Living Wage Calculator - Living Wage Calculation for California (2024)

The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual in a household must earn to support his or herself and their family. The assumption is the sole provider is working full-time (2080 hours per year). The tool provides information for individuals, and households with one or two working adults and zero to three children. In the case of households with two working adults, all values are per working adult, single or in a family unless otherwise noted.

The state minimum wage is the same for all individuals, regardless of how many dependents they may have. Data are updated annually, in the first quarter of the new year. State minimum wages are determined based on the posted value of the minimum wage as of January one of the coming year (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2019). The poverty rate reflects a person's gross annual income. We have converted it to an hourly wage for the sake of comparison.

For further detail, please reference the technical documentation here.

1 ADULT 2 ADULTS

(1 WORKING)

2 ADULTS

(BOTH WORKING)

0Children 1Child 2Children 3Children 0Children 1Child 2Children 3Children 0Children 1Child 2Children 3Children
Living Wage $21.24 $43.44 $56.48 $76.34 $32.30 $40.25 $45.21 $52.28 $16.15 $23.81 $30.06 $37.92
Poverty Wage $6.53 $8.80 $11.07 $13.34 $8.80 $11.07 $13.34 $15.61 $4.40 $5.54 $6.67 $7.81
Minimum Wage $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50

Typical Expenses

These figures show the individual expenses that went into the living wage estimate. Their values vary by family size, composition, and the current location.

1 ADULT 2 ADULTS

(1 WORKING)

2 ADULTS

(BOTH WORKING)

0Children 1Child 2Children 3Children 0Children 1Child 2Children 3Children 0Children 1Child 2Children 3Children
Food $4,686 $6,916 $10,392 $13,774 $8,591 $10,702 $13,802 $16,795 $8,591 $10,702 $13,802 $16,795
Child Care $0 $12,346 $24,691 $37,037 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $12,346 $24,691 $37,037
Medical $3,136 $9,476 $9,486 $9,411 $7,018 $9,486 $9,411 $9,564 $7,018 $9,486 $9,411 $9,564
Housing $17,076 $24,362 $24,362 $32,832 $19,478 $24,362 $24,362 $32,832 $19,478 $24,362 $24,362 $32,832
Transportation $5,316 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $15,073 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $15,073
Civic $2,920 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $7,025 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $7,025
Other $4,596 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $11,617 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $11,617
Required annual income after taxes $37,863 $76,614 $96,696 $126,464 $58,601 $72,315 $80,986 $93,038 $58,601 $84,661 $105,677 $130,075
Annual taxes $6,312 $13,744 $20,785 $32,327 $8,574 $11,405 $13,043 $15,706 $8,574 $14,382 $19,360 $27,675
Required annual income before taxes $44,175 $90,357 $117,481 $158,791 $67,175 $83,721 $94,029 $108,744 $67,175 $99,043 $125,037 $157,750

Typical Annual Salaries

These are the typical annual salaries for various professions in this location.

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $139,835
Business & Financial Operations $87,464
Computer & Mathematical $133,087
Architecture & Engineering $110,066
Life, Physical, & Social Science $88,126
Community & Social Service $64,708
Legal $131,588
Education, Training, & Library $68,523
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $70,937
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $110,320
Healthcare Support $32,944
Protective Service $54,123
Food Preparation & Serving Related $34,079
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $40,088
Personal Care & Service $35,303
Sales & Related $40,320
Office & Administrative Support $51,533
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $32,789
Construction & Extraction $66,659
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $62,800
Production $42,007
Transportation & Material Moving $41,687
Living Wage Calculator
       - Living Wage Calculation for California (2024)
Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Reed Wilderman

Last Updated:

Views: 6510

Rating: 4.1 / 5 (72 voted)

Reviews: 87% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Reed Wilderman

Birthday: 1992-06-14

Address: 998 Estell Village, Lake Oscarberg, SD 48713-6877

Phone: +21813267449721

Job: Technology Engineer

Hobby: Swimming, Do it yourself, Beekeeping, Lapidary, Cosplaying, Hiking, Graffiti

Introduction: My name is Reed Wilderman, I am a faithful, bright, lucky, adventurous, lively, rich, vast person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.