Living Wage Calculation for Merced, CA

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 $16.55 $35.23 $45.75 $61.66 $27.29 $33.76 $38.71 $44.00 $13.12 $19.76 $25.15 $30.77
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 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $15.50

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 $4,686 $6,916 $10,392 $13,774 $8,591 $10,702 $13,802 $16,795 $8,591 $10,702 $13,802 $16,795
Child Care $0 $9,686 $19,371 $29,057 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $9,686 $19,371 $29,057
Medical $3,136 $9,476 $9,486 $9,411 $7,018 $9,486 $9,411 $9,564 $7,018 $9,486 $9,411 $9,564
Housing $9,192 $13,440 $13,440 $19,092 $10,968 $13,440 $13,440 $19,092 $9,192 $13,440 $13,440 $19,092
Transportation $5,316 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $15,073 $9,561 $11,691 $14,058 $15,073
Civic $2,920 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $7,025 $5,801 $6,480 $8,835 $7,025
Other $4,596 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $11,617 $8,020 $9,463 $10,386 $11,617
Required annual income after taxes $29,978 $63,032 $80,454 $104,745 $50,091 $61,393 $70,064 $79,298 $48,315 $71,079 $89,435 $108,355
Annual taxes $4,440 $10,241 $14,700 $23,507 $6,669 $8,822 $10,460 $12,232 $6,285 $11,113 $15,194 $19,635
Required annual income before taxes $34,418 $73,273 $95,154 $128,252 $56,760 $70,215 $80,524 $91,530 $54,600 $82,192 $104,628 $127,990

Typical Annual Salaries

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

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $106,020
Business & Financial Operations $67,144
Computer & Mathematical $82,756
Architecture & Engineering $87,211
Life, Physical, & Social Science $64,730
Community & Social Service $52,161
Legal $85,645
Education, Training, & Library $68,004
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $51,863
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $103,164
Healthcare Support $32,789
Protective Service $51,367
Food Preparation & Serving Related $32,216
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $38,589
Personal Care & Service $34,487
Sales & Related $32,723
Office & Administrative Support $42,117
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $32,459
Construction & Extraction $53,098
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $52,481
Production $39,283
Transportation & Material Moving $40,044