How do I find out the salary early on and not waste their time (and mine) going through the interview process?

I work in a specialized field that has had a lot of growth lately and jobs are in demand. Many colleagues that I see at industry trade events just move around from job to job within our relatively small industry, likely getting a salary bump each time.

I received an inquiry on LinkedIn from an internal recruiter at a company in our industry asking me if I'd be interested to hear about an opportunity they've created. In the past, I've mostly not bothered with these inquiries beyond a polite "thanks but no thanks". And, based on what was provided to me for, it seems like this is is a position that is either at or maybe even below my current position in terms of hierarchy.

The catch is that the company is based in a city that is pretty much #1 on my "oh I'd love to live there!" list, so I feel like I should at least find out a bit more about it.

At the same time, I don't want to waste everyone's time if they're looking for a more junior role that would possibly have compensation significantly below what I am earning now. Given that this company is located in a very high COL city whereas I am in a very low COL city, there's also that consideration.

So what I am trying to ask is, effectively, how do I ask this recruiter what they're budgeting for this position without making it seem like I'm all about the salary and that's all that matters?

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