Mid-career New York baseline: $280,000. Each city lists local-market pay and a COLI-scaled lifestyle equivalent — the equivalent is not market pay.
| # | City | Local market | Lifestyle equivalent | COLI | Take-Home % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zurich | CHF 124,777 | CHF 277,686 | 122.4 | 58.0% |
| 2 | Geneva | CHF 124,777 | CHF 269,065 | 118.6 | 54.0% |
| 3 | New York | $280,000 | $280,000 | 100.0 | 60.7% |
| 4 | San Francisco | $280,000 | $273,280 | 97.6 | 61.7% |
| 5 | Singapore | S$200,617 | S$319,894 | 87.7 | 79.2% |
| 6 | London | £107,530 | £184,488 | 87.5 | 65.2% |
| 7 | Copenhagen | kr 622,093 | kr 1,523,240 | 85.7 | 57.0% |
| 8 | Amsterdam | €106,834 | €196,100 | 82.6 | 59.4% |
| 9 | Boston | $280,000 | $230,720 | 82.4 | 62.0% |
| 10 | Tel Aviv | ₪403,133 | ₪819,367 | 81.3 | 63.6% |
| 11 | Miami | $280,000 | $224,280 | 80.1 | 71.0% |
| 12 | Washington DC | $280,000 | $223,440 | 79.8 | 62.5% |
| 13 | Seattle | $280,000 | $222,600 | 79.5 | 71.0% |
| 14 | Oslo | kr 1,125,060 | kr 2,207,931 | 78.5 | 62.5% |
| 15 | San Diego | $280,000 | $217,000 | 77.5 | 61.7% |
| 16 | Tokyo | ¥13,879,904 | ¥33,528,642 | 77.3 | 63.3% |
| 17 | Los Angeles | $280,000 | $213,640 | 76.3 | 61.7% |
| 18 | Sydney | A$202,909 | A$296,407 | 74.5 | 71.7% |
| 19 | Hong Kong | HK$986,747 | HK$1,613,880 | 73.6 | 84.7% |
| 20 | Chicago | $280,000 | $204,960 | 73.2 | 66.0% |
| 21 | Dublin | €94,964 | €172,834 | 72.8 | 64.8% |
| 22 | Dubai | AED 507,184 | AED 734,402 | 72.4 | 100.0% |
| 23 | Doha | QAR 561,265 | QAR 709,235 | 69.5 | 100.0% |
| 24 | Seoul | ₩124,418,675 | ₩244,927,048 | 68.9 | 68.0% |
| 25 | Philadelphia | $280,000 | $192,640 | 68.8 | 67.9% |
| 26 | Luxembourg City | €94,964 | €162,388 | 68.4 | 59.6% |
| 27 | Melbourne | A$202,909 | A$271,342 | 68.2 | 71.7% |
| 28 | Abu Dhabi | AED 507,184 | AED 687,741 | 67.8 | 100.0% |
| 29 | Portland | $280,000 | $188,160 | 67.2 | 61.1% |
| 30 | Denver | $280,000 | $183,960 | 65.7 | 66.6% |
| 31 | Vancouver | C$257,786 | C$247,929 | 65.4 | 66.3% |
| 32 | Austin | $280,000 | $181,440 | 64.8 | 71.0% |
| 33 | Tampa | $280,000 | $180,600 | 64.5 | 71.0% |
| 34 | Stockholm | kr 1,070,620 | kr 1,639,069 | 64.3 | 52.5% |
| 35 | Perth | A$202,909 | A$252,642 | 63.5 | 71.7% |
| 36 | Atlanta | $280,000 | $176,960 | 63.2 | 65.5% |
| 37 | Nashville | $280,000 | $175,840 | 62.8 | 71.0% |
| 38 | Osaka | ¥13,879,904 | ¥27,239,311 | 62.8 | 63.3% |
| 39 | Dallas | $280,000 | $175,000 | 62.5 | 71.0% |
| 40 | Toronto | C$257,786 | C$236,177 | 62.3 | 64.8% |
| 41 | Edinburgh | £107,530 | £130,934 | 62.1 | 65.5% |
