The Best Cities for Working Less and Earning More

best cities to work thumbnail

We power the world’s most productive economy, but are US workers some of the weariest? A fifth of private employers still don’t offer their employees paid vacation time, and we’re the only developed nation with no legal entitlement to it.

And, while wage growth is flat, we’re apparently busier than ever. 62% of American office workers now say they usually eat their lunch in the same spot they work all day. If that sounds like you, do yourself a favor and don’t read the next part (especially if you’re eating) – scoffing down lunch at your desk can expose you to more bad bacteria than a toilet seat.

There has to be a better way for millennial workers to make a living. Aren’t the French known for taking long lunch breaks and lots of time off? Could moving abroad be the key to earning more while working less?

Inspired by this hunch (and a generous helping of population and wage data, courtesy of Deutsche Bank and UBS), we researched the cities that offer young workers great pay, amazing hours and ample annual leave.

You might be surprised by who came out on top!


Luxembourg to London: The Top Ten

Nestled snugly between Belgium, Germany, and France, land-locked Luxembourg’s workers are in jobs as cushy as its country’s location. With big salaries and and almost five weeks of paid vacation, Luxembourgers have it good.

Capital cities are known for being for hubs of industry, and our data suggests there’s little to buck that trend. With the capitals of Germany, France, Finland, Denmark, Italy, Ireland, Norway, and the UK all well-represented in our list, it’s no surprise that it’s where our best talent is always headed.

It’s also worth pointing out that Europe overall did well in our list – not a single city from outside the continent got a sniff.

Over-worked Americans – time to relocate?

RANK

CityMonthly Net Salary (USD)Working Hours Per Year

Paid Vacation Days Per Year

1

Luxembourg42921,703

32

2

Munich31801,721

29

3

Paris25831,604

29

4

Helsinki26201,659

29

5

Lyon22691,631

29

6

Copenhagen29581,697

25

7

Rome17911,736

32

8

Dublin26031,770

31

9

Oslo31541,744

25

10

London27761,740

25


Beijing to Bangkok: The Bottom Ten

Actually, our data suggests that the worst country for working less and earning more is Indonesia – specifically its capital, Jakarta.

Indonesia’s core hub of industry ranks bottom overall, and fourth from bottom for salary, with an average monthly wage of just $548. 12 days paid vacation isn’t the worst by any stretch – that distinction goes to the three days paid leave in Sao Paolo – but it’s not outstanding.

Young adults across Asia have little to be happy about in general, with five of the bottom ten cities ranking poorly for pay, holiday time and hours worked.

Oh, and we hate to break it to you heliophiles, but the culture-rich, sun-soaked cities of Latin America aren’t exactly places to go if you want lots of money… or long vacations. Cities from Colombia, Chile, Mexico, and Argentina are all to be found in the lower echelons of our list – although the mid-table statuses of Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and Peru’s Lima do something to buck the trend.

But hey, at least the empanadas are amazing!

RANKCityMonthly Net Salary (USD)Working Hours Per Year

Paid Vacation Days Per Year

60

Beijing13221,963

10

61

Santiago de Chile8332,082

17

62

Mumbai7882,277

21

63

Istanbul6832,043

18

64Shanghai13362,051

7

65

Nairobi3402,184

22

66

Mexico City6852,261

17

67

Bogotá4302,096

15

68

Bangkok8122,191

9

69

Jakarta5482,102

12


An American Perspective

We don’t feature in the top ten or the bottom ten… so just how did US cities fare when it comes to that holy grail of work-life balance?

Unsurprisingly, the Big Apple is the country’s top contender, ranking at 13th overall with a whopping average salary of $4,304 – the third largest on the list, after Swiss powerhouses Zurich and Geneva.

Miami and Los Angeles jostle for similar mid-table rankings, while Chicago is the lowest ranking American city, at place 41.

Canadian cities probably deserve some credit here, too – Montreal (33) and Toronto (44) both hold their own with modest working hour quotas, and decent pay.


Work-Life Balance: Our Complete Rankings

Check out the full list of cities below to see if yours made the cut. And the next time you find yourself in the office at 9pm with a lap full of spreadsheets and sandwich crumbs, remember that you can always ditch the rat race…

…and buy a one way ticket to Luxembourg!

RANKCityMonthly Net Salary (USD)Working Hours Per Year

Paid Vacation Days Per Year

1

Luxembourg42921,703

32

2

Munich31801,721

29

3

Paris25831,604

29

4

Helsinki26201,659

29

5

Lyon22691,631

29

6

Copenhagen29581,697

25

7

Rome17911,736

32

8

Dublin26031,770

31

9

Oslo31541,744

25

10

London27761,740

25

11

Vienna20451,678

27

12

Frankfurt26261,757

28

13

New York City43041,847

27

14

Moscow9991,647

31

15

Geneva58171,859

27

16

Milan17371,691

26

17

Barcelona17091,731

28

18

Berlin22161,769

29

19

Stockholm26221,770

25

20

Tallinn12241,738

30

21

Sydney34511,829

24

22

Vilnius8771,716

30

23

Zurich58761,912

24

24

Madrid15881,731

26

25

Dubai35262,186

30

26

Prague10331,753

28

27

Brussels21401,717

18

28

Warsaw9751,757

26

29

Lima15991,957

31

30

Rio de Janeiro6391,745

30

31

Doha35182,082

24

32

Sao Paulo7221,818

31

33

Montreal22401,783

18

34

Lisbon9641,748

23

35

Ljubljana13481,853

25

35

Bratislava11641,845

26

36

Miami25711,854

19

37

Manama12032,076

34

38

Los Angeles32371,928

14

39

Nicosia14861,855

22

40

Johannesburg16501,847

19

41

Chicago36222,030

14

42

Athens7761,800

23

43

Seoul26981,934

15

44

Toronto25601,985

19

45

Auckland27621,992

16

46

Bucharest7211,807

23

47

Tokyo28972,055

17

48

Budapest8121,910

26

49

Kiev3591,817

26

50

Riga8161,823

20

51

Sofia7181,821

22

52

Tel Aviv25452,038

17

53

Hong Kong27152,606

17

54

Buenos Aires8381,899

16

55

Kuala Lumpur9871,935

15

56

Manila5551,951

21

57

Taipei20502,141

13

58

New Delhi6542,214

26

59

Cairo1782,082

25

60

Beijing13221,963

10

61

Santiago de Chile8332,082

17

62

Mumbai7882,277

21

63

Istanbul6832,043

18

64Shanghai13362,051

7

65

Nairobi3402,184

22

66

Mexico City6852,261

17

67

Bogotá4302,096

15

68

Bangkok8122,191

9

69

Jakarta5482,102

12

As always, thanks for reading!

And, now you’ve fallen into our intricate rabbit hole of fun, city-related content, why not dive even deeper? You can explore the best and worst cities for commuting (the US is certainly well-represented in the latter – we’re looking at you, Miami!), as well as the world’s top tech cities.

Written by:
Rob Binns
Rob writes mainly about the payments industry, but also brings to the table industry-specific knowledge of CRM software, business loans, fulfilment, and invoice finance. When not exasperating his editor with bad puns, he can be found relaxing in a sunny (socially-distanced) corner, with a beer and a battered copy of Dostoevsky.