FACT SHEET | MAY 2017
Workers in All 50 States Will Need $15 an Hour
by 2024 to Afford the Basics
Think the $15 minimum wage is just a New York and California thing? Cost of living data from
the Economic Policy Institute shows that in all fifty states—in both rural and urban areas—$15
an hour is the minimum wage that a single adult working full-time will need by 2024 to cover
basic living expenses— including rent, food, transportation, health care, and taxes. And
workers in expensive regions, or workers with children, will need even more. The Raise the
Wage Act would increase the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2024. To learn more,
visit www.nelp.org.
Hourly Living Wage in 2024, Fifty States and the District of Columbia
In the chart below, hourly living wages for rural and urban workers across the fifty states
and the District of Columbia are clustered above the $15 mark (vertical red line).
AK
AL AL
AR AR
AZAZ
CA
CO
CO
ID
IL
IN IN
KS
KY
LA
MD
ME ME
MI
MI
MN MN
MO MO
MS MS
MT
MT
SD
SD
WA
$10
$15
MA
MD
NH
NVNV
OHOH
OK
OK
OR
PA
TX
HI
MA
NC NC
ND
NH
NMNM
TN
HI
IL
LA
NE
NE
DC
DE
IAIA
ID
ND
CA
CTCT
DE
FL
GA
FL
GA
KS
AK
NY
NY
OR
SC
SC
PA
RI
Rural hourly
living wage in 2024
TN
TX
UT UT
VA
WIWI
WV
WV
WY
NJ
VA
VT
WA
VT
Urban hourly
living wage in 2024
WY
$20
$25
$30
Hourly Living Wage
Hourly living wage figures calculated based on the Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, applying Congressional
Budget Office Consumer Price Index projections to update them to 2024. Urban hourly living wage calculated using cost of living in
each state’s largest metropolitan areas. Rural hourly living wage calculated using each state’s average rural cost of living. The
District of Columbia, New Jersey, and Rhode Island do not have rural areas.
NELP | WORKERS IN ALL 50 STATES WILL NEED $15 BY 2024 TO AFFORD THE BASICS | MAY, 2017
1
Annual Cost of Living and Hourly Living Wage in Rural and Urban Areas
Across the U.S., 2024
Urban
State
AK
AL
AR
AZ
CA
CO
CT
DC
DE
FL
GA
HI
IA
ID
IL
IN
KS
KY
LA
MA
MD
ME
MI
MN
MO
MS
MT
NC
ND
NE
NH
NJ
NM
NV
NY
OH
OK
OR
PA
RI
SC
SD
TN
TX
UT
VA
VT
WA
WI
WV
WY
Metropolitan Area
Anchorage
Birmingham
Little Rock
Phoenix
Los Angeles
Denver
Hartford
Washington
Wilmington
Miami
Atlanta
Honolulu
Des Moines
Boise
Chicago
Indianapolis
Wichita
Louisville
New Orleans
Boston
Baltimore
Portland
Detroit
Minneapolis-St.
Paul
St. Louis
Jackson
Billings
Charlotte
Fargo
Omaha
Manchester
Newark
Albuquerque
Las Vegas
New York
Cleveland
Oklahoma City
Portland
Philadelphia
Providence
Columbia
Sioux Falls
Nashville
Houston
Salt Lake City
Virginia Beach
Burlington
Seattle
Milwaukee
Charleston
Cheyenne
Rural
Annual
Hourly
Annual
Hourly
Cost of
Living
Cost of
Living
Living in
Wage in
Living in
Wage in
2024
$40,290
$33,649
$34,333
$34,397
$42,572
$35,181
$40,368
$51,400
$41,989
$38,262
$38,200
$56,511
$32,741
$30,456
$38,237
$33,873
$30,357
$32,070
$36,796
$48,030
$41,484
$38,865
$31,817
$33,222
2024
$19.37
$16.18
$16.51
$16.54
$20.47
$16.91
$19.41
$24.71
$20.19
$18.40
$18.37
$27.17
$15.74
$14.64
$18.38
$16.28
$14.59
$15.42
$17.69
$23.09
$19.94
$18.69
$15.30
$15.97
Rural Area
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
2024
$38,699
$32,796
$32,569
$33,686
$38,074
$38,533
$39,797
N/A
$38,287
$35,985
$36,443
$44,284
$32,312
$33,628
$33,524
$32,834
$32,069
$32,141
$34,850
$46,137
$39,381
$37,335
$34,107
$31,572
2024
$18.61
$15.77
$15.66
$16.20
$18.30
$18.53
$19.13
N/A
$18.41
$17.30
$17.52
$21.29
$15.53
$16.17
$16.12
$15.79
$15.42
$15.45
$16.75
$22.18
$18.93
$17.95
$16.40
$15.18
$33,782
$32,799
$31,513
$37,201
$30,234
$31,714
$35,342
$47,755
$32,078
$36,056
$53,107
$31,858
$30,879
$37,626
$41,204
$37,247
$36,215
$32,555
$33,678
$33,929
$34,833
$44,751
$46,420
$39,200
$34,291
$34,573
$34,102
$16.24
$15.77
$15.15
$17.89
$14.54
$15.25
$16.99
$22.96
$15.42
$17.33
$25.53
$15.32
$14.85
$18.09
$19.81
$17.91
$17.41
$15.65
$16.19
$16.31
$16.75
$21.51
$22.32
$18.85
$16.49
$16.62
$16.40
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
Rural average
$32,502
$34,390
$33,688
$35,924
$36,619
$31,421
$38,511
N/A
$33,171
$35,431
$37,444
$32,471
$31,262
$33,242
$33,384
N/A
$34,685
$32,405
$29,830
$32,015
$33,945
$34,914
$39,752
$32,646
$33,736
$33,893
$37,285
$15.63
$16.53
$16.20
$17.27
$17.61
$15.11
$18.51
N/A
$15.95
$17.03
$18.00
$15.61
$15.03
$15.98
$16.05
N/A
$16.68
$15.58
$14.34
$15.39
$16.32
$16.79
$19.11
$15.70
$16.22
$16.29
$17.93
Annual cost of living and hourly living wage figures calculated based on the Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator,
applying Congressional Budget Office Consumer Price Index projections to update them to 2024. The District of Columbia, New
Jersey, and Rhode Island do not have rural areas.
NELP | WORKERS IN ALL 50 STATES WILL NEED $15 BY 2024 TO AFFORD THE BASICS | MAY, 2017
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