You’d need to make about $25 an hour to live in just the 25 largest cities in the United States.
This is an average figure: you’ll need more in cities like San Francisco or Boston, and less in San Antonio or Detroit. The money covers a single person’s basic expenses such as housing in a studio apartment, food, health care and transportation, based on estimates from the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator.
A salary of $25 an hour works out to $52,000 a year, based on a 40-hour work week. But in almost half of the 25 largest cities, the living wage is double the local minimum wage. In many of these markets, the minimum wage is less than $15 an hour. In some cities, the minimum wage is as low as $7.25 an hour — the federal minimum.
Many single minimum wage earners struggle to meet basic expenses based on their wages alone, and as such, rely on family or government assistance to make ends meet. EPI’s living wage estimates do not include those other potential sources of money.
Minimum wage earners may also make sacrifices like giving up car ownership or skipping health care insurance. Employer-sponsored health insurance certainly helps: It shaves roughly $2 off the hourly living wage in the 25 largest U.S. cities, according to EPI estimates.
Here’s a look at those 25 most populous metro areas, ranked by the highest minimum wage needed to make ends meet:
1. San Francisco
- Hourly wage needed to cover basic expenses: $35.98
- Minimum hourly wage: $18.07 ($20 for fast food workers)
2. Boston
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $34.02
- Minimum hourly wage: 15 dollars
3. New York
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $33.58
- Minimum hourly wage: 16 dollars
4. Seattle
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $31.93
- Minimum hourly wage: $19.97 (for most workers)
5. San Diego
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $30.46
- Minimum hourly wage: $16.85 ($20 for fast food workers)
6. Washington, DC
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $28.89
- Minimum hourly wage: $17.50
7. Los Angeles
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $26.81
- Minimum hourly wage: $16.90 ($20 for fast food workers)
8. Atlanta
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $26.63
- Minimum hourly wage: $7.25
9. Denver
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $25.85
- Minimum hourly wage: $18.29
10. Portland, Oregon
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $25.67
- Minimum hourly wage: $15.45
11. Orlando
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $25.51
- Minimum hourly wage: 12 dollars
12. Inland Empire, California
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $25.34
- Minimum hourly wage: 16 dollars ($20 for fast food workers)
13. Miami
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $24.97
- Minimum hourly wage: 12 dollars
14. Phoenix
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $24.78
- Minimum hourly wage: $14.35
15. Charlotte
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $24.48
- Minimum hourly wage: $7.25
16. Tampa Bay
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $24.32
- Minimum hourly wage: 12 dollars
17. Dallas
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $23.84
- Minimum hourly wage: $7.25
18. Chicago
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $23.72
- Minimum hourly wage: 15 dollars (for most workers)
19. Philadelphia
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $23.39
- Minimum hourly wage: $7.25
20. Baltimore
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $23.13
- Minimum hourly wage: 15 dollars
21. Minneapolis-St. Paul
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $22.81
- Minimum hourly wage: $15.57 (starting July 1)
22. Houston
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $21.56
- Minimum hourly wage: $7.25
23. St
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $20.39
- Minimum hourly wage: $12.30
24. San Antonio
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $20.29
- Minimum hourly wage: $7.25
25. Detroit
- Hourly wage to cover basic expenses: $19.70
- Minimum hourly wage: $10.33
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