Salary needed to live in each metro
Comfortable means both of these, while renting. Rent is at most 30% of gross pay. And money left after tax, rent, and the other modelled bills is at least $500 a month for one adult, $800 for a couple, or $1,000 for a family of two adults and one school-age child. The family row uses a two-bedroom and does not include full-time childcare.
The number on this list is for one adult, one bedroom. Each city page also has a couple and a family.
Alabama
- Salary needed in Anniston, AL$47,900
- Salary needed in Auburn, AL$55,900
- Salary needed in Birmingham, AL$53,200
- Salary needed in Daphne, AL$56,400
- Salary needed in Decatur, AL$49,100
- Salary needed in Dothan, AL$50,000
- Salary needed in Florence, AL$48,600
- Salary needed in Gadsden, AL$45,500
- Salary needed in Huntsville, AL$51,900
- Salary needed in Mobile, AL$52,500
- Salary needed in Montgomery, AL$54,800
- Salary needed in Tuscaloosa, AL$51,700
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
- Salary needed in Bakersfield, CA$59,000
- Salary needed in Chico, CA$56,900
- Salary needed in El Centro, CA$55,200
- Salary needed in Fresno, CA$60,500
- Salary needed in Hanford, CA$57,500
- Salary needed in Los Angeles, CA$91,000
- Salary needed in Merced, CA$59,200
- Salary needed in Modesto, CA$62,800
- Salary needed in Napa, CA$86,600
- Salary needed in Oxnard, CA$91,300
- Salary needed in Redding, CA$56,600
- Salary needed in Riverside, CA$77,600
- Salary needed in Sacramento, CA$66,600
- Salary needed in Salinas, CA$81,000
- Salary needed in San Diego, CA$91,700
- Salary needed in San Francisco, CA$105,400
- Salary needed in San Jose, CA$120,500
- Salary needed in San Luis Obispo, CA$80,600
- Salary needed in Santa Cruz, CA$105,600
- Salary needed in Santa Maria, CA$93,000
- Salary needed in Santa Rosa, CA$84,000
- Salary needed in Stockton, CA$67,000
- Salary needed in Vallejo, CA$75,600
- Salary needed in Visalia, CA$59,300
- Salary needed in Yuba City, CA$57,900
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
- Salary needed in Dover, DE$57,900
District of Columbia
Florida
- Salary needed in Cape Coral, FL$56,000
- Salary needed in Crestview, FL$59,600
- Salary needed in Deltona, FL$53,700
- Salary needed in Gainesville, FL$53,100
- Salary needed in Homosassa Springs, FL$50,500
- Salary needed in Jacksonville, FL$52,700
- Salary needed in Lakeland, FL$54,200
- Salary needed in Miami, FL$83,000
- Salary needed in Naples, FL$74,000
- Salary needed in North Port, FL$62,400
- Salary needed in Ocala, FL$52,900
- Salary needed in Orlando, FL$59,600
- Salary needed in Palm Bay, FL$56,000
- Salary needed in Panama City, FL$54,500
- Salary needed in Pensacola, FL$53,700
- Salary needed in Port St. Lucie, FL$69,800
- Salary needed in Punta Gorda, FL$53,000
- Salary needed in Sebastian, FL$62,100
- Salary needed in Sebring, FL$49,300
- Salary needed in Tallahassee, FL$50,900
- Salary needed in Tampa, FL$60,300
- Salary needed in Wildwood, FL$50,600
Georgia
- Salary needed in Albany, GA$48,000
- Salary needed in Athens, GA$55,900
- Salary needed in Atlanta, GA$58,800
- Salary needed in Augusta, GA$54,000
- Salary needed in Brunswick, GA$55,400
- Salary needed in Columbus, GA$52,700
- Salary needed in Dalton, GA$54,400
- Salary needed in Gainesville, GA$56,800
- Salary needed in Hinesville, GA$57,300
- Salary needed in Macon, GA$52,300
- Salary needed in Rome, GA$52,400
- Salary needed in Savannah, GA$57,800
- Salary needed in Valdosta, GA$53,300
- Salary needed in Warner Robins, GA$54,200
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
- Salary needed in Bloomington, IN$51,200
- Salary needed in Columbus, IN$52,800
- Salary needed in Elkhart, IN$50,300
- Salary needed in Evansville, IN$50,300
- Salary needed in Fort Wayne, IN$51,400
- Salary needed in Indianapolis, IN$54,100
- Salary needed in Kokomo, IN$48,400
