Ask HN: What cities have the best salary / cost of living ratio?

Globally speaking, what are the best places to live that have tech jobs and a good quality of life, without being too expensive?

I'm talking about places to both live and work, rather than the "digital nomad" places that are popular with remote workers.

The best area I'm familiar with is Research Triangle Park (RTP). Above average salaries and relatively low cost of living. There's a growing food scene, people are active and it's at the beginning of a cultural renewal imo. Of course, being in NC comes with some problems due to the legacy of racism that exists in some pockets of society (pretty easy to avoid, you'll know it when you see it), but I loved growing up there.

Clearly Zurich, this can be back-checked with several studies. Of all countries, it's Switzerland that has the best ratio. Within CH, it's ZH.

If you are in tech, Seattle has high salaries and no state income tax. Housing costs are rising, but I had a nice 1BR in Capitol Hill for ~ 1700 before buying a 3 BR townhouse in West Seattle with the same monthly cost for mortgage and taxes combined. Walk scores > 90 in both neighborhoods I've lived in and have never had a car. The equivalent housing would cost at least double in the Bay Area. Unfortunately, the winter in Seattle is a downer and it's a bit weird socially.

I've spent some time thinking about this and while it's hard to reach a conclusive answer as a generic one I would say a second tier city in western Europe. You still get a fairly functional state, internationalism and good quality of life without having to pay first tier city prices for housing and consumables. Which city is much harder to answer of course, suggestions are welcome.