Living Wage Calculation for Berkshire County, Massachusetts

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)

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 $17.64 $39.49 $53.66 $71.71 $27.68 $34.31 $39.07 $43.42 $13.84 $21.76 $28.73 $35.82
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 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00

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)

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 $4,559 $6,729 $10,111 $13,402 $8,359 $10,413 $13,429 $16,341 $8,359 $10,413 $13,429 $16,341
Child Care $0 $15,352 $30,703 $46,055 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $15,352 $30,703 $46,055
Medical $3,508 $8,763 $8,773 $8,698 $7,131 $8,773 $8,698 $8,851 $7,131 $8,773 $8,698 $8,851
Housing $11,226 $16,240 $16,240 $20,248 $12,505 $16,240 $16,240 $20,248 $12,505 $16,240 $16,240 $20,248
Transportation $4,470 $8,040 $9,831 $11,821 $8,040 $9,831 $11,821 $12,675 $8,040 $9,831 $11,821 $12,675
Civic $2,882 $5,725 $6,394 $8,719 $5,725 $6,394 $8,719 $6,933 $5,725 $6,394 $8,719 $6,933
Other $4,339 $7,570 $8,932 $9,804 $7,570 $8,932 $9,804 $10,966 $7,570 $8,932 $9,804 $10,966
Required annual income after taxes $31,115 $68,550 $91,116 $118,878 $49,461 $60,715 $68,842 $76,145 $49,461 $76,067 $99,545 $122,200
Annual taxes $5,580 $13,586 $20,493 $30,269 $8,116 $10,653 $12,419 $14,168 $8,116 $14,437 $19,988 $26,796
Required annual income before taxes $36,695 $82,136 $111,608 $149,148 $57,577 $71,368 $81,261 $90,314 $57,577 $90,504 $119,533 $148,996

Typical Annual Salaries

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

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $140,353
Business & Financial Operations $89,405
Computer & Mathematical $113,230
Architecture & Engineering $106,196
Life, Physical, & Social Science $104,498
Community & Social Service $53,980
Legal $114,972
Education, Training, & Library $69,581
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $69,493
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $88,368
Healthcare Support $40,022
Protective Service $66,703
Food Preparation & Serving Related $34,157
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $42,150
Personal Care & Service $40,298
Sales & Related $41,246
Office & Administrative Support $52,404
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $40,904
Construction & Extraction $68,434
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $66,042
Production $47,530
Transportation & Material Moving $41,907