The city does not rewrite the MBB US base on most campus letters. Bain's own United States Consultant posting lists a first-year annualized base of $200,000 for the country, not for Manhattan versus Midtown Dallas. What the city rewrites is what that same dollar buys after state and city income tax, and after housing.
That is the thesis most city spreadsheets get backward. Candidates hunt for a published New York premium that MBB rarely prints, then treat London pounds or Dubai dirhams as a FX haircut on a New York story. After this page you should be able to read a pay-transparency range, run a three-line after-tax and rent check, and decide whether the office choice is a cash decision or a market decision.
CoachNed's public 2026 consulting salary report keeps the national firm bands. This article is the city layer on top of those bands.
What pay-transparency postings actually show
US pay-transparency laws in places such as New York, California, Colorado, and Washington force employers to publish a good-faith compensation range on many postings. Those ranges are the cleanest public window into how firms treat geography.
Two patterns show up again and again.
Pattern A: one US base. Bain's Consultant posting (Job ID 10409) states that first-year Consultant base compensation in the United States is $200,000, with discretionary bonus and 401(k) language. Country scale changes (the same page quotes Italy in euros). US city does not get its own printed number on that posting.
GMAC's 2026 consulting salary roundup puts Big Three MBA bases around $190,000, with stacked first-year ceilings in the $262,000–$285,000 range once signing and performance bonuses are assumed. McKinsey US BA postings in the same cycle have listed about $112,000–$125,000 for new joiners and Associate bases near $192,000. Those are national US campus figures, not a New York table and a Chicago table.
Pattern B: location-specific envelopes. Accenture's US careers pages routinely publish a different annual salary range by role location. One mid-level management consulting posting (R00353435, checked 2026-09-24) discloses:
| Role location (posting) | Posted annual salary range (USD) |
|---|---|
| New York | $66,300–$205,800 |
| California | $70,350–$205,800 |
| Washington | $80,200–$189,300 |
| Colorado | $63,800–$177,800 |
| Illinois | $59,100–$177,800 |
That table is a legal disclosure envelope, not "the Accenture salary." Offers land inside it for the office you join. Big 4 and many Tier 2 practices behave more like Pattern B. If your letter is Deloitte core, PwC Advisory, or Accenture Consulting, city can be cash. If your letter is MBB campus, city is usually take-home and lifestyle.
The three-line city check
Before you argue COL with recruiting, run this on paper.
- Base in the currency on the letter. Do not convert.
- State and city income tax on wages. Present or absent?
- Housing using a public metro figure, not a friend's anecdote.
The US Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes regional price parities that express local price levels as a percentage of the national average. For 2023, California's all-items RPP was 112.6 and its housing-rents RPP was 157.8. New York's all-items RPP was 107.6 and housing rents 121.9. Texas sat at 97.2 all-items and 97.4 for housing rents. Those are institutional indexes, not forum COL calculators. Housing is the wedge.
Ned's rule. Subtract tax before you subtract rent. A Dallas base that looks identical to a New York base is not identical once New York State and New York City income tax sit on top of federal tax, and Texas does not.
Texas has no individual income tax (Tax Foundation 2026 Texas profile). New York City residents stack state tax with a city resident tax whose top rate sits near 3.876% on NYS Tax Department schedules. California's Franchise Tax Board 2025 rate schedules run up to 12.3%. Exact take-home depends on filing status and bonus timing. The direction does not.
Worked example: one MBA base, three US cities
Same person. Same firm family. Same posted US MBA-level base. Anchor on Bain's current $200,000 US Consultant base (or shift every row down $8,000 if your letter still shows $192,000). Sketch only — not tax advice.
Housing: Realtor.com NYC Q1 2026 median asking rent $3,616/month ($43,392 annualized). Dallas–Fort Worth median asking rent near $1,431/month in Realtor.com's September 2025 metro table (about $17,200 annualized). For the Bay Area, use the BEA California rent RPP above plus your actual lease target.
| Line | New York City | Dallas | San Francisco Bay (CA) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Posted US MBB / Bain-style MBA base (2026) | $192,000–$200,000 | Same band | Same band |
| Named city premium on typical MBB campus letter | Usually none | Usually none | Usually none |
| State income tax on wages | Yes (NY) | No (TX) | Yes (CA, schedule to 12.3%) |
| City income tax on wages | Yes (NYC resident rates) | No | No separate city PIT like NYC |
| Public housing anchor | NYC asking ~$3,616/mo | DFW asking ~$1,400–$1,500/mo | CA rent RPP 157.8 vs US 100 |
| Base minus annualized asking rent (illustrative) | ~$149,000–$157,000 | ~$175,000–$183,000 | Lower than Dallas once rent is real |
Read the last row as a teaching device, not a net paycheck. Federal tax, FICA, 401(k), health premiums, and bonus timing still apply in every city. The point is directional: identical gross, different residue.
If the letter is Big 4 analyst rather than MBB MBA, swap in a national band closer to $85,000–$115,000 base and expect Pattern B adjustments. A New York or Bay Area disclosure range often sits above a Midwestern or Southern range on the same requisition. That is when "city premium" is a real cash line, not folklore.
London: keep it in pounds
A London package is a UK product. GOV.UK Income Tax rates use a Personal Allowance of £12,570, then 20% / 40% / 45% bands, with the allowance tapering above £100,000 of adjusted net income. National Insurance sits on top. Converting a £90,000–£110,000 MBA-style sterling base at last Tuesday's FX rate and stacking it next to $200,000 invents a haircut that was never the decision.
