Depends where you're comparing them to in the US but in general most European tech wages are lower than the US. If comparing to SF perhaps even shockingly lower.
It can be hard to swallow at first, but when you account for lower rent, much cheaper health insurance, and far more vacation days (~20-24 by law - and no one actually expects you to be available) along with safer cities with generally higher quality of life, in my opinion it ends up being a very, very good trade off.
I moved to Amsterdam some years back (and have worked for a Berlin based company) and don't know if I could ever move back to the states.
+1 for Amsterdam (the Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht). Rent is getting more expensive, but quality of life is very good, healthcare is 60€/month, top universities at 2000€/yr and overall good job prospects
I'd like to add that I've found the Netherlands to be among the most welcoming countries to expats that I've spent meaningful amounts of time in. I've moved away, but I'll always feel like home there.
Also, at least in the cities, everyone will be fluent in English.
If you pick city other than Amsterdam, or are willing to have a 45 min+ commute, rents should still be reasonable.
You should compare US wages to EU contractors income. The rights between the two are similar and the income is too (~ €150.000 per year). But everything is cheaper here so you quality of life will be much higher.
I've heard that before from contractor friends, especially in London. Another option is working for a US company from Europe which I've done twice now. Wages can be quite a bit higher than working for a local company. Often both the US company and the employee feels like they're getting a great deal as you meet in the middle on wages.
Also the rights point you bring up is pretty key, the amount of protections, safety net, and rights you get as an employee in Europe makes it so that needing to save copious amount of money in case things go sideways is not a thing.
