Here, I want to describe the daily life of residents, from the engineer at a major platform to the nurse’s aide who drives two hours to get to work. The valley remains one of the most powerful economic engines on the planet. It is also one of the most unequal places in the developed world.
Methodology note: by “Silicon Valley,” I mean the area made up of Santa Clara County and San Mateo County, which together host most of the region’s tech headquarters and jobs. The figures cited come mainly from the Silicon Valley Index, the annual report by the think tank Joint Venture Silicon Valley, and from local press.
An economic engine that is still powerful
Let’s start with what built the region’s reputation. According to the 2025 edition of the Silicon Valley Index, per capita income reached about $157,000, a level with no equivalent in most U.S. regions. The 2026 edition adds that venture capitalists poured some $92 billion into Bay Area companies over the past year, close to the record $100 billion set in 2021.
Russell Hancock, president of Joint Venture Silicon Valley, sums up the situation by saying the innovation engine is running as hot as ever. This momentum owes a great deal to artificial intelligence, which is attracting capital and talent.
I would qualify that right away, though. The same 2025 report noted that employment dipped slightly, by 0.1%, despite the flood of money. Tech companies earn a lot but hire little. Hancock describes a logic of efficiency rather than a race for growth: profits rise while headcount stagnates.
Housing, the first obstacle of daily life
If I had to pick a single subject to understand life there, it would be housing. The median home price in the region stood at $1.92 million according to the 2025 Silicon Valley Index, a level that only 26% of first-time buyers could reach. More recent estimates vary depending on the sources and the areas covered. An article published in September 2026 cites a median price of $2.05 million in Santa Clara County in mid-2026, but other surveys give lower figures. The consensus remains the same: single-family homes cost close to $2 million.
The rental market offers no relief. According to an earlier edition of the same report, 45% of renter households spent more than 30% of their gross income on rent, and 22% spent more than half. In practice, some residents share apartments well past the age of 30, live in converted garages, or accept very long daily commutes.
Here are the key figures I keep in mind to gauge this pressure:
- Median home price: around $2 million depending on the source ($1.92 million in the 2025 Index).
- Affordability: only 26% of first-time buyers could afford the median price.
- Rent burden: 45% of renters spend more than 30% of their gross income on rent.
- Homelessness: more than 12,500 homeless people counted, including 700 unaccompanied minors.
Two valleys in one
Living in Silicon Valley also means coexisting with a very pronounced social divide. The 2025 report states that nine households alone hold more wealth than the entire bottom half of the population, and that the income gap has widened twice as fast as in California or the United States as a whole since 2012.
People working on the ground see it every day. Don Taylor, head of Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, explains that many families work full time, sometimes holding several jobs, without reaching self-sufficiency. The report had already noted that the minimum wage is no longer a living wage in the region. The cost of childcare illustrates this pressure: it rose from about $11,100 a year in 2010 to $20,500 in 2022 at licensed facilities.
I am wary of caricatured readings. A tech employee is not necessarily comfortable: a young engineer with debt, high rent and a family to support can also live under strain. Conversely, some jobs outside the sector pay better than elsewhere. But the structural gap between those who own assets, whether stocks or real estate, and everyone else remains at the heart of local life.
A land of immigrants that is losing some of its residents
The valley is a place of immigration on a large scale. According to the Silicon Valley Index, about 41% of the population was born abroad, a historically high level. Since 1993, the region has gained 472,000 people from abroad and lost 641,000 residents to other parts of the United States.
This trend has reversed recently. A television report on the 2025 Index says that about 12,000 people immigrated to the region over one year, while nearly 19,000 left it. Stephen Levy, an economist and adviser to Joint Venture, believes that federal immigration policies are shutting off the flow of arrivals, which affects engineers and service workers alike.
The stakes are both economic and strategic. If the region loses both its middle class and part of its international talent pool, its ability to recruit and innovate could suffer. Some economists consider this risk overstated, pointing out that the pull of the major AI labs remains intact. The debate is open.
A life set by work and by the commute
In daily life, the car remains king despite public transit. Residents often talk about their “commute,” the trip between home and work that can exceed an hour each way when people live far from the offices to find cheaper housing. Companies have tried to respond with private shuttles and partial remote work, but return-to-office policies vary widely from one company to another.
The work culture remains demanding. Long hours, performance pressure and competition for talent are constants that employees in the sector regularly describe. In return, the valley offers rare access to professional networks, funding and the biggest names in research. Many residents see it as a trade-off they accept: they put up with a high cost of living to gain opportunities they would not find elsewhere.
New tensions over energy
A less visible issue now occupies local officials: infrastructure. Santa Clara County now has 75 data centers, ranking second in the United States, with a 23% increase over one year according to an article published in September 2026 by Hoodline. These facilities, essential to AI, consume large amounts of electricity and put the grid under pressure. In July 2026, the Santa Clara city council approved a $350 million revolving credit line for Silicon Valley Power to finance upgrades to its receiving stations.
I find this issue revealing. It shows that the valley’s success does not only produce income inequality: it also creates collective needs, for energy, housing and transportation, that local authorities struggle to meet at the same pace as businesses.
Is Silicon Valley still worth dreaming about
My conclusion is a nuanced one. For a highly skilled, well-paid person willing to accept a considerable rent or mortgage payment, the valley remains an exceptional address. For a household with an average income, it is becoming an increasingly difficult bet. The myth of upward mobility through technology has not disappeared, but it now speaks to a narrower audience than it did twenty years ago.
One question remains open: if AI extends the cycle of wealth creation without producing many local jobs, will the region manage to reinvent its model, or will its residents keep leaving?
FAQ
What salary do you need to live comfortably in Silicon Valley?
There is no single threshold, as it depends on family situation and housing arrangements. Local reports show that the minimum wage is no longer enough there, and that even incomes above the national average can be absorbed by rent.
Is it possible to buy a home in Silicon Valley?
With a median price close to $2 million, buying remains out of reach for most. The 2025 Silicon Valley Index estimated that only 26% of first-time buyers could afford the median price.
Does Silicon Valley still attract foreigners?
Yes, about 41% of residents were born outside the United States. Arrivals have nevertheless slowed, and several experts attribute this decline partly to federal immigration policies.
Why are so many people leaving the region?
Local reports point first to the cost of living, especially housing and childcare, as well as wages that fail to keep up for jobs outside tech.
