Living Wage Calculation for Missoula, MT

The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual in a household must earn to support themselves and/or their family, working full-time, or 2080 hours per year. The tables below provide living wage estimates for individuals and households with one or two working adults and zero to three children. In households with two working adults, all hourly values reflect what one working adult requires to earn to meet their families’ basic needs, assuming the other adult also earns the same.

The poverty wage and state minimum wage are for reference purposes. Poverty wage estimates come from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Poverty Guidelines for 2024 and have been converted from an annual value to an hourly wage for ease of comparison. The state minimum wage data is sourced from the Labor Law Center and includes the minimum wage in a given state as of January of that year.

For further detail, please reference the Methodology page. The data on this page was last updated on February 14, 2024.

1 ADULT 2 ADULTS

(1 WORKING)

2 ADULTS

(BOTH WORKING)

0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children
Living Wage $20.34 $36.70 $46.90 $63.36 $29.71 $35.41 $40.39 $43.81 $14.71 $20.59 $26.13 $31.07
Poverty Wage $7.24 $9.83 $12.41 $15.00 $9.83 $12.41 $15.00 $17.59 $4.91 $6.21 $7.50 $8.79
Minimum Wage $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30 $10.30

Typical Expenses

The table below shows the costs of each basic need that go into estimating the living wage. Like with the living wage, their values vary by location and family size.

1 ADULT 2 ADULTS

(1 WORKING)

2 ADULTS

(BOTH WORKING)

0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children
Food $4,394 $6,477 $9,715 $12,912 $8,055 $10,027 $12,913 $15,745 $8,055 $10,027 $12,913 $15,745
Child Care $0 $10,488 $20,977 $31,465 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $10,488 $20,977 $31,465
Medical $2,445 $8,146 $8,034 $8,497 $6,270 $8,034 $8,497 $8,092 $6,270 $8,034 $8,497 $8,092
Housing $10,192 $14,511 $14,511 $20,445 $11,917 $14,511 $14,511 $20,445 $11,917 $14,511 $14,511 $20,445
Transportation $9,482 $10,974 $13,823 $15,905 $10,974 $13,823 $15,905 $15,887 $10,974 $13,823 $15,905 $15,887
Civic $3,032 $5,335 $6,715 $7,776 $5,335 $6,715 $7,776 $7,269 $5,335 $6,715 $7,776 $7,269
Internet & Mobile $1,598 $1,598 $1,598 $1,598 $2,192 $2,192 $2,192 $2,192 $2,192 $2,192 $2,192 $2,192
Other $4,739 $8,459 $8,994 $12,431 $8,459 $8,994 $12,431 $11,950 $8,459 $8,994 $12,431 $11,950
Required annual income after taxes $35,881 $65,987 $84,366 $111,030 $53,202 $64,295 $74,226 $81,580 $53,202 $74,784 $95,203 $113,045
Annual taxes $6,433 $10,340 $13,189 $20,762 $8,601 $9,348 $9,788 $9,544 $7,982 $10,871 $13,496 $16,216
Required annual income before taxes $42,314 $76,327 $97,555 $131,792 $61,803 $73,644 $84,014 $91,124 $61,184 $85,655 $108,699 $129,261

Typical Annual Salaries

The average annual salaries for various occupations in the table below comes from the latest state-level data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates. When available, this data is specific to a given metro area.

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $99,920
Business & Financial Operations $68,600
Computer & Mathematical $79,640
Architecture & Engineering $72,140
Life, Physical, & Social Science $58,560
Community & Social Service $45,250
Legal $78,430
Education, Training, & Library $60,540
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $50,270
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $93,890
Healthcare Support $34,170
Protective Service $56,220
Food Preparation & Serving Related $27,600
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $34,670
Personal Care & Service $32,690
Sales & Related $41,780
Office & Administrative Support $40,710
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $42,530
Construction & Extraction $54,980
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $50,960
Production $43,790
Transportation & Material Moving $40,540