Physician Salary: Seattle vs San Francisco
Annual median salary comparison (2024). All figures include local currency, USD equivalent, and PPP-adjusted purchasing power.
🇺🇸 Seattle
United States
$315K USD
$315K USD
$315K PPP
VS
USD Difference
-5%
Seattle vs San Francisco
🇺🇸 San Francisco
United States
$333K USD
$333K USD
$333K PPP
Higher Purchasing Power
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Seattle | San Francisco | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Currency Salary | $315K USD | $333K USD | — |
| USD Equivalent | $315K | $333K | -5% |
| PPP-Adjusted SalaryWINNER | $315K | $333K 🏆 | -5% |
| 25th Percentile | $252K USD | $266K USD | — |
| Median | $315K USD | $333K USD | — |
| 75th Percentile | $394K USD | $416K USD | — |
| Annual Mean | $340K USD | $360K USD | — |
What Does This Mean?
Seattle offers a Physician salary of $315K USD, while San Francisco offers $333K USD — a difference of -5% in raw terms.
After adjusting for purchasing power parity (PPP), Seattle's salary is worth $315K in US purchasing power terms, versus $333K for San Francisco. This means San Francisco offers better real purchasing power for this role.
PPP adjustment accounts for differences in local prices — for example, housing costs 3x more in San Francisco than in Warsaw, so a San Francisco salary needs to be much higher to provide an equivalent standard of living.