

But if you can get $150k in Sydney and £40k in London then without a shadow of doubt Sydney will leave you better off and better able to save.

 

But to your initial question, not everybody can or will achieve such a difference. If I take my OH for example, he earned about $165k in Sydney but £100k in London, so London much better. For me the Sydney salary was about 2.2 times in $ the £ salary in London so almost text book conversion.

[syd]

Very good point about the fluctuating exchange rate. But for the purposes of comparison, I'm just looking at things as they stand today.

 

Did your family make the move back because of the £100k opportunity? Were you ever affected by SAD or grey skies? Not sure if this would be a factor for me, coming from South Africa where weather isn't something to think about. Other than this issue, salary is really the only separating criterion between the two countries for me, other than visiting both cities and loving London's lifestyle so much more than Sydney. I could happily live in London and visit Sydney, but would miss London much more the other way around.

 

interested to hear more about your personal comparisons!

[Bungo]

Very good point about the fluctuating exchange rate. But for the purposes of comparison, I'm just looking at things as they stand today.

 

Did your family make the move back because of the £100k opportunity? Were you ever affected by SAD or grey skies? Not sure if this would be a factor for me, coming from South Africa where weather isn't something to think about. Other than this issue, salary is really the only separating criterion between the two countries for me, other than visiting both cities and loving London's lifestyle so much more than Sydney. I could happily live in London and visit Sydney, but would miss London much more the other way around.

 

interested to hear more about your personal comparisons!

 

But it makes no sense to look at wnything in terms of current exchange rates. Your pint of milk in Sydney is not going to fluctuate in cost in line with the GBP exchange rate.

 

No we did not move back because of a £100k opportunity, he did not have that job offer when we moved back, that is simply the going rate for his profession.

 

I honestly love both Sydney and London. If I were to pick the best city in the world, I think I might pick London, but I do also love Sydney immensely.

[Grecia]

To give you some idea, the take home pay from £40k is about £2,500 a month. Up until 6 months ago we were renting a two-bed end-of-terrace in Zone 5 for £1,400 a month. It was just over an hour into the City door-to-door. With a monthly travelcard, transport is £212 a month. We were paying about £150 a month council tax. That leaves £738 a month for food, utilities and everything else. Remember petrol is double the price.

 

Incidentally my OH is South African, and although he has been over here over 15 years, he complains about the weather constantly!

:wink:

[Dan Mika]

I would say the cost of living in the UK is cheaper than Australia. Food (much cheaper), clothes, NHS covers your medical and so on. But London is very expensive for property rental or ownership, but that would depend on where in Aus your comparing to. In the Uk the supply of some professions is likely to be much larger than that in Australia, the UK population and EU workers makes for a large pool of talent, all in in a small space compared to Aus. Some jobs in Australia enjoy an elevated salary for that reason as its not easy to fill the gaps quickly. Australian way of life and weather is not in the UK, and this can be priceless

[bristolman]

I would say the cost of living in the UK is cheaper than Australia. Food (much cheaper), clothes, NHS covers your medical and so on. But London is very expensive for property rental or ownership, but that would depend on where in Aus your comparing to. In the Uk the supply of some professions is likely to be much larger than that in Australia, the UK population and EU workers makes for a large pool of talent, all in in a small space compared to Aus. Some jobs in Australia enjoy an elevated salary for that reason as its not easy to fill the gaps quickly. Australian way of life and weather is not in the UK, and this can be priceless

 

Yes I have been saying that since we returned 4 years ago, we find the cost of living noticeably cheaper here and that isn't something we would have said a decade or so ago. I would also add that the UK way of life is pretty priceless as well

[newjez]

In Aus, average salaries in the digital space are around $100-130k and often $140/$150k too.

 

In the UK, the same jobs are in the £35-40k range, which is $65-$85k. That's almost half of what you can earn in Aus.

 

How do people manage to work and live and commute and save in London at £35k, when it's hard enough doing so at double the salary in Sydney? Is London cost of living HALF that of Sydney's? The rents aren't much cheaper, that's for sure.

 

Or am I missing something?

 

 

A good c# a/p should easily earn over £50k in London. Contract more.

 

I've heard of pm's pulling £1700 a day contract.

[drizzy]

I think the UK developer market gets skewed by contracting which is where most of the money is. Because Australia has a more strict implementation of an IR35-a-like law, contracting isn't as popular, which drives up perm salaries? That's my theory, anyway.

 

Plus, the Aussie dollar is still overvalued... I hope. I sort of expect it to eventually correct to somewhere between 2 and 2.5, especially if we stay in the EU.

