Living Wage Calculation for Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA

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 $32.11 $53.84 $68.43 $91.20 $41.98 $48.98 $54.08 $61.13 $20.99 $28.95 $36.53 $44.63
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 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $16.00

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 $4,382 $6,460 $9,690 $12,879 $8,034 $10,001 $12,880 $15,704 $8,034 $10,001 $12,880 $15,704
Child Care $0 $15,338 $30,675 $43,344 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $15,338 $30,675 $43,344
Medical $2,626 $8,421 $8,309 $8,771 $5,949 $8,309 $8,771 $8,367 $5,949 $8,309 $8,771 $8,367
Housing $28,105 $36,114 $36,114 $48,200 $31,977 $36,114 $36,114 $48,200 $31,977 $36,114 $36,114 $48,200
Transportation $11,124 $12,873 $16,216 $18,658 $12,873 $16,216 $18,658 $18,637 $12,873 $16,216 $18,658 $18,637
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 $2,053 $2,053 $2,053 $2,053 $2,647 $2,647 $2,647 $2,647 $2,647 $2,647 $2,647 $2,647
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 $56,059 $95,051 $118,764 $154,113 $75,274 $88,995 $99,278 $112,774 $75,274 $104,333 $129,954 $156,118
Annual taxes $10,734 $16,941 $23,574 $35,576 $12,044 $12,875 $13,204 $14,376 $12,044 $16,116 $21,991 $29,536
Required annual income before taxes $66,793 $111,992 $142,338 $189,689 $87,318 $101,870 $112,482 $127,150 $87,318 $120,449 $151,945 $185,654

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 $134,450
Business & Financial Operations $89,940
Computer & Mathematical $131,070
Architecture & Engineering $113,480
Life, Physical, & Social Science $89,010
Community & Social Service $63,040
Legal $115,970
Education, Training, & Library $76,640
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $79,590
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $115,480
Healthcare Support $38,800
Protective Service $72,150
Food Preparation & Serving Related $37,030
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $40,170
Personal Care & Service $41,330
Sales & Related $51,110
Office & Administrative Support $50,640
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $36,010
Construction & Extraction $61,850
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $59,060
Production $45,820
Transportation & Material Moving $42,980