Can You Afford To Live In Boston? Here’s How Much You Need To Make To Live Comfortably In The City

BOSTON, MA — Living comfortably in Boston now requires a bit more than a six-figure salary, as rising housing costs and everyday expenses continue to make living in the city more expensive.

A single adult needs to earn more than $139,776 to live comfortably in Boston, according to a new study from financial technology company SmartAsset.com. And for those in a working family of four, the salary needed to live comfortably more than doubles to $368,742.

The study uses a budgeting technique called the "50/30/20 Rule," meaning 50 percent of your post-tax income goes to needs, 30 percent to your wants, and 20 percent gets set aside for the future. With that in mind, SmartAsset used MIT's Living Wage Calculator data and assessed the salary needed to reach the ideal.

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SmartAsset also reported that the median household income in Boston is $97,791.

Boston's price tag ranks sixth among the 100 largest U.S. cities. It's not too far off from the salary needed for a single adult in New York City, which is $158,954.

The other cities in front of Boston are San Jose, CA (No. 2); Irvine, CA (No. 3); Anaheim, CA (No. 3) and Santa Ana, CA (No. 3).

On the other hand, San Antonio, TX comes in last place, with the lowest salary threshold for both single adults and families of four at $83,242 and $192,608, respectively, according to SmartAsset.

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