For many Indian professionals, an H-1B visa is seen as a pathway to a better life in the U.S. But an Indian American influencer is now reflecting how quickly a seemingly high salary can disappear once a family begins paying American living costs.
Aniruddha, who runs the Instagram account @growwith_ani, recently shared a reel breaking down the annual income he believes a family of four would need to live comfortably in some of the biggest U.S. cities in 2026.
His calculation goes beyond simply covering rent, groceries and other essentials. Using the popular 50/30/20 budgeting framework, Aniruddha factored in fixed expenses, discretionary spending such as travel and entertainment, and money set aside for investments.
According to the figures shared in his reel, San Francisco tops the list, with a family of two adults and two children needing an annual income of about $407,597 to maintain what he describes as a comfortable lifestyle.
San Jose follows at approximately $402,771, while Boston comes in at $368,742. The estimated figure for New York is $337,875, followed by Seattle at $334,131 and Washington, D.C., at $319,405.
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The numbers drop considerably in some other major cities, but still remain above what many workers may expect. Aniruddha puts the figure at $242,278 for Chicago, $229,050 for Austin, $214,490 for Dallas and $204,672 for Houston.
The figures have drawn attention to a question that often gets overlooked in conversations about H-1B salaries: how much of a six-figure paycheck actually remains after accounting for the cost of supporting a family in the U.S.?
Aniruddha argued that even cities generally viewed as more affordable can require a household income of more than $200,000 for a family of four to maintain the lifestyle he considers financially comfortable.
For H-1B workers, the issue can be particularly significant. A salary that appears substantial when compared with earnings in India can look very different once it is measured against U.S. housing costs, childcare, healthcare, transportation, taxes and other everyday expenses.
The influencer also used the discussion to question the idea that simply earning more in the U.S. is always the answer.
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Instead, he pointed to his own career path as an example. Aniruddha said he believed he was not being adequately compensated for the financial trade-offs involved in living in the U.S., which eventually led him to start a company in America and move back to India to operate it.
His argument is straightforward: earning in U.S. dollars while spending primarily in India can create a very different financial equation than earning the same currency while paying U.S.-level living expenses.
He said the move has given him greater flexibility, including the ability to travel to the U.S. when he chooses, while maintaining his life in India.
The discussion reflects a broader reality for many immigrants navigating the American dream. A six-figure salary may sound impressive on paper, but the financial picture can change significantly depending on where a person lives, whether they have children and how much they need to spend on housing, healthcare, education and savings.
For H-1B workers with families, the question may therefore be less about whether a salary crosses the six-figure mark and more about how far that income stretches in the city where they live.