Living Wage Calculation for Gaston County, North Carolina

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 $18.20 $36.87 $47.55 $62.39 $28.22 $34.68 $39.66 $43.96 $14.11 $20.38 $25.91 $31.10
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 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25

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 $3,926 $5,795 $8,707 $11,540 $7,198 $8,966 $11,564 $14,071 $7,198 $8,966 $11,564 $14,071
Child Care $0 $10,128 $20,255 $30,383 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $10,128 $20,255 $30,383
Medical $3,049 $10,543 $10,553 $10,478 $7,544 $10,553 $10,478 $10,631 $7,544 $10,553 $10,478 $10,631
Housing $12,270 $14,229 $14,229 $18,442 $12,492 $14,229 $14,229 $18,442 $12,492 $14,229 $14,229 $18,442
Transportation $5,477 $9,851 $12,045 $14,484 $9,851 $12,045 $14,484 $15,530 $9,851 $12,045 $14,484 $15,530
Civic $3,074 $6,107 $6,821 $9,300 $6,107 $6,821 $9,300 $7,395 $6,107 $6,821 $9,300 $7,395
Other $4,253 $7,420 $8,755 $9,610 $7,420 $8,755 $9,610 $10,749 $7,420 $8,755 $9,610 $10,749
Required annual income after taxes $32,180 $64,203 $81,496 $104,368 $50,742 $61,501 $69,795 $76,949 $50,742 $71,629 $90,050 $107,332
Annual taxes $5,671 $12,493 $17,418 $25,401 $7,952 $10,631 $12,696 $14,477 $7,952 $13,153 $17,740 $22,043
Required annual income before taxes $37,851 $76,696 $98,914 $129,769 $58,694 $72,132 $82,491 $91,427 $58,694 $84,782 $107,790 $129,375

Typical Annual Salaries

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

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $112,315
Business & Financial Operations $83,021
Computer & Mathematical $108,633
Architecture & Engineering $85,513
Life, Physical, & Social Science $70,706
Community & Social Service $52,404
Legal $68,556
Education, Training, & Library $52,833
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $53,815
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $68,126
Healthcare Support $32,106
Protective Service $43,010
Food Preparation & Serving Related $25,204
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $31,775
Personal Care & Service $30,265
Sales & Related $32,404
Office & Administrative Support $41,069
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $34,950
Construction & Extraction $48,181
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $52,238
Production $40,143
Transportation & Material Moving $34,487