And depending on where you live, sixty grand may not get you far. Its not that theyre survivalists by nature. I would say a great salary puts you in a position to invest or save 50% of your income without you having to penny-pinch, only eat ramen noodles, or avoid enjoying your life. The median annual income in the US is $41,000. Of course, your own everyday decisions can affect the quality of your $60,000 salary. However, each US dollar is roughly $1.25 Canadian at the current exchange rate, which can get slightly confusing. The median annual expenses for a single person is $32,352. Your dollars will stretch much further if you avoid most coastal areas of the United States and larger metropolitan areas, otherwise known as high cost of living areas. If you make $60,000 a year, you bring home $44,000 a year after taxes and other deductions. Continue with Recommended Cookies. But just how good enough is 60K as an annual salary in the first place? If you are getting paid monthly then you will have 12 pay periods in a year. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. The median living wage for a single person is $17.74 per hour. Whether a 60K a year salary is middle class depends on a number of factors. For example, the average monthly rent for a 2-bedroom apartment in DC is $3,500. When you get paid twice a month, youll see that you could get an average paycheck of anywhere between $1,958 - $2,125. If you have a kid or two or a spouse that does not work, youre responsible for providing. Starting monthly salary: $5,000 After taxes: ~$3,908 (Jackson) Rent for a one-bedroom apartment: $800 to $1,000 Rent for a three-bedroom apartment: $1,000 to $1,200 The above rent prices are for Jackson, Mississippi, but the cost of living varies widely throughout the state. In fact, many lower earners dream to make such an amount. The poverty in this part of the country is one of the worst in the U.S. Public education is lacking, and its a situation most people would rather leave than embrace. As a general rule, earnings tend to rise in your 20s and 30s as you start to climb up the ladder. Not anymore. ($60,000 - $13,000) / 52 = $903.84. That's according to data from MIT's living wage calculator, which determines the minimum amount necessary to meet basic needs without relying on outside help. Its easier to afford things when you have more money around to use. Recommended Reading: Overview of Real Estate Investing. If youre married with no children, but youre supporting both you and your partner, youll probably be able to manage with a $60,000 salary. This would leave a single person with $45,650 after expenses and taxes each year. You know what your opinion is on 60k a year. However, certain areas are also far more expensive than others, which can have complicated explanations. However, once you start a family, its going to cost you more to survive. The median household income in the US in 2018 was $63,179. I only recommend bomb-dot-com products I love. Of course, you can live anywhere on any salary, but some places are more expensive than others. Bachelors Degrees earn 24% more than those with non-college graduates. Whether thats protecting yourself with a prenup, getting a fresh start with divorce, or setting up your estate. In others, its crazy cheap. This is why it is important to find a job that will allow you to grow and develop your skills. With a library of comprehensive articles covering anything from starting an Airbnb to driving for Uber, our mission is to be the ultimate resource for increasing your income in the gig economy. I also know that your primary residence shouldnt count as an investment, but owning one home makes it much easier to buy another and another and another. (The impossible question). if you are making $60,000 a year you are making 20% over the average salary in the US. Want to learn how to travel for free? But that doesnt mean 60K isnt a good salary. The median household income in 2023 is about $76,000. Meaning, one person could be paying $4,200 extra per year in taxes. These different tax rates determine the amount of money youll bring home. Once you master the exchange rate in your head, youll start to realize the cost of living in Toronto is similar to most large US cities like Denver and Nashville. Age. This is assuming you work 40 hours per week for 52 weeks per year. Earning $116,000 is 63.9% higher than the average household income in the US. Mitch's Travel Recommendations:Travel Planning Resources - Everything you need to plan your trip on one convenient page.Safetywing Insurance - This cheap travel insurance has saved me over $15,000 in medical bills.Booking.com - Book accommodation without adding your credit card (in case you need to cancel).Skyscanner - Find cheap flights.Trusted House Sitters - Take care of pets in exchange for free (sometimes luxury) accommodation.Flexjobs - Find remote jobs without having to sift through crappy ones.Skillshare - Free trial to take unlimited classes that teach digital nomad skills.Anytime Mailbox - Virtual mail service that can handle your mail while youre away.Wise - Send and receive money abroad cheaply (great for freelancers). $60,000 a year breaks down to $28.84 per hour. Thats not too shabby and makes for easy math if you are wanting to calculate how many more hours of work until you can afford to buy another share of TSLA or more BTC. All Rights Reserved. However, in most cases, earning $60,000 a year is enough to live comfortably. That seems fairly doable if you are a single person. Many location independent workers are realizing that their remote salary can buy them a shockingly extravagant lifestyle in other countries. A small bedroom apartment in the city center runs you $150 (less outside the city), so you can guess how cheap everything else is going to be. With a fairly easy to live