Is $70k a good salary to live off in the USA? The answer can vary due to factors such as where you live in the USA, your lifestyle, investments, and spending and saving habits. Moreover, how good a 70k salary sounds depends on the size of your tax bracket—how much will you take home as net income after all taxes and deductions are made? You must consider these factors to determine if a $70,000 gross income would be sufficient to live on annually. So, is 70k a good salary?
The U.S. average salary is $53,490( for a 40-hour workweek) as of 2022, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This means taking every American worker’s income and dividing the money evenly between everyone. Similarly, the median U.S. income is $55,640, meaning half of the population makes more than that amount while the other half makes less the amount. Your $70k salary is above the average and median, making it a good salary. However, the pay may not be good enough in most locations in the USA!
Is a Salary of $70k per year a good one?
We discovered that $70,000 is more than the average salary and median pay in the United States. This indicates that you are making more money than the typical American. A salary of $70,000 places you in the middle-upper class. The pay can afford you a comfortable life and has enough power to put you in the 40th percentile within the USA and the top 91 percentile globally for per-person income.
However, in some states in the United States, the salary may not be good enough. The United States has the most expensive housing market worldwide. These cities include Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco. If you take this salary and try to live in one of these places, you might be unable to cover your basic living expenses.
How much is a 70k salary (hourly, weekly, monthly)?
Let’s get a bit numerical. Here is how much you’ll be making per hour if you land a job that pays you $70,000 annually. Let’s use the typical five working days and forty hours per week. You will have worked 2,080 hours in a year if you work 40 hours per week for 52 weeks (52 weeks multiplied by 40 hours). Divide your $70,000 salary by 2,080 hours to get a $33.65+ hourly wage.
- $33.65 hourly.
- $269 daily (52 weeks multiplied by 5 days a week = 206; $70k divided by 206).
- $1,346 weekly ($70,000 divided by 52 weeks).
- $2,692 biweekly (weekly wage of $1,346 multiplied by 2), and
- $5,833 monthly ($70k divided by 12 months).
What’s your net income when earning a 70k salary a year?
The net income will vary from state to state and will be determined by your tax bracket. However, on neutral ground, we can use a federal tax rate of one of the seven available tax rates, for example, 12% federal income, a 4% state rate, and a 7.65% combined tax rate for Social Security and Medicare (FICA).
Federal income of 12% will be $8,400, state taxes of 4% will be $2,800, and FICA of 7.65% will be $5,355, which amounts to $16,555. Subtract the amount from your annual salary of $70,000 to get $53,445. You’ll therefore take home $53,445 after taxes and deductions, which will be your net yearly salary after taxes.
Your monthly net income after taxes will be $4,453.75, which is $53,445 divided by 12 months.
Is 70k a good salary for a single person?
The individual median income in the United States in a year is around $51,480 as of 2022, and the average personal income is $63,214. A 70k salary is far above the individual’s median and average personal income. Therefore, the salary is enough to live off in any neighborhood in the USA, and it is even more comfortable for a single person than when you are providing for an extra person. You don’t have many expenses to pay as a single person; your ideal budget and living expenses are much lower.
Is 70k a good salary for a family?
When you have a family, a $70k salary may not seem enough because you have more people to provide for, especially if they are not earning. But it can be different when your partner is making, let’s say, $70k to bring the total to $140k. The salary will be good enough to live off, even with kids or pets. However, the amount will also depend on your place of residence, lifestyle, and the number of kids because raising a kid can be expensive, as can having a pet!
Raising a child till they turn 18 can cost about $310,605 or $17,000 a year. On the other other hand, if you have a pet, which will also vary depending on the kind of pet you have and its size, it can cost you an average of $1,270 to $2,803 for dogs and $961 to $2,487 for cats a year, per Synchrony’s January 2022 Lifetime of Care Study.
How to budget a 70k salary?
As the saying goes, spending is quick, and earning is slow; this applies too when earning $70k, especially when you don’t have a good budget in place. The money can go down the drain in a snap of a finger. In such a case, you’ll want to have a grip on your finances. Suppose you want to live comfortably and within your means, avoid constantly ending up in debt, and maybe have some money left to save. You must stay on a budget. In that case, you can use the 50/30/21 budgeting method, which suggests spending up to 50% of your after-tax income on your “must-do” or “must-have” needs and obligations, 20% on savings and debt repayment, and 30% on everything else that you might want. Applying the same to your after-tax income of $4,453.75 monthly, each month you’ll spend,
- 50% on essential needs and obligations: $2,226.88
- 30% on your wants (the so-called “luxuries”), $1,336.12, and
- 20% on savings, investing and paying off debts: $890.75.
Conclusion
A $70,000 salary will sound good, depending on your residence and lifestyle. However, given that the wage is above the U.S. average salary of $53,490 and the median income of $55,640, you can live comfortably off it. This is especially true if you’re single because no one else is dependent on your income, resulting in lower living expenses and a smaller budget. For a family, you might want a partner who earns above the amount, especially when you have kids to raise or a pet to look after. Otherwise, you can live off 70k comfortably if you have a reasonable budget in place.