Living Wage Calculation for Dover, DE

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 2025 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 10, 2025.

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 $22.96 $37.03 $45.13 $57.51 $31.32 $37.68 $41.35 $48.65 $15.56 $20.91 $25.02 $30.13
Poverty Wage $7.52 $10.17 $12.81 $15.46 $10.17 $12.81 $15.46 $18.10 $5.08 $6.41 $7.73 $9.05
Minimum Wage $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00 $15.00

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 $4,051 $5,957 $8,923 $11,872 $7,427 $9,231 $11,874 $14,485 $7,427 $9,231 $11,874 $14,485
Child Care $0 $7,928 $16,173 $21,120 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $7,928 $16,173 $21,120
Medical $3,235 $8,877 $8,950 $9,026 $7,639 $9,839 $10,110 $10,412 $7,639 $9,839 $10,110 $10,412
Housing $14,135 $17,979 $17,979 $25,065 $14,231 $17,979 $17,979 $25,065 $14,231 $17,979 $17,979 $25,065
Transportation $10,720 $12,406 $15,627 $17,981 $12,406 $15,627 $17,981 $19,947 $12,406 $15,627 $17,981 $19,947
Civic $2,589 $4,557 $5,031 $6,450 $4,557 $5,031 $6,450 $7,156 $4,557 $5,031 $6,450 $7,156
Internet & Mobile $1,423 $1,423 $1,423 $1,423 $2,004 $2,004 $2,004 $2,004 $2,004 $2,004 $2,004 $2,004
Other $3,770 $7,242 $7,587 $9,120 $7,242 $8,033 $9,120 $10,117 $7,242 $8,033 $9,120 $10,117
Required annual income after taxes $39,922 $66,368 $81,692 $102,056 $55,505 $67,744 $75,519 $89,186 $55,505 $75,672 $91,692 $110,305
Annual taxes $7,838 $10,656 $12,173 $17,569 $9,639 $10,636 $10,491 $12,009 $9,222 $11,331 $12,383 $15,044
Required annual income before taxes $47,759 $77,024 $93,865 $119,625 $65,144 $78,380 $86,010 $101,195 $64,727 $87,003 $104,075 $125,349

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 $126,170
Business & Financial Operations $74,370
Computer & Mathematical $93,510
Architecture & Engineering $80,190
Life, Physical, & Social Science $67,640
Community & Social Service $53,310
Legal $111,250
Education, Training, & Library $62,010
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $54,330
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $95,210
Healthcare Support $34,430
Protective Service $61,030
Food Preparation & Serving Related $32,690
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $36,400
Personal Care & Service $37,350
Sales & Related $43,340
Office & Administrative Support $44,060
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $39,070
Construction & Extraction $55,440
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $56,850
Production $41,650
Transportation & Material Moving $43,030