Living Wage Calculation for Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC

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 $17.52 $36.14 $46.75 $61.36 $27.52 $33.96 $38.94 $43.05 $13.70 $20.01 $25.54 $30.62
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 $10,104 $20,207 $30,311 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $10,104 $20,207 $30,311
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 $11,145 $13,028 $13,028 $16,931 $11,333 $13,028 $13,028 $16,931 $11,145 $13,028 $13,028 $16,931
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 $31,055 $62,979 $80,248 $102,785 $49,584 $60,301 $68,595 $75,439 $49,395 $70,404 $88,802 $105,750
Annual taxes $5,391 $12,188 $16,983 $24,848 $7,663 $10,332 $12,397 $14,101 $7,617 $12,848 $17,429 $21,649
Required annual income before taxes $36,446 $75,167 $97,231 $127,634 $57,247 $70,633 $80,992 $89,540 $57,012 $83,252 $106,231 $127,398

Typical Annual Salaries

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

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $131,356
Business & Financial Operations $86,979
Computer & Mathematical $111,510
Architecture & Engineering $85,821
Life, Physical, & Social Science $71,378
Community & Social Service $53,826
Legal $68,523
Education, Training, & Library $52,988
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $54,057
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $70,132
Healthcare Support $32,734
Protective Service $41,268
Food Preparation & Serving Related $26,053
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $32,778
Personal Care & Service $31,455
Sales & Related $34,013
Office & Administrative Support $41,632
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $34,653
Construction & Extraction $51,257
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $53,385
Production $41,488
Transportation & Material Moving $38,556