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Do you think you make enough to afford to live comfortably in California?
With high inflation and cost of living expenses, it can be hard to feel financially secure, especially for Golden State residents.
Using data from the latest MIT Living Wage Calculator and the 50/30/20 budgeting method, Smart Asset calculated the after-tax salary a single person without kids would need to earn to “live comfortably” in 25 of the largest cities in the U.S., including those in California.
The 50/30/20 budgeting method separates one’s budget into three categories: basic living expenses, discretionary spending, and saving or paying off debt.
The budgeting method calls for 50% of the salary to be used to pay for basic living expenses, for example, rent and bills; 30% would be used for personal spending and 20% would be put into a savings account or used to pay down debt.
The data used in the study analyzed the cost of living in each city as of 2022.
For California cities like Los Angeles, Berkeley and San Diego, a single person must make more than $76,000 to “live comfortably,” the data shows.
This is how much individuals need to make to afford to live in these California cities:
City
After-tax salary needed to live comfortably
San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA
$84,026
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
$79,324
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
$76,710
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
$67,060
It’s not surprising that people living in California needed to have high salaries to “live comfortably” in the Golden State.
In contrast, people in St. Louis, Detroit and San Antonio needed to make between $57,000 to $60,000 after taxes to afford a comfortable life. Those were considered the top three places where a high salary wasn’t needed to “live comfortably” according to Smart Asset.
These places don’t require a high salary in the U.S.:
City
After-tax salary needed to live comfortably
St. Louis, Missouri
$57,446
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, Michigan
$58,358
San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas
$59,270
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Camden, New Jersey Wilmington, Delaware
But just how much does a single person in California need to make to live comfortably? A new study from Smart Asset determined that a person must make at least $ 89,190 to get by comfortably.
Overall, SmartAsset found that to live comfortably in any major city, you need to make about $96,500 annually, up immensely from the nearly $68,500 it estimated last year. A family of four would need to make much more at $235,000 to avoid living paycheck to paycheck.
Three out of the top five cities with the highest income thresholds for the middle class are located in the Bay Area. These middle income residents need to make at least $81,623 in San Francisco, $84,673 in San Jose and $104,499 in Fremont. By comparison, Seattle residents similarly need to make at least $74,223.
To live "comfortably" as a single person in 99 of the largest U.S. metro areas, you'll need a median income of $93,933, according to a recent SmartAsset analysis.
That figure is earned by the top 2% of household incomes in the United States, according to census data. Using the same threshold, a “rich” household in the San Francisco metro area would make at least $703,000 in 2022, according to census data compiled by finance website DQYDJ.
A single person needs upwards of $80,000 a year to live comfortably in California, survey data shows. California is not known for its affordability, but exactly how much it takes for a single person to live comfortably here might surprise you.
If you are a single person in Los Angeles making around $70,000 a year, you are still considered low-income, according to a new statewide study. The California Department of Housing and Community Development released the report in June and found that income limits have increased in most counties across California.
The data used in the study analyzed the cost of living in each city as of 2024. In some California cities, like Bakersfield and Fresno, a single person would need to make at least $89,190 to “live comfortably,” the data shows.
On average, single workers in the US require an annual income of $57,200 to make a living wage in America, according to the analysis by GOBankingRates. That amount is a couple thousand less than the average income of all American workers, regardless of marital status — $59,428, according to Forbes.
But the data on page 8 of the 2023 State Income Limits paper rocked the region: It stated that a family of four earning less than $100,900 a year in Los Angeles County was classified as low-income. Earn six figures in most cities, and you're living large.
In California, 17.1% of households earn incomes of $100,000 to $149,999, with 15.3% earning $50,000 to $74,999 and 13.3% earning $200,000 or more. Among married-couple family households, more than a fifth (20.8%) report household incomes of $100,000 to $149,999, with another fifth (20.1%) earning $200,000 or more.
Zoom in: In the Charles Schwab 2023 Modern Wealth Survey, San Franciscans said that an average net worth of $4.7 million is necessary to be considered wealthy in the Bay Area. Meanwhile, an individual earning less than $104,400 annually is considered low income in San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin counties.
Sure, as a single person 200K is doing well. But, 200K with a family of 4 (2 kids and a wife) is definately scraping by on the penninsula or SF. The only way that's not scraping by is if you bought your house over 20 years ago (or during 2010-2012 housing slump) OR you got yourself a Rent controlled apartment.
With a median household income that is nearly double the national average, San Francisco costs 82.8% more than the national average, the study found. San Franciscans need to earn slightly more than $300,000 pre-tax to take home $100,000 of purchasing power.
Introduction: My name is Dean Jakubowski Ret, I am a enthusiastic, friendly, homely, handsome, zealous, brainy, elegant person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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