Living Wage Calculation for Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX

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 $20.83 $35.78 $44.29 $57.65 $28.90 $34.49 $38.61 $41.37 $14.45 $19.98 $24.54 $28.43
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 $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

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 $3,804 $5,607 $8,410 $11,179 $6,974 $8,681 $11,180 $13,631 $6,974 $8,681 $11,180 $13,631
Child Care $0 $10,006 $19,227 $27,888 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $10,006 $19,227 $27,888
Medical $3,137 $10,444 $10,330 $10,802 $7,793 $10,330 $10,802 $10,389 $7,793 $10,330 $10,802 $10,389
Housing $12,853 $16,335 $16,335 $21,559 $13,712 $16,335 $16,335 $21,559 $13,712 $16,335 $16,335 $21,559
Transportation $10,306 $11,926 $15,023 $17,286 $11,926 $15,023 $17,286 $17,266 $11,926 $15,023 $17,286 $17,266
Civic $2,165 $3,810 $4,795 $5,553 $3,810 $4,795 $5,553 $5,191 $3,810 $4,795 $5,553 $5,191
Internet & Mobile $1,605 $1,605 $1,605 $1,605 $2,184 $2,184 $2,184 $2,184 $2,184 $2,184 $2,184 $2,184
Other $3,903 $6,966 $7,407 $10,238 $6,966 $7,407 $10,238 $9,841 $6,966 $7,407 $10,238 $9,841
Required annual income after taxes $37,772 $66,700 $83,132 $106,110 $53,365 $64,755 $73,578 $80,062 $53,365 $74,761 $92,804 $107,950
Annual taxes $5,555 $7,718 $8,990 $13,811 $6,751 $6,989 $6,723 $5,997 $6,751 $8,356 $9,301 $10,327
Required annual income before taxes $43,327 $74,417 $92,122 $119,921 $60,116 $71,744 $80,301 $86,059 $60,116 $83,117 $102,105 $118,277

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 $127,160
Business & Financial Operations $85,530
Computer & Mathematical $99,580
Architecture & Engineering $101,930
Life, Physical, & Social Science $85,790
Community & Social Service $54,440
Legal $135,330
Education, Training, & Library $62,130
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $60,350
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $96,460
Healthcare Support $31,060
Protective Service $48,430
Food Preparation & Serving Related $28,240
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $30,960
Personal Care & Service $32,020
Sales & Related $48,680
Office & Administrative Support $44,260
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $42,260
Construction & Extraction $51,950
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $55,570
Production $50,380
Transportation & Material Moving $44,860