Sovereign

AI

AI Engineer Salary · London vs Sydney

Net pay, tax drag, and purchasing power modeled for 2025 offers. Built for relocating teams, expats, and comp committees.

Net pay

London

£97,800

44.3% effective rate

Net pay

Sydney

$239,478

39.6% effective rate

Annual delta

Spread

-$141,678

Sydney advantage

City

London

Europe’s leading financial center. Salaries typically include a "London weighting" to offset housing costs.

Median professional income

£48,500

Role modeled

AI Engineer

Gross base

£175,500

Net after tax

£97,800

Cost-of-living index

56

Rent index

56

City

Sydney

The financial heart of Oceania. High compensation roles in finance and law are common, matching a premium coastal lifestyle.

Median professional income

$119,500

Role modeled

AI Engineer

Gross base

$396,500

Net after tax

$239,478

Cost-of-living index

52

Rent index

72

Purchasing power

Net income vs lifestyle drag

London

£8,150

Housing£2,038
Essentials£1,223
Discretionary£2,038
Savings£2,853

Sydney

$19,957

Housing$4,989
Essentials$2,993
Discretionary$4,989
Savings$6,985

Cost-of-living deep dive

Flip into the COL template for this exact pair. See rent burdens, discretionary drift, and PPP commentary.

Open COL page

Remote benchmark

Need a borderless baseline? Run the remote analyzer across our tier-one city basket.

Remote comparison

More combinations

Interlink into adjacent hubs to keep crawlers following the mesh.

Frequently asked

Who wins for AI Engineer net pay: London or Sydney?+
Sydney keeps about $141,678 more after tax (39.6% effective rate) compared to London (44.3%).
How different are the cost-of-living profiles?+
London posts a cost-of-living index of 56 and rent index of 56. Sydney comes in at 52 / 72. The purchasing power gap tightens once you factor in rent and lifestyle drift.
What salary uplift offsets London's taxes?+
You would need roughly £254,238 in additional gross compensation to match the same take-home pay in Sydney.