| 42 | Munich | €92,590 | €146,007 | 61.5 | 53.4% |
| 43 | Minneapolis | $280,000 | $171,920 | 61.4 | 63.1% |
| 44 | Auckland | NZ$239,139 | NZ$274,333 | 60.8 | 66.3% |
| 45 | Houston | $280,000 | $168,560 | 60.2 | 71.0% |
| 46 | Charlotte | $280,000 | $167,440 | 59.8 | 66.5% |
| 47 | Phoenix | $280,000 | $164,920 | 58.9 | 68.5% |
| 48 | Raleigh | $280,000 | $164,080 | 58.6 | 66.5% |
| 49 | Helsinki | €75,971 | €138,172 | 58.2 | 61.1% |
| 50 | Las Vegas | $280,000 | $162,960 | 58.2 | 71.0% |
| 51 | Milan | €66,475 | €137,223 | 57.8 | 58.5% |
| 52 | Nice | €102,086 | €125,115 | 52.7 | 52.4% |
| 53 | Montreal | C$257,786 | C$197,509 | 52.1 | 59.0% |
| 54 | Fukuoka | ¥13,879,904 | ¥22,294,595 | 51.4 | 63.3% |
| 55 | Berlin | €92,590 | €121,554 | 51.2 | 53.4% |
| 56 | Brussels | €71,223 | €119,417 | 50.3 | 54.0% |
| 57 | Rome | €66,475 | €117,043 | 49.3 | 58.5% |
| 58 | Vienna | €75,971 | €114,431 | 48.2 | 51.9% |
| 59 | Paris | €102,086 | €111,345 | 46.9 | 52.4% |
| 60 | Shanghai | ¥282,741 | ¥870,842 | 46.2 | 63.5% |
| 61 | Taipei | NT$2,656,627 | NT$3,967,229 | 44.8 | 79.6% |
| 62 | Beijing | ¥282,741 | ¥819,949 | 43.5 | 63.5% |
| 63 | Riyadh | SAR 504,000 | SAR 447,300 | 42.6 | 90.2% |
| 64 | Panama City | $50,400 | $118,440 | 42.3 | 78.4% |
| 65 | Barcelona | €66,475 | €99,949 | 42.1 | 63.3% |
| 66 | Shenzhen | ¥282,741 | ¥789,790 | 41.9 | 63.5% |
| 67 | São Paulo | R$254,277 | R$590,488 | 41.8 | 70.8% |
| 68 | Guangzhou | ¥282,741 | ¥729,472 | 38.7 | 63.5% |
| 69 | Madrid | €66,475 | €90,216 | 38.0 | 63.3% |
| 70 | Bangkok | ฿1,301,652 | ฿3,228,097 | 37.2 | 84.7% |
| 71 | Cancún | MX$711,596 | MX$1,698,343 | 35.8 | 76.6% |
| 72 | Lisbon | €52,230 | €82,381 | 34.7 | 58.2% |
| 73 | Valencia | €66,475 | €79,532 | 33.5 | 63.3% |
| 74 | Santiago | CLP 47,250,000 | CLP 87,150,000 | 33.2 | 72.8% |
| 75 | Kuala Lumpur | RM 227,711 | RM 373,446 | 32.8 | 70.9% |
| 76 | Mexico City | MX$711,596 | MX$1,541,792 | 32.5 | 76.6% |
| 77 | Montevideo | $U 1,882,410 | $U 3,823,645 | 32.5 | 66.8% |
| 78 | Split | €42,734 | €75,496 | 31.8 | 60.0% |
| 79 | Málaga | €66,475 | €74,072 | 31.2 | 63.3% |
| 80 | San José (CR) | ₡25,503,614 | ₡44,206,265 | 31.2 | 81.9% |
| 81 | Playa del Carmen | MX$711,596 | MX$1,461,145 | 30.8 | 76.6% |
| 82 | Athens | €52,230 | €72,647 | 30.6 | 57.6% |
| 83 | Prague | Kč 1,419,398 | Kč 1,974,253 | 30.6 | 74.0% |
| 84 | Phuket | ฿1,301,652 | ฿2,646,693 | 30.5 | 84.7% |
| 85 | Porto | €52,230 | €71,460 | 30.1 | 58.2% |
| 86 | Tallinn | €52,230 | €68,611 | 28.9 | 81.4% |
| 87 | Cape Town | R 918,434 | R 1,449,084 | 28.4 | 69.9% |
| 88 | Warsaw | zł 219,277 | zł 311,373 | 28.4 | 66.9% |