Indicative London first-year bands (GBP, directional; see the salary report and UK firms guide):
| Path | London MBB (indicative GBP) | What usually differs from a US letter |
|---|---|---|
| Analyst / BA | Often about £50,000–£70,000 base plus bonus | Smaller signing; UK tax and NI |
| MBA / experienced | Often about £90,000–£110,000 base plus bonus and signing | Visa, sterling exits, UK client mix |
Choosing London versus a US office is a market and visa choice, not "NYC minus FX."
Dubai and Singapore: tax and visa are the product
Dubai (AED). UAE Federal Tax Authority guidance keeps wage (employment income) outside Corporate Tax for natural persons, and ordinary employment wages are not taxed like New York state and city income. Gross is closer to take-home. That is not a 40% raise on a US letter until both packages — including allowances and visa — are in writing. Work mix leans government and national programs. Compare AED to AED. See consulting firms in Dubai.
Singapore (SGD). Keep packages in Singapore dollars. MOM Employment Pass eligibility sets qualifying fixed monthly salaries from SGD 5,600 at age 23 or below (non-financial services) up to SGD 10,700 at 45+, with higher financial-services floors and further rises from 1 January 2027. Most applications also need COMPASS; SGD 22,500/month and some intra-company transfers are exempt. Immigration policy, not a firm perk.
When city is cash versus when city is career
| Decision | Cash moves? | What you are actually choosing |
|---|---|---|
| MBB US office A vs office B | Usually take-home and rent, not base | Clients, staffing density, exits, lifestyle |
| Big 4 / Accenture-style US office | Often yes — read the location range on the posting | Practice plus metro band |
| US vs London | Different currency and tax system | Market and visa, not a FX conversion |
| US vs Dubai | Tax structure and allowances | Gulf work mix and residency |
| US vs Singapore | Local SGD band plus EP rules | ASEAN hub and pass eligibility |
Do not lead a coffee chat with compensation. Once the letter exists, ask whether US base is cohort-standard, get non-US packages in local currency in writing, and confirm which entity hired you (core, Monitor, Strategy&, Parthenon). Practice beats city when the logos look the same.
Run your own city math today
Open the 2026 consulting salary report and copy three rows into a blank sheet: your firm tier, your level, and your city. Add tax presence and one public rent figure. If you do not have an offer yet, the city page is research; the case is still the gate.
Then do one live case on /interview (CopperCup, about 18 minutes, seven-score debrief) or three typed turns on /start. Everything is open for seven days, no card; then $120 for a recruiting season or $49 a month. Pay tables do not score cases. Interviewers do.
CoachNed is not affiliated with McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Deloitte, Accenture, or any other firm named here.
Frequently asked questions
Does McKinsey pay more in New York than in Dallas?
On typical US campus letters, base for a given level is cohort-standard. Confirm your letter. Take-home still differs: New York stacks state and city income tax and higher housing costs than Texas.
How much is consulting salary in San Francisco versus New York?
For MBB campus hires, treat US base as the same national band and compare CA tax plus Bay Area rent to NY state, NYC city tax, and NYC rent. On firms with location-specific pay-transparency ranges, read the California and New York rows on the posting.
What is consulting salary in London in pounds?
Keep the offer in GBP. Indicative MBB London first-year bases often sit roughly in the £50,000–£70,000 analyst band and £90,000–£110,000 MBA band before bonus, under GOV.UK Income Tax and National Insurance. Do not convert to USD to decide the office.
Is Dubai consulting pay tax-free?
Ordinary employment wages are not taxed like US state and city wages, and FTA guidance keeps wage income out of natural-person Corporate Tax. Allowances, visa, and work mix still dominate. Get the full package in AED.
Do Big 4 salaries vary by city more than MBB?
Often yes. Accenture-style postings show different annual salary ranges by US location. MBB US campus postings more often state one country base. Prefer the live posting and your letter.
Sources
- Bain Consultant job posting (Job ID 10409) — US first-year Consultant base of $200,000. Checked 2026-09-24.
- GMAC: Consulting salaries for MBA and master's grads (2026) — Big Three MBA bases near $190,000 and first-year ceiling ranges. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Accenture Management Consultant posting R00353435 — US location-specific annual salary ranges including NY, CA, CO, WA, IL. Checked 2026-09-24.
- BEA: Real PCE and real personal income by state, 2023 (RPP release) — California, New York, and Texas regional price parities and housing-rent RPPs. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Realtor.com New York City Rental Report 2026Q1 — NYC median asking rent $3,616. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Tax Foundation: Texas 2026 tax profile — no individual income tax. Checked 2026-09-24.
- NYS Tax: Form IT-360.1 instructions (NYC resident rates) — NYC resident tax rate schedule including 3.876% top rate. Checked 2026-09-24.
- California FTB 2025 tax rate schedules — personal income tax brackets to 12.3%. Checked 2026-09-24.
- GOV.UK Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances — UK bands and £12,570 Personal Allowance. Checked 2026-09-24.
- UAE FTA: Taxation of natural persons under the Corporate Tax Law — employment wage income out of scope for natural persons. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Singapore MOM: Employment Pass eligibility — qualifying salaries, COMPASS, and 2027 increases. Checked 2026-09-24.