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If this article inspires anyone to finally move to Canada, there's lots of startups here in Toronto that are hiring. Also Amazon is hoping to fill 200 more desks this year in their Toronto office and Google is nearby in Waterloo. Happy to help anyone interested.
> "Much of the surrounding road and rail infrastructure is in even worse shape (the trip from LaGuardia Airport to midtown Manhattan being particularly appalling). Washington, D.C.’s semi-functional subway system feels like a World’s Fair exhibit that someone forgot to close down. " Yes, those low tax, anti-government strongholds of NYC and DC are great examples of how more taxes will solve everything.
Adjusting for the exchange rate and using my own salary as a test, my income tax in Ontario is double that of somebody living in NYC. Also our sales tax is 13% in Ontario versus 8.875% in NYC. From what I can tell residential property tax rates are pretty similar.
If I put $100,000 US dollars in this[1] calculator I get an income tax rate of 34% for central park west in NYC (not including the employer side of FICA, which would at another 7.5% for a total of 41%).
If I put $126,000 into this[2] calculator, I get an income tax rate of 31% of Ontario. Maybe there are other Canadian income taxes that this calculator does not account for? I'm American and don't know the details. The EI (Employment Insurance) is also taken out in America, but not usually included as an income tax.
[1] https://smartasset.com/taxes/new-york-tax-calculator#UYCGKmA... Total income: $100,000 Federal $17,443 FICA $7,650 State $5,610 Local $3,234 Total Income Taxes $33,937
[2] https://simpletax.ca/calculator Total income $ 126,000 Federal tax $ 22,752 Provincial tax $ 12,511 CPP/EI premiums $ 3,400 Total tax $ 38,664
I find it mildly amusing to see people talking about moving to Canada. Your mileage will vary but I'd say Montreal should be the only destination. There is a stark contrast to the rest of the Anglo speaking part of Canada which is suffering from an existential crisis as it becomes another American state. Vancouver is a lost cause and you will quickly find the 50~100% pay cut you took to scrape by to do outdoorsy hipster shit isn't going to cut it.
Although I love Canada as a nation and the things it stands for, it is far from perfect like this article will have you believe.
> "Much of the surrounding road and rail infrastructure is in even worse shape (the trip from LaGuardia Airport to midtown Manhattan being particularly appalling). Washington, D.C.’s semi-functional subway system feels like a World’s Fair exhibit that someone forgot to close down. " Yes, those low tax, anti-government strongholds of NYC and DC are great examples of how more taxes will solve everything.
"low tax, anti-government strongholds of NYC and DC" Compared to the author's Ontario, Canada? Yes, they are.
To be fair to Americans... once upon a time, they really were were that far ahead of everyone else. In 1945, it's estimated they constituted over 50% of the global GDP. You are the global economy at that point, and that's going to distort anyone's perception of what constitutes fiscal propriety. Most politicians were born either during this golden age, or a bit after when things were still very rosy. The US still represented 40% (edit: of gdp) even when relatively young politicians, like Barack Obama, came into the world. It's difficult to convince someone he can't just cut taxes to generate more good will with the electorate when, for most of his professional life, the economy was so good he could do just that and not seriously hurt anything.
If this article inspires anyone to finally move to Canada, there's lots of startups here in Toronto that are hiring. Also Amazon is hoping to fill 200 more desks this year in their Toronto office and Google is nearby in Waterloo. Happy to help anyone interested.
As an addendum; the bar is extremely low for developers in Canada. If you show up on time, smell nice, and put on a smile, you will be lauded with awards, compliments, raises, and time off.
Looking north across the border, it's easy to see a greener field, but Canada has suffered a decades of brain-drain and poor multi-factor productivity because of slow, restrictive government policy and a refusal to embrace innovation. It's a shame it takes this long to enact change.
- a conservative
Funny. As a Canadian, I look to (and moved to) America to achieve. I find our government, at many levels, to be very slow moving, averse to change and frequently lags behind the US in allowing innovation. Vancouver's down-right refusal to consider ride-sharing apps is nothing short of corruption. The archaic alcohol laws, including prohibition of transport of booze across borders (except for made-in-Canada wine, gott…
In Vancouver I'd point to the homeless issue is the biggest problem. After the weather ;)
All in all I think Canada strikes a good balance. Possibly one of the best in the world. If the weather was better we'd be ahead of the US in all parameters ...