Living Wage Calculation for Bakersfield, CA

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 $16.53 $34.62 $45.26 $60.98 $26.29 $32.99 $37.95 $42.92 $13.11 $19.46 $24.92 $30.46
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 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50

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 $4,686 $6,916 $10,392 $13,774 $8,591 $10,702 $13,802 $16,795 $8,591 $10,702 $13,802 $16,795
Child Care $0 $9,953 $19,906 $29,859 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $9,953 $19,906 $29,859
Medical $3,136 $9,476 $9,486 $9,411 $7,018 $9,486 $9,411 $9,564 $7,018 $9,486 $9,411 $9,564
Housing $9,156 $12,156 $12,156 $17,268 $9,264 $12,156 $12,156 $17,268 $9,156 $12,156 $12,156 $17,268
Transportation $5,316 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $15,073 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $15,073
Civic $2,920 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $7,025 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $7,025
Other $4,596 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $11,617 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $11,617
Required annual income after taxes $29,942 $62,015 $79,705 $103,723 $48,387 $60,109 $68,780 $77,474 $48,279 $70,062 $88,686 $107,333
Annual taxes $4,431 $10,000 $14,433 $23,109 $6,300 $8,519 $10,157 $11,801 $6,277 $10,873 $15,002 $19,373
Required annual income before taxes $34,373 $72,015 $94,138 $126,832 $54,687 $68,628 $78,936 $89,275 $54,556 $80,935 $103,687 $126,706

Typical Annual Salaries

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

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $108,721
Business & Financial Operations $83,583
Computer & Mathematical $99,757
Architecture & Engineering $107,045
Life, Physical, & Social Science $83,142
Community & Social Service $52,635
Legal $91,885
Education, Training, & Library $67,872
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $51,433
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $104,201
Healthcare Support $32,911
Protective Service $83,881
Food Preparation & Serving Related $32,668
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $38,280
Personal Care & Service $32,900
Sales & Related $32,933
Office & Administrative Support $42,448
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $32,613
Construction & Extraction $64,101
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $61,962
Production $41,400
Transportation & Material Moving $41,025