Living Wage Calculation for Madison, WI

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 $17.49 $38.20 $51.45 $69.16 $28.02 $33.81 $38.83 $43.68 $13.42 $20.93 $27.59 $34.37
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 $4,010 $5,919 $8,894 $11,789 $7,352 $9,159 $11,812 $14,374 $7,352 $9,159 $11,812 $14,374
Child Care $0 $13,703 $27,406 $41,109 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $13,703 $27,406 $41,109
Medical $3,355 $8,231 $8,241 $8,166 $7,024 $8,241 $8,166 $8,319 $7,024 $8,241 $8,166 $8,319
Housing $10,558 $14,329 $14,329 $19,187 $12,107 $14,329 $14,329 $19,187 $10,558 $14,329 $14,329 $19,187
Transportation $5,356 $9,634 $11,780 $14,164 $9,634 $11,780 $14,164 $15,187 $9,634 $11,780 $14,164 $15,187
Civic $2,959 $5,878 $6,565 $8,951 $5,878 $6,565 $8,951 $7,118 $5,878 $6,565 $8,951 $7,118
Other $4,811 $8,394 $9,905 $10,871 $8,394 $9,905 $10,871 $12,160 $8,394 $9,905 $10,871 $12,160
Required annual income after taxes $31,182 $66,220 $87,251 $114,369 $50,520 $60,111 $68,426 $76,477 $48,972 $73,813 $95,832 $117,585
Annual taxes $5,190 $13,226 $19,764 $29,485 $7,755 $10,208 $12,331 $14,386 $6,870 $13,275 $18,961 $25,392
Required annual income before taxes $36,371 $79,446 $107,015 $143,854 $58,275 $70,318 $80,757 $90,863 $55,841 $87,089 $114,793 $142,978

Typical Annual Salaries

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

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $128,489
Business & Financial Operations $75,402
Computer & Mathematical $88,258
Architecture & Engineering $86,262
Life, Physical, & Social Science $69,305
Community & Social Service $54,719
Legal $89,460
Education, Training, & Library $55,458
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $55,325
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $83,429
Healthcare Support $34,157
Protective Service $56,229
Food Preparation & Serving Related $28,170
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $33,352
Personal Care & Service $32,745
Sales & Related $41,455
Office & Administrative Support $42,867
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $42,073
Construction & Extraction $65,998
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $53,804
Production $43,186
Transportation & Material Moving $41,676