| 89 | Lagos | ₦30,993,976 | ₦120,876,506 | 27.3 | 68.7% |
| 90 | Manila | ₱1,256,627 | ₱4,209,699 | 26.8 | 77.8% |
| 91 | Ho Chi Minh City | ₫560,000,000 | ₫1,848,000,000 | 26.4 | 71.5% |
| 92 | Budapest | Ft 18,103,012 | Ft 26,249,367 | 26.1 | 66.5% |
| 93 | Lima | S/124,482 | S/267,636 | 25.8 | 76.2% |
| 94 | Buenos Aires | AR$37,445,783 | AR$79,884,337 | 25.6 | 50.3% |
| 95 | Bali (Denpasar) | Rp 345,783,133 | Rp 1,093,539,157 | 25.3 | 79.0% |
| 96 | Riga | €42,734 | €60,065 | 25.3 | 67.9% |
| 97 | Phnom Penh | $19,600 | $69,440 | 24.8 | 100.0% |
| 98 | Nairobi | KSh 2,892,771 | KSh 8,931,431 | 24.7 | 66.2% |
| 99 | Jakarta | Rp 345,783,133 | Rp 1,058,960,843 | 24.5 | 79.0% |
| 100 | Hanoi | ₫560,000,000 | ₫1,687,000,000 | 24.1 | 71.5% |
| 101 | Krakow | zł 219,277 | zł 260,940 | 23.8 | 66.9% |
| 102 | Istanbul | ₺1,344,127 | ₺2,069,955 | 23.1 | 55.1% |
| 103 | Bogotá | COP 139,662,651 | COP 266,522,892 | 22.9 | 74.9% |
| 104 | Chiang Mai | ฿1,301,652 | ฿1,961,156 | 22.6 | 84.7% |
| 105 | Bucharest | lei 189,590 | lei 266,611 | 22.5 | 55.0% |
| 106 | Mumbai | ₹1,863,855 | ₹5,195,497 | 22.3 | 85.5% |
| 107 | Casablanca | MAD 217,590 | MAD 601,093 | 22.1 | 66.9% |
| 108 | Bangalore | ₹1,863,855 | ₹4,846,024 | 20.8 | 85.5% |
| 109 | Medellín | COP 139,662,651 | COP 237,426,506 | 20.4 | 74.9% |
| 110 | Delhi | ₹1,863,855 | ₹4,543,148 | 19.5 | 85.5% |
| 111 | Marrakech | MAD 217,590 | MAD 522,217 | 19.2 | 66.9% |
| 112 | Chennai | ₹1,863,855 | ₹4,403,358 | 18.9 | 85.5% |
| 113 | Cairo | E£956,386 | E£2,295,325 | 16.8 | 66.6% |
Data covers 113 cities. Local market = verified / OECD / COLI badge (same as /is-my-salary-good/). Lifestyle equivalent = NYC baseline × city COLI / 100 — not market pay. Updated 2026.
Typical surgeon salary range (New York baseline, USD):
The mid-career surgeon New York baseline is $280,000. Each city shows two numbers: local-market pay (verified national stats, OECD estimate, or COLI fallback) and a lifestyle equivalent (NYC baseline scaled by city COLI). The equivalent is not what someone earns locally.
The highest COLI-scaled lifestyle equivalent for a surgeon is Zurich at $342,720 USD. That figure is purchasing-power scaled from the New York baseline, not local market pay. See both columns in the table for all 113 cities.
Local-market pay uses the same country multipliers as /is-my-salary-good/ (verified national statistics, OECD wage ratios, or COLI fallback). Lifestyle equivalent starts from the New York baseline and scales by city COLI (NYC = 100). Take-home percentage is tax and social contributions on the local-market figure.