Living Wage Calculation for Whatcom County, Washington

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 $23.52 $41.99 $54.84 $72.06 $32.07 $37.91 $43.05 $47.63 $16.04 $23.53 $29.97 $35.65
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 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28 $16.28

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 $5,115 $7,539 $11,309 $15,031 $9,377 $11,672 $15,032 $18,328 $9,377 $11,672 $15,032 $18,328
Child Care $0 $16,390 $30,318 $40,467 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $16,390 $30,318 $40,467
Medical $2,552 $7,258 $7,146 $7,608 $5,845 $7,146 $7,608 $7,204 $5,845 $7,146 $7,608 $7,204
Housing $15,126 $18,950 $18,950 $26,705 $15,753 $18,950 $18,950 $26,705 $15,753 $18,950 $18,950 $26,705
Transportation $10,379 $12,012 $15,131 $17,410 $12,012 $15,131 $17,410 $17,390 $12,012 $15,131 $17,410 $17,390
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 $1,501 $1,501 $1,501 $1,501 $2,095 $2,095 $2,095 $2,095 $2,095 $2,095 $2,095 $2,095
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 $42,442 $77,443 $100,062 $128,930 $58,876 $70,702 $81,303 $90,941 $58,876 $87,092 $111,621 $131,409
Annual taxes $6,472 $9,903 $14,009 $20,950 $7,834 $8,158 $8,241 $8,135 $7,834 $10,779 $13,036 $16,903
Required annual income before taxes $48,915 $87,345 $114,072 $149,880 $66,710 $78,860 $89,544 $99,076 $66,710 $97,870 $124,657 $148,311

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 $151,270
Business & Financial Operations $92,930
Computer & Mathematical $129,870
Architecture & Engineering $102,000
Life, Physical, & Social Science $86,950
Community & Social Service $61,100
Legal $121,330
Education, Training, & Library $69,310
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $77,390
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $109,910
Healthcare Support $42,240
Protective Service $65,980
Food Preparation & Serving Related $40,740
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $42,750
Personal Care & Service $45,810
Sales & Related $58,900
Office & Administrative Support $51,880
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $41,890
Construction & Extraction $73,140
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $64,640
Production $53,730
Transportation & Material Moving $52,680