- Salary needed in Lafayette, IN$50,600
- Salary needed in Michigan City, IN$49,700
- Salary needed in Muncie, IN$47,800
- Salary needed in South Bend, IN$51,400
- Salary needed in Terre Haute, IN$48,300
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
- Salary needed in Alexandria, LA$45,700
- Salary needed in Baton Rouge, LA$50,100
- Salary needed in Hammond, LA$49,100
- Salary needed in Houma, LA$50,300
- Salary needed in Lafayette, LA$49,800
- Salary needed in Lake Charles, LA$51,500
- Salary needed in Monroe, LA$47,000
- Salary needed in New Orleans, LA$51,600
- Salary needed in Shreveport, LA$50,400
- Salary needed in Slidell, LA$52,200
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
- Salary needed in Ann Arbor, MI$59,700
- Salary needed in Battle Creek, MI$50,400
- Salary needed in Bay City, MI$49,700
- Salary needed in Detroit, MI$55,500
- Salary needed in Flint, MI$50,100
- Salary needed in Grand Rapids, MI$54,100
- Salary needed in Jackson, MI$50,200
- Salary needed in Kalamazoo, MI$51,100
- Salary needed in Lansing, MI$50,300
- Salary needed in Midland, MI$50,900
- Salary needed in Monroe, MI$51,200
- Salary needed in Muskegon, MI$52,400
- Salary needed in Niles, MI$51,600
- Salary needed in Saginaw, MI$49,700
- Salary needed in Traverse City, MI$57,600
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
- Salary needed in Cape Girardeau, MO$44,300
- Salary needed in Columbia, MO$48,300
- Salary needed in Jefferson City, MO$44,400
- Salary needed in Joplin, MO$47,200
- Salary needed in Kansas City, MO$53,400
- Salary needed in Springfield, MO$46,100
- Salary needed in St. Joseph, MO$44,800
- Salary needed in St. Louis, MO$52,600
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
- Salary needed in Albany, NY$57,800
- Salary needed in Binghamton, NY$53,900
- Salary needed in Buffalo, NY$53,200
- Salary needed in Elmira, NY$51,500
- Salary needed in Glens Falls, NY$55,800
- Salary needed in Ithaca, NY$62,900
- Salary needed in Kingston, NY$61,700
- Salary needed in Kiryas Joel, NY$70,700
- Salary needed in New York, NY$120,800
- Salary needed in Rochester, NY$54,000
- Salary needed in Syracuse, NY$56,100
- Salary needed in Utica, NY$54,500
- Salary needed in Watertown, NY$55,100
North Carolina
- Salary needed in Asheville, NC$55,300
- Salary needed in Burlington, NC$51,600
- Salary needed in Charlotte, NC$56,300
- Salary needed in Durham, NC$53,600
- Salary needed in Fayetteville, NC$52,000
- Salary needed in Goldsboro, NC$51,600
- Salary needed in Greensboro, NC$51,700
- Salary needed in Greenville, NC$52,600
- Salary needed in Hickory, NC$54,100
- Salary needed in Jacksonville, NC$52,500
- Salary needed in Pinehurst, NC$55,200
- Salary needed in Raleigh, NC$55,200
- Salary needed in Rocky Mount, NC$47,000
- Salary needed in Wilmington, NC$56,200
- Salary needed in Winston-Salem, NC$52,000
North Dakota
Ohio
- Salary needed in Akron, OH$48,600
- Salary needed in Canton, OH$47,100
- Salary needed in Cincinnati, OH$52,700
- Salary needed in Cleveland, OH$50,700
- Salary needed in Columbus, OH$53,100
- Salary needed in Dayton, OH$50,600
- Salary needed in Lima, OH$50,700
- Salary needed in Mansfield, OH$46,100
- Salary needed in Sandusky, OH$48,400
- Salary needed in Springfield, OH$48,100
- Salary needed in Toledo, OH$50,100
- Salary needed in Youngstown, OH$46,700
Oklahoma
- Salary needed in Enid, OK$47,200
- Salary needed in Lawton, OK$46,400
- Salary needed in Oklahoma City, OK$49,200
- Salary needed in Tulsa, OK$49,000
Oregon
- Salary needed in Albany, OR$63,100
- Salary needed in Bend, OR$67,100
- Salary needed in Corvallis, OR$61,500
- Salary needed in Eugene, OR$63,700
- Salary needed in Grants Pass, OR$60,400
- Salary needed in Medford, OR$61,700
- Salary needed in Portland, OR$63,000
- Salary needed in Salem, OR$62,400
Pennsylvania
- Salary needed in Allentown, PA$59,400
