Here’s the Income It Takes to Live Comfortably in Each U.S. State – 2024 Study (2024)

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Here’s the Income It Takes to Live Comfortably in Each U.S. State – 2024 Study? ›

The findings are eye-opening: to lead a comfortable life in a major U.S. city, an individual needs to earn, on average, an annual pre-tax salary of $96,500. This takes into account necessities, debt obligations, and investments for the future.

The findings are eye-opening: to lead a comfortable life in a major U.S. city, an individual needs to earn, on average, an annual pre-tax salary of $96,500. This takes into account necessities, debt obligations, and investments for the future.

Story at a glance

States that require the highest living wage for individuals are Hawaii ($112,411) followed by Massachusetts ($87,909) and then California ($80,013).

According to the report, single adults need about $88,317 to live comfortably and families of four need $200,762.

The national median for living comfortably alone is $89,461, which suggests that a 50/30/20 budget might not be practical for most single people.

The majority of respondents (nearly 70%) felt that they would not need more than $95,000 to feel happy. Despite the high costs of living in areas across the country, most people answered that they could make a salary under the national average and still be content.

The median household income across all 345 cities is $77,345, making middle-class income limits fall between $51,558 and $154,590. On a state level, it takes the most money to be middle class in New Jersey.

With the annual inflation rate for 2023 at 3.4% for the year — up from 3.1% previously — salaries aren't keeping up. A Smart Asset report based on MIT's Living Wage data found that the average salary required to live comfortably in the U.S. is $68,499 after taxes.

An analysis of the living wage (as calculated in December 2022 and reflecting a compensation being offered to an individual in 2023), compiling geographically specific expenditure data for food, childcare, health care, housing, transportation, and other necessities, finds that: The living wage in the United States is ...

South Carolina costs

A single person must earn $88,317 — $42.46 an hour — to cover all basics, wants and savings. That places South Carolina as the 28th most expensive state to live in comfortably. The analysis also determined what two parents with a single child would need to earn to live comfortably.

How much money do you need to live comfortably in Massachusetts? ›

The study puts Boston as the fifth-most expensive city to live comfortably, after New York City, San Jose, Irvine, and Santa Ana, Calif. A single adult needs to make about $60 an hour or $124,966 a year, according to the study put out by SmartAsset. Two working adults with two children need to pull in $319,738 a year.

If you make $300,000 a year living in the region of North Carolina, USA, you will be taxed $103,206. That means that your net pay will be $196,795 per year, or $16,400 per month.

It's even more expensive for families, who need to make an average combined income of about $235,000 to support two adults and two children without the pressure of living paycheck to paycheck. A family must make over $300k to raise two kids comfortably in six cities.

Living on $1,000 per month is a challenge. From the high costs of housing, transportation and food, plus trying to keep your bills to a minimum, it would be difficult for anyone living alone to make this work. But with some creativity, roommates and strategy, you might be able to pull it off.

Earning $40,000 a year may be considered a good entry-level salary and could be more than enough for someone with low monthly expenses. Adding another income to the mix also makes a difference. For example, if your spouse or partner also earns $40,000, your household income would be $80,000.

It is possible to live individually on a $20,000 income, but you will likely only be able to afford the items on your basic living expenses list if you aren't able to supplement your income.

If you earn $50,000 a year in San Francisco or New York, you undoubtedly will need a roommate — or three — to make ends meet. But in many cities in the United States, $50,000 a year is plenty to live on.

You can retire comfortably on $3,000 a month in retirement income by choosing to retire in a place with a cost of living that matches your financial resources. Housing cost is the key factor since it's both the largest component of retiree budgets and the household cost that varies most according to geography.