Living Wage Calculation for Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL

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 minimum wage are for reference purposes. Poverty wage estimates come from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Poverty Guidelines for 2026 and have been converted from an annual value to an hourly wage for ease of comparison. The minimum wage data is sourced from the Labor Law Center and includes the minimum wage in a given state as of January 2026. When a county has enacted a minimum wage ordinance, the data reflects that county-level minimum wage. Municipal ordinances applying only to specific cities or towns within a county are not referenced.

For further detail, please reference the Methodology page. The data on this page was last updated on February 15, 2026.

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 $25.25 $40.09 $49.43 $61.12 $32.78 $39.79 $42.40 $49.54 $16.39 $22.75 $26.74 $31.85
Poverty Wage $7.67 $10.40 $13.13 $15.87 $10.40 $13.13 $15.87 $18.60 $5.20 $6.57 $7.93 $9.30
Minimum Wage $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00 $14.00

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 $4,603 $6,753 $10,118 $13,467 $8,440 $10,474 $13,473 $16,438 $8,440 $10,474 $13,473 $16,438
Child Care $0 $9,560 $18,522 $23,649 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $9,560 $18,522 $23,649
Medical $3,235 $10,469 $10,617 $10,778 $7,641 $11,396 $11,696 $12,032 $7,641 $11,396 $11,696 $12,032
Housing $19,648 $23,653 $23,653 $30,878 $19,757 $23,653 $23,653 $30,878 $19,757 $23,653 $23,653 $30,878
Transportation $8,779 $10,160 $12,798 $14,725 $10,160 $12,798 $14,725 $16,486 $10,160 $12,798 $14,725 $16,486
Civic $2,583 $4,360 $5,749 $6,547 $4,360 $5,749 $6,547 $7,330 $4,360 $5,749 $6,547 $7,330
Internet & Mobile $1,767 $1,767 $1,767 $1,767 $2,340 $2,340 $2,340 $2,340 $2,340 $2,340 $2,340 $2,340
Other $4,067 $7,395 $8,083 $8,801 $7,395 $8,279 $8,801 $9,854 $7,395 $8,279 $8,801 $9,854
Required annual income after taxes $44,682 $74,115 $91,307 $110,612 $60,092 $74,689 $81,236 $95,358 $60,092 $84,249 $99,758 $119,006
Annual taxes $7,843 $9,274 $11,518 $16,518 $8,085 $8,074 $6,952 $7,679 $8,085 $10,408 $11,471 $13,472
Required annual income before taxes $52,525 $83,389 $102,824 $127,129 $68,177 $82,762 $88,188 $103,037 $68,177 $94,657 $111,230 $132,479

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 Statistics. When available, this data is specific to a given metro area.

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $118,320
Business & Financial Operations $83,220
Computer & Mathematical $94,280
Architecture & Engineering $83,380
Life, Physical, & Social Science $78,790
Community & Social Service $59,140
Legal $104,400
Education, Training, & Library $54,070
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $59,230
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $104,010
Healthcare Support $40,990
Protective Service $59,230
Food Preparation & Serving Related $36,210
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $37,660
Personal Care & Service $37,030
Sales & Related $49,070
Office & Administrative Support $46,640
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $36,760
Construction & Extraction $51,710
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $54,760
Production $46,250
Transportation & Material Moving $42,390