If you work a job that can mostly be done from anywhere[1], you should ask yourself if you are spending too much money on housing.
I felt prompted to write this post by the recent increased push for EAs to move to the Bay. Multiple people have urged me personally to relocate. Most of them want me to work on AI safety, but the move-to-the-Bay meme is now also strong in animal welfare. I remain unconvinced, although I am always open to visiting if there is something specific for me to do there.
Significant additional spare money isn’t just great for donating, but it can also make it easier to have an impactful career, as you can afford to:
All of the above have massive benefits for your long-term impact and wellbeing.
Moving to a cheaper area might be particularly attractive for people who:
You can (and should) still go to conferences and occasionally visit relevant hubs, especially when you're between roles, considering a career change, or raising money. It's fun, inspiring, and can lead to opportunities and connections. You want to stay on people's radar.
But I think most people overestimate how much they benefit from living in an EA hub, especially after the first 1-3 months. This is hard to measure, but seems to true to me based on my own experience of having lived in Oxford for multiple years, having visited other hubs, and having observed other EAs who have lived in various places. (But please share your own experience in the comments!)
There definitely are exceptions, though. The additional cost of EA hubs in HCOL areas might pay off for people who:
Lastly, don't move to the absolutely cheapest place your passport allows if that'll make you miserable. Ask around and try a few places. Consider coordinating with a few other people.
I personally live in Sheffield, England’s 4th largest city. I recently bought a 1-bedroom flat for £70k ($92k) in walking distance to the central train station. Sheffield has a walkable city centre, theatres, lots of small and large shops, access to nature, a cool arts/music scene, lots of vegan food, and good connections to other cities (e.g. ~2h train to London every ~30-60min).
I love London and probably like it ~50% more than Sheffield (mostly because of access to EA co-working spaces). But it’s ~3-6x more expensive on housing (depending on how much you're willing to compromise on convenience, and more still if you account for interest on buying a place, plus the extra rent you pay while saving for a deposit). I just can't justify moving there. I still visit for events, though.
My case is actually not a perfect example, as my exact current job probably couldn't be done from anywhere. But I intend to stay here even if this changes, at least for now.
I wrote this post myself but used Claude Opus 4.8 to critique the draft so I could iterate.
I expect this to be the case for the majority of EAs, but if not please correct me and point me towards data that says otherwise!
Shout-out for also living in the North of England - housing is cheap and you're actually really near London - certainly near enough that that anything in London you particularly want to get to, you can get to.