Benchmark relocation brief
San Francisco to Denver
On a benchmark software-engineer offer, moving from San Francisco to Denver costs $2.4K in net worth over 10 years after real taxes and cost of living, breaking even in year 1. The crossover salary — where this move flips to winning — is $138.6K in Denver.
Route
Current city
San Francisco, United States
Destination
Denver, United States
Page URL: /compare/san-francisco-to-denver
Benchmark verdict
The benchmark needs scrutiny.
-$2.4K over 10 years
Salary benchmark
$187k to $138k
-26% vs current city
Cost index
175 to 118
-33% vs current city
Break-even
Year 1
Within 10-year benchmark horizon
Salary gap
$951
More needed in Denver to break even
Net worth benchmark
San Francisco
$187K
Denver
$184K
Assumptions, sources, currency
Estimates, not financial advice
Your inputs
Salary, monthly spend, net worth, raises, savings rate, return, and horizon.
Currency model
All money values you enter are treated as USD. Tax lookups convert to each tax table's anchor currency using an ECB reference-rate snapshot (as of 2026-07-02).
Salary basis
Salaries are annual gross pay; take-home is estimated per city (see Tax model).
Salary benchmarks
San Francisco: BLS OEWS May 2025 median wage — San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro (official). Denver: BLS OEWS May 2025 median wage — Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO metro (official). Snapshot refreshed 2026-07-03.
Cost-of-living index
San Francisco: MoveWorth curated index (city-core costs, US avg = 100). Denver: MoveWorth curated index (city-core costs, US avg = 100). 100 = US average.
Rent baseline
US rent baselines in the Money section prefer the actual measured median (Census ACS 5-Year, table B25031, https://api.census.gov/data/2024/acs/acs5/groups/B25031.html) by bedroom for the city's metro area, falling back to official HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2026, Oct. 1, 2025 to Sept. 30, 2026, https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html) where ACS has no data for that city or bedroom size. Non-US rent remains unconnected in v1.
Tax model
Estimated income tax + employee social contributions. US cities use 2025 federal brackets + state + FICA; UK cities use real PolicyEngine income tax + National Insurance (Scotland's separate bands included); elsewhere an OECD-anchored effective rate. San Francisco 34%, Denver 28%. Household: single. Estimate, not a filing model.
Financial math
Compounded net worth from after-tax savings and expected annual returns.
Uncertainty band
The break-even chart's shaded band reruns your numbers ~300 times, nudging investment return, raises, and cost-of-living growth within typical historical swings. It shows a plausible range, not a guarantee, and is seeded from your inputs so it won't change on reload.
Culture & wellbeing
Life expectancy (World Bank) and life satisfaction (Our World in Data) are live, official per-country figures. Languages, English proficiency band, and marriage-equality status are hand-compiled reference facts, not a live feed — verify before relying on them for a legal decision.
Open-Meteo
Live current conditions, 7-day forecast, and current air quality (PM2.5, US AQI) for both city coordinates.
Live city signals
Open-Meteo, weather + air quality
San Francisco
Denver
City comparison
Cost of living index?
Denver is approximately 33% cheaper than San Francisco.
San Francisco — industries
Denver — industries
San Francisco — lifestyle
Denver — lifestyle
Run the real decision
The benchmark is only a map. Use your actual offer, spend, household, and risk profile.
Common questions
Is moving from San Francisco to Denver worth it financially?
On a benchmark software-engineer offer, moving from San Francisco to Denver costs about $2.4K in net worth over 10 years, despite breaking even in year 1. A stronger offer or lower spending can flip this — run the simulation with your real numbers.
What salary do I need in Denver to make the move break even?
About $138.6K — roughly $951 more than the current Denver benchmark offer of $137.6K.
How does the cost of living in Denver compare to San Francisco?
Denver indexes at 118 vs San Francisco at 175 (US average = 100), so day-to-day costs are about 33% lower.
How do software engineer salaries compare between San Francisco and Denver?
Benchmark software-engineer pay is $137.6K in Denver vs $186.6K in San Francisco (USD-equivalent, sourced market medians — see the sources section for provenance).
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