The Salary Singles Need To Live Comfortably in These 47 Southern ZIP Codes

There’s no worse financial feeling than after paying the monthly bills, you say to yourself, “That’s what I have to live on for the rest of the month?” Your bank balance, of course, is determined by two things: the amount of money you bring in each month and the amount you ship out. And your financial stock won’t improve until you change one – or both. 

Ask your boss for a raise, pick up a side gig, find a new career with better pay altogether. Or think about moving to an area where higher wages, or lower housing costs, can help you to live comfortably on a lone income as a single person. 

To help you figure out the cities in the South where you could – and could not – live comfortably on one income, GOBankingRates studied the top 50 cities by population in the region. The study resulted in telling numbers of where the salary needed to live comfortably as a single person far outpaces the median household income, or where you could carve an affordable lifestyle that includes paying the bills and having enough leftover for saving and investing. The cities are listed here by highest to lowest monthly cost of living, and in some cases, a city is listed twice to address areas that differ by ZIP code. 

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $140,181
• Median household income: $142,995
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,841

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $138,537
• Median household income: $124,517
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,772

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $131,795
• Median household income: $127,374
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,491

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $130,914
• Median household income: $96,033
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,455

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $126,310
• Median household income: $36,594
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,263

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $126,115
• Median household income: $77,190
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,255

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $125,722
• Median household income: $142,073
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,238

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $123,678
• Median household income: $84,909
• Average monthly cost of living: $5,153

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $118,085
• Median household income: $96,843
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,920

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $117,520
• Median household income: $137,275
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,897

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $117,270
• Median household income: $107,114
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,886

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $117,160
• Median household income: $108,937
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,882

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $116,721
• Median household income: $109,203
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,863

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $115,214
• Median household income: $64,467
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,801

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $114,980
• Median household income: $82,780
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,791

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $114,270
• Median household income: $92,432
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,761

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $112,379
• Median household income: $112,267
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,682

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $109,030
• Median household income: $102,370
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,543

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $105,873
• Median household income: $84,040
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,411

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $104,131
• Median household income: $120,418
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,339

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $103,791
• Median household income: $61,781
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,325

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $103,686
• Median household income: $98,610
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,320

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $102,356
• Median household income: $84,051
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,265

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $101,921
• Median household income: $81,640
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,247

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $101,362
• Median household income: $88,981
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,223

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $100,767
• Median household income: $112,815
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,199

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $98,930
• Median household income: $43,007
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,122

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $96,725
• Median household income: $72,619
• Average monthly cost of living: $4,030

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $95,948
• Median household income: $115,979
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,998

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $94,847
• Median household income: $87,884
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,952

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $93,064
• Median household income: $44,914
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,878

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $91,992
• Median household income: $82,395
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,833

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $91,148
• Median household income: $58,177
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,798

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $86,052
• Median household income: $77,171
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,586

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $86,019
• Median household income: $73,662
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,584

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $83,350
• Median household income: $55,737
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,473

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $82,429
• Median household income: $69,857
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,435

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $82,247
• Median household income: $57,356
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,427

For You

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $81,165
• Median household income: $66,742
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,382

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $80,311
• Median household income: $77,468
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,346

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $78,783
• Median household income: $50,368
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,283

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $74,299
• Median household income: $44,384
• Average monthly cost of living: $3,096

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $68,663
• Median household income: $58,096
• Average monthly cost of living: $2,861

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $65,674
• Median household income: $48,288
• Average monthly cost of living: $2,736

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $61,877
• Median household income: $35,318
• Average monthly cost of living: $2,578

• Salary needed to live comfortably: $61,815
• Median household income: $39,490
• Average monthly cost of living: $2,576

Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed ZIP codes across the southern states: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia, to find the salary a single person needs to live comfortably. First, GOBankingRates found the total population of ZIP codes in the southern United States, using the U.S. Census American Community Survey, along with the total households, and household median income from the same source. The cost-of-living indexes were sourced from Sperling’s BestPlaces, and using the national average expenditure costs for a single person, as sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics 2022 Consumer Expenditure Survey for a single person, the average expenditure cost for each city can be calculated. The average mortgage cost can be calculated by using the average single-family home value, assuming a 10% down payment, and using the national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate as sourced from the Federal Reserve Economic Data. By using the 50/30/20 rule that states necessities are to be no more than 50% of household income, the average salary needed to live comfortably can be calculated. The top 50 cities by population are kept for this study and the top cities are sorted by salary needed to live comfortably. All data was collected on and is up to date as of June 7, 2024.

Photo disclaimer: Any photos are for illustrative purposes only. The closest major city outside of the city mentioned in the article may have been used.