with budget above, there was an excess of $4,250 - $3,260 = $990. If you need a good idea after reading this article, make sure to set good financial goals. As you can see from the table above, the hourly rate for someone earning $60,000 a year is $30, which is far above the rate many people earn in the United States of America. The following states do not collect state income tax: Combine this with a great salary and youll be taking home quite a bit of money. That puts . Also, this set includes many people who received professional degrees from graduate schools, further bringing up salaries. Now if you are paying taxes it will most likely be closer to $903 - $980. Hey you! Overall, $60,000 is a solid salary that will allow you to live comfortably and save money with the correct planning and spending habits. Your spending habits can determine how much you spend on things like: A lot of people overspend in these areas, making it harder to afford a house. If youre single, youll take home $38,286. Follow these rules and you will do just fine. PhD grads earn 23% more than Masters Degrees. Depending on the magnitude of what youd like to achieve in the future, a $60,000 salary may or may not be enough for you. If you mean Melbourne AUS, then no $60,000 isnt really enough for you to lead an average lifestyle. If you work remotely and can live anywhere in the U.S., this may be eye-opening. Personally, if your life circumstances allow it and you are comfortable with it I would look into buying over renting. Keep repeating that process until you find out what you need, and what you dont. In general, you can live comfortably on this salary, but you may have to be careful with your spending. If you want to have lively nightlife, that helps narrow down your search as well. Just like rent, your mortgage payment should be a maximum of one-third of your income. $38 an hour annually is equivalent to an annual salary of $79,040, assuming a 40-hour work week. Yes. You should save as much as you possibly can. For example, nurses and doctors can make much more than $30 an hour, while retail workers and customer service representatives may only make around $15 an hour. 60K may or may not be a good salary. You can live comfortably on $60,000 a year in most places in the world as a single person, and even as a family in many places. To cover the average expenses, a good salary is going to be $78,700 per year. These help support GiveWell charities and keep lights on at Project Untethered. The estimated cost of living for a family of four is $4,900 a month. Your rent payment should not exceed 28% of your gross monthly income. It depends on your experience level, age, and how far out of high school you are. The estimated cost of livingfor a single person in the US is $2,836 a month. You probably wont be saving thousands of dollars a month, but you can still make a solid contribution to your future each and every month. We at Financial Creatives want help you understand the conditions under which $60,000 a year is a good salary and when its not. Lets do some quick math here. Just being able to pay for your expenses isnt a good salary for a single person. Having a good education is usually helpful but not always necessary, and certain jobs are more likely to come with six figure salaries. Start influencer marketing, sell homemade art or food, invest in bonds, rent out your extra space, etc. For every pro, there is a con. The amount of tax you will pay depends on your taxable income and your filing status. Rice, beans, and spaghetti are all cheap. (Free $350 value.). The current hourly rage in the U.S. is $7.25, so someone getting $30 an hour, without working an overtime, makes more money than most Americans do. By signing up, I agree to receive your legendary travel emails. A good salary in America is $51,000. So living in such cities would be a dream come true for most, if not all, people. A single person would bring home $3,800 per month after taxes. Toronto ranks 74 on the Numbeo cost of living index, meaning costs are roughly 74% of New York City. You could easily save over two-thirds of your paycheck each month, and youll never get bored exploring all that India is famous for. Your $60,000 annual income can only be good enough if you live in a state where the cost of living isnt insanely high. You should only be spending 10%-15% of your monthly budget on a car. The lifestyle you can afford with a 60k salary depends on where you live. That data is provided by ssa.gov and is extrapolated across an entire year to then provide an average of $51k. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. Again, the answer to this question varies depending on your location and expenses. By signing up, you'll also be added to my legendary travel lifestyle email list. More often than not, a 60K annual salary may be middle class for someone who lives in the United States of America. Keep in mind that the tax rate varies from state to state, so its unlikely theres a general chart to look up. The truth is, $60k a year can have you living like royalty in some parts of the world. 15.5 million digital nomads from the U.S. how to live cheap and instantly slash expenses, Realistic advice on setting up life on the road (no hype). Youre also going to have to pay social security taxes, which are 6.2%. If youre wondering how to live cheap and instantly slash expenses (without sacrificing quality of life), this is one epic way to do it. A salary of $60,000 a year, means that your net monthly income is approximately $4,250. I think youll be shocked at what a $60,000 salary would get you. So, while the cost of living there is relatively low, a living wage is still $9,102 more than the typical salary. As mentioned, there are many things to consider when you want to know whether or not your $60,000 salary is good.