- Salary needed in Altoona, PA$51,200
- Salary needed in Chambersburg, PA$51,500
- Salary needed in Erie, PA$49,900
- Salary needed in Gettysburg, PA$52,600
- Salary needed in Harrisburg, PA$53,900
- Salary needed in Johnstown, PA$48,700
- Salary needed in Lancaster, PA$56,100
- Salary needed in Lebanon, PA$54,600
- Salary needed in Philadelphia, PA$61,400
- Salary needed in Pittsburgh, PA$53,700
- Salary needed in Reading, PA$55,300
- Salary needed in Scranton, PA$54,200
- Salary needed in State College, PA$56,500
- Salary needed in Williamsport, PA$50,900
- Salary needed in York, PA$53,800
Rhode Island
South Carolina
- Salary needed in Charleston, SC$63,600
- Salary needed in Columbia, SC$53,300
- Salary needed in Florence, SC$55,000
- Salary needed in Greenville, SC$53,600
- Salary needed in Hilton Head Island, SC$59,400
- Salary needed in Myrtle Beach, SC$56,300
- Salary needed in Spartanburg, SC$54,000
- Salary needed in Sumter, SC$51,900
South Dakota
Tennessee
- Salary needed in Chattanooga, TN$50,200
- Salary needed in Clarksville, TN$48,300
- Salary needed in Cleveland, TN$49,400
- Salary needed in Jackson, TN$50,200
- Salary needed in Johnson City, TN$47,700
- Salary needed in Kingsport, TN$47,500
- Salary needed in Knoxville, TN$52,500
- Salary needed in Memphis, TN$48,500
- Salary needed in Morristown, TN$46,700
- Salary needed in Nashville, TN$55,700
Texas
- Salary needed in Abilene, TX$56,900
- Salary needed in Amarillo, TX$45,800
- Salary needed in Austin, TX$53,300
- Salary needed in Beaumont, TX$47,300
- Salary needed in Brownsville, TX$47,500
- Salary needed in College Station, TX$47,500
- Salary needed in Corpus Christi, TX$49,100
- Salary needed in Dallas, TX$53,600
- Salary needed in Eagle Pass, TX$47,000
- Salary needed in El Paso, TX$47,200
- Salary needed in Houston, TX$51,800
- Salary needed in Killeen, TX$46,500
- Salary needed in Laredo, TX$46,600
- Salary needed in Longview, TX$45,600
- Salary needed in Lubbock, TX$45,200
- Salary needed in McAllen, TX$45,400
- Salary needed in Midland, TX$51,900
- Salary needed in Odessa, TX$50,700
- Salary needed in San Angelo, TX$47,800
- Salary needed in San Antonio, TX$49,400
- Salary needed in Sherman, TX$46,800
- Salary needed in Texarkana, TX$46,100
- Salary needed in Tyler, TX$48,000
- Salary needed in Victoria, TX$47,600
- Salary needed in Waco, TX$49,400
- Salary needed in Wichita Falls, TX$45,400
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
- Salary needed in Blacksburg, VA$53,300
- Salary needed in Charlottesville, VA$60,700
- Salary needed in Harrisonburg, VA$58,500
- Salary needed in Lynchburg, VA$51,200
- Salary needed in Richmond, VA$57,500
- Salary needed in Roanoke, VA$53,400
- Salary needed in Staunton, VA$53,600
- Salary needed in Virginia Beach, VA$59,100
- Salary needed in Winchester, VA$57,500
Washington
- Salary needed in Bellingham, WA$58,900
- Salary needed in Bremerton, WA$63,900
- Salary needed in Kennewick, WA$57,600
- Salary needed in Longview, WA$54,600
- Salary needed in Mount Vernon, WA$66,100
- Salary needed in Olympia, WA$62,100
- Salary needed in Seattle, WA$70,400
- Salary needed in Spokane, WA$51,300
- Salary needed in Walla Walla, WA$53,700
- Salary needed in Wenatchee, WA$57,900
- Salary needed in Yakima, WA$53,100
West Virginia
Wisconsin
- Salary needed in Appleton, WI$49,200
- Salary needed in Eau Claire, WI$48,900
- Salary needed in Fond du Lac, WI$48,900
- Salary needed in Green Bay, WI$48,500
- Salary needed in Janesville, WI$50,300
- Salary needed in Kenosha, WI$58,700
- Salary needed in La Crosse, WI$48,400
- Salary needed in Madison, WI$55,700
- Salary needed in Milwaukee, WI$54,300
- Salary needed in Oshkosh, WI$50,300
- Salary needed in Racine, WI$53,300
- Salary needed in Sheboygan, WI$49,600
- Salary needed in Wausau, WI$46,400
Wyoming
- Salary needed in Casper, WY$51,300
- Salary needed in Cheyenne, WY$50,200