 

context: I'm an Australian who moved to the UK in 2007, possibly moving back to Australia late this year or early next year.

[CaptainR]

My profession often pays at least 3 x what it does in the UK, often with better conditions (much of this due to protectionism, unions and limited training of new personnel). For instance a friend of mine who was a Chief Officer/Relief Captain on the largest ferry in the world working in the busy and challenging waters of the North Sea/English Channel is now working as a straightforward navigator on the Melbourne-Tassie ferries yet is earning considerably more then he was earning in his higher position in the UK, with much more comfortable working conditions, less stress and a better lifestyle.

I think that a correction of the exchange rate is absolutely necessary to prompt the Australian economy, but even we'd remain better then the UK.

 

The down side for us is that it makes it incredibly difficult if we did want to move, as the only way we'd continue on good conditions would be an expat contract in the Middle East or Asia.

[John Zoro]

I'm in a job that pays about £20k in the UK but in Aus I'd get 60k

With no council tax or water rates

[Marisawright]

I'm in a job that pays about £20k in the UK but in Aus I'd get 60k

With no council tax or water rates

 

Why do you think you wouldn't pay council tax or water rates? If you're renting a flat you won't pay them direct - but the landlord has to pay them, so their cost is built into your rent. If you own a place, you'll be liable to pay them. If you own a flat or townhouse, you'll have to pay quarterly strata fees on top.

[starlight7]

But I guess it is never all about money is it? Or maybe, for some it is?

[realitynotincluded]

Not that this has much relevance to six figure sums but l think its all categories........ l work in disability and uk is offering 7.50 an hour... here l am getting 25.00 to 30.00 an hour.....

[VERYSTORMY]

I'm in a job that pays about £20k in the UK but in Aus I'd get 60k

With no council tax or water rates

 

But, on £20k you pay only about £1800 a year tax. In Oz, on $60k you will pay between $10-12k tax

[Guest]

But, on £20k you pay only about £1800 a year tax. In Oz, on $60k you will pay between $10-12k tax

 

And 1400 on National insurance. And 1000+ on council tax and 500 or so on water

[Sustain]

In Aus, average salaries in the digital space are around $100-130k and often $140/$150k too.

 

In the UK, the same jobs are in the £35-40k range, which is $65-$85k. That's almost half of what you can earn in Aus.

 

How do people manage to work and live and commute and save in London at £35k, when it's hard enough doing so at double the salary in Sydney? Is London cost of living HALF that of Sydney's? The rents aren't much cheaper, that's for sure.

 

Or am I missing something?

Australians are overpaid in comparison to worldwide averages. Mainly for reason of keeping up with disproportionate cost of living.

OP should really consider the differences a reality check.

[Kenfrapin]

One of the replies said it right : very dependent on experience but still quite comparable. I've had offers/seen IT Project Manager roles as low as £40k in greater London and as high as £90k in the heart of London with most jobs in the £60k to £70k region. Pretty similar for Sydney too with average comparable jobs paying $120k to $150k. But London is smaller with a lot more people, recent figures show 8.3M in London versus almost 5M in Sydney.

My brother has a decent 1 bed just outside Sydney CBD paying $2500, not sure he could get an equivalent place in London for £1250 a month, but I cannot say for sure

 

It is fair to say though, if choosing to live either in London or Sydney, earning power may not be as high or as decisive a factor as other cities like Melbourne?

 

KnK

[Kenfrapin]

How do people manage to work and live and commute and save in London at £35k, when it's hard enough doing so at double the salary in Sydney? Is London cost of living HALF that of Sydney's? The rents aren't much cheaper, that's for sure.

 

 

You'd be living on the outer fringes of London, travelling for over an hour, not really enjoying the London night life/shopping/spending etc and saving closing to nought on that salary. £35k is really on the lower end for a single person on London salary but I know people living in Sydney city enjoying life on a comparable $75k salary!

 

If 2 people live together then it's a completely different story and there are quite a few couples/friends on a combined salary of £60k and above in proper London having a great time. Also, some people dine out twice a month, others twice a week while some go clubbing once a week. Lifestyle makes a big difference on how much you end up saving in London

 

KnK

[Marisawright]

But, on £20k you pay only about £1800 a year tax. In Oz, on $60k you will pay between $10-12k tax

 

Also it's important to check whether that $60k is a salary or a package. If it's a package, then it includes superannuation which you don't get in your hand - it gets paid straight into your super fund to provide a pension in your old age. That's currently 9.5% so the actual salary would be more like $50k.