A single person will need to earn over six figures to live comfortably in the most expensive U.S. states, a SmartAsset analysis reveals.
“Comfortable” is defined as the monthly income needed to cover a 50/30/20 budget, which allocates 50% of your earnings for necessities like housing and utility costs, 30% for discretionary spending and 20% for savings or investments.
The income needed for each state was extrapolated based on the cost of necessities, using data from the MIT Living Wage Calculator.
Here’s a look at the five most-costly states for single workers, based on how much money residents would need to earn each year to live comfortably.
- Massachusetts: $116,022
- Hawaii: $113,693
- California: $113,651
- New York: $111,738
- Washington: $106,496
To live comfortably on your own in these states, you’d need to earn nearly double what most single earners typically make, as the U.S median income for single, full-time workers is around $60,000, per Labor Bureau data.
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.
Living alone comes with added costs that can be more than double what you’d spend if you lived with someone else — otherwise known as the “singles tax.” Housing is the most obvious expense, but single people also pay extra costs for groceries, travel, transportation and entertainment.
To make ends meet, people might need to find room elsewhere in their budget to live alone. That could be living in a small apartment or spending less on discretionary purchases, like travel.
Here’s a look at the income needed to live comfortably in each state, listed in alphabetical order.
Alabama
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $83,824
Alaska
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $96,762
Arizona
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $97,344
Arkansas
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $79,456
California
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $113,651
Colorado
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $103,292
Connecticut
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $100,381
Delaware
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $94,141
Florida
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $93,309
Georgia
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $96,886
Hawaii
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $113,693
Idaho
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $88,733
Illinois
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $95,098
Indiana
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $85,030
Iowa
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $83,366
Kansas
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $84,656
Kentucky
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $80,704
Louisiana
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $82,451
Maine
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $91,686
Maryland
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $102,918
Massachusetts
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $116,022
Michigan
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $84,365
Minnesota
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $89,232
Mississippi
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $82,742
Missouri
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $84,032
Montana
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $84,739
Nebraska
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $83,699
Nevada
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $93,434
New Hampshire
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $98,094
New Jersey
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $103,002
New Mexico
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $83,616
New York
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $111,738
North Carolina
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $89,690
North Dakota
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $52,807
Ohio
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $80,704
Oklahoma
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $80,413
Oregon
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $101,088
Pennsylvania
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $91,312
Rhode Island
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $100,838
South Carolina
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $88,317
South Dakota
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $81,453
Tennessee
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $86,403
Texas
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $87,027
Utah
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $93,683
Vermont
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $95,763
Virginia
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $99,965
Washington
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $106,496
West Virginia
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $78,790
Wisconsin
- Annual income needed to live comfortably: $84,115
Wyoming
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