Lawyer · Buffalo, NY
Lawyer in Buffalo: $4,746/mo left
BLS OEWS May 2025 puts the median lawyer wage in Buffalo at $130,800 a year. About 2,930 lawyer jobs are in the metro. The job is about the same share of local employment as nationwide (location quotient 1.13). The 10th percentile is $72,040 and the 90th is $225,100. Pay ranks 114th-highest of 376 metros with a published median for this job. Pay is 9.3× a year of one-bedroom rent ($1,169/mo). New York taxes wage income on a bracket schedule. At this pay, one adult in a one-bedroom keeps $4,746 a month after tax and rent. The best nearby metro for this job is Rochester, about 62 miles away, at $5,598 left over a month.
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025.
Left over each month
$4,746
1 adult, 1 bd
Pay
$130,800
$72,040 to $225,100
Rent (1 bd)
$1,169
$1,392 (2 bd)
Employment
2,930
Location quotient 1.13
Pay rank
114th of 376
Metros with a published median
Pay vs rent
9.3×
Annual pay ÷ a year of 1 bd rent
Where the money goes
1 adult, 1 bd, lawyer pay of $130,800.
- Taxes$3,120
- Rent$1,169
- Other living costs$1,865
- Left over$4,746
Pay and tax, per year
- Gross household pay
- $130,800
- Federal income tax
- −$20,639
- Social Security and Medicare
- −$10,006
- State income tax (NY)
- −$6,800
- Take-home pay
- $93,355
- Effective tax rate
- 28.6%
Living costs, per month
- Rent, 1br
- $1,169
- Groceries
- $372
- Getting around
- $517
- Healthcare
- $419
- Utilities and internet
- $233
- Everything else
- $326
- Total spending
- $3,034
Left over each month
$10,900 gross, minus $3,120 in tax and $3,034 in living costs.
$4,746
Rank every metro for a lawyer
Same job. Local pay. After tax and rent. Best nearby: Rochester, $5,598/mo.
Lawyer leftover by city →Best cities for lawyers to move to →Lawyer nearby
Other jobs in Buffalo
- Registered nurse
- Software developer
- Elementary school teacher
- High school teacher
- Accountant / auditor
- Truck driver (heavy)
- Electrician
- Civil engineer
- Police officer
- Financial analyst
- Pharmacist
- Product / project manager
- Physical therapist
- Nurse practitioner
- Physician
- Construction manager
- Data scientist
- Firefighter
- Mechanical engineer
Questions
What does a lawyer make in Buffalo?
$130,800 a year. That figure is the BLS OEWS May 2025 median for the metro. About 2,930 lawyer jobs are in the metro.
What is left after tax and rent for a lawyer in Buffalo?
$4,746 a month for one adult in a one-bedroom. New York taxes wage income on a bracket schedule Rent is $1,169, and pay covers 9.3× a year of it.
Where nearby would a lawyer keep more?
Rochester, about 62 miles away, leaves $5,598 a month, more than Buffalo.