This is how much money you need to make to be happy living in California, study says (2024)

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This is how much money you need to make to be happy living in California, study says? ›

A study from Purdue University and GoBankingRates.com found that you need a minimum annual salary of $143,220 to be happy in California, citing "California's notoriously high cost of living."

The study found that the minimum annual salary needed in order to be happy in California is exactly $143,220.

According to 2021 research from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, California's average cost of living is $53,082 annually (rising into the $70,000s for heavily populated areas like Los Angeles). Staying in control of your finances and maintaining a solid financial plan is essential regardless of where you live.

Just how much money do we need to earn to be happy nowadays? The answer is a bit more than the often cited $75,000 per year. In a 2023 paper published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal, key findings suggest that earnings up to $500,000 boost and buy overall happiness.

The $75,000 Study

This belief is supported by a widely publicized 2010 study led by Daniel Kahneman and his Princeton colleague, Angus Deaton — both winners of the Nobel Prize in Economics — which concluded that happiness only increases with income up to $75,000.

Here, a single person needs $110,781 annually or $53.26 in hourly wages to be comfortable, according to the data. For a family of two working adults with two children, a salary of $276,557 is needed. Anaheim and Long Beach also made the list, tying for #14.

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau was used in the report. For Californians hoping to join the prestigious club, residents would have to bring in an average income of $613,602, a nearly 40% increase from 2017, when the average income needed for the top 5% of earners was $447,207.

While ZipRecruiter is seeing salaries as high as $59,215 and as low as $26,153, the majority of 25 Hr salaries currently range between $37,000 (25th percentile) to $47,400 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $54,773 annually in California.

Median Household Income: $91,905. Average Household Income: $130,718. Per Capita Income: $45,591. 17.9% of Households in California are High Income Households that make over $200,000 a year.

A good salary for a single person in California varies widely depending on location and industry: $50K may be enough in some areas, $100K in others.

Is $22 an hour good in California? ›

As of Apr 23, 2024, the average hourly pay for an An Hour in California is $18.55 an hour. While ZipRecruiter is seeing salaries as high as $35.11 and as low as $5.22, the majority of An Hour salaries currently range between $15.91 (25th percentile) to $21.59 (75th percentile) in California.