Living Wage Calculation for Essex County, Massachusetts

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 $26.94 $50.57 $65.64 $83.23 $35.66 $42.89 $47.91 $51.01 $17.83 $27.48 $35.30 $41.06
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 $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

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 $4,720 $6,958 $10,437 $13,872 $8,654 $10,772 $13,874 $16,915 $8,654 $10,772 $13,874 $16,915
Child Care $0 $20,689 $37,845 $50,321 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $20,689 $37,845 $50,321
Medical $3,495 $8,667 $8,519 $9,132 $6,157 $8,519 $9,132 $8,596 $6,157 $8,519 $9,132 $8,596
Housing $18,884 $25,115 $25,115 $30,408 $20,625 $25,115 $25,115 $30,408 $20,625 $25,115 $25,115 $30,408
Transportation $10,064 $11,647 $14,672 $16,882 $11,647 $14,672 $16,882 $16,862 $11,647 $14,672 $16,882 $16,862
Civic $3,013 $5,303 $6,675 $7,730 $5,303 $6,675 $7,730 $7,226 $5,303 $6,675 $7,730 $7,226
Internet & Mobile $2,279 $2,279 $2,279 $2,279 $2,844 $2,844 $2,844 $2,844 $2,844 $2,844 $2,844 $2,844
Other $4,417 $7,884 $8,383 $11,588 $7,884 $8,383 $11,588 $11,139 $7,884 $8,383 $11,588 $11,139
Required annual income after taxes $46,873 $88,543 $113,923 $142,211 $63,115 $76,979 $87,163 $93,989 $63,115 $97,669 $125,008 $144,311
Annual taxes $9,168 $16,649 $22,605 $30,917 $11,061 $12,225 $12,481 $12,108 $11,061 $16,658 $21,853 $26,486
Required annual income before taxes $56,040 $105,192 $136,528 $173,128 $74,175 $89,204 $99,644 $106,098 $74,175 $114,327 $146,861 $170,797

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 $152,970
Business & Financial Operations $96,830
Computer & Mathematical $118,510
Architecture & Engineering $100,210
Life, Physical, & Social Science $102,760
Community & Social Service $58,470
Legal $157,490
Education, Training, & Library $75,950
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $84,840
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $110,080
Healthcare Support $40,040
Protective Service $61,630
Food Preparation & Serving Related $38,230
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $43,890
Personal Care & Service $43,040
Sales & Related $57,880
Office & Administrative Support $53,040
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $43,850
Construction & Extraction $75,490
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $63,930
Production $49,200
Transportation & Material Moving $47,630