Living Wage Calculation for South Bend-Mishawaka, IN

The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual in a household must earn to support themselves and/or their family, working full-time, or 2080 hours per year. The tables below provide living wage estimates for individuals and households with one or two working adults and zero to three children. In households with two working adults, all hourly values reflect what one working adult requires to earn to meet their families’ basic needs, assuming the other adult also earns the same.

The poverty wage and state minimum wage are for reference purposes. Poverty wage estimates come from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Poverty Guidelines for 2025 and have been converted from an annual value to an hourly wage for ease of comparison. The state minimum wage data is sourced from the Labor Law Center and includes the minimum wage in a given state as of January of that year.

For further detail, please reference the Methodology page. The data on this page was last updated on February 10, 2025.

1 ADULT 2 ADULTS

(1 WORKING)

2 ADULTS

(BOTH WORKING)

0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children
Living Wage $19.87 $36.68 $46.00 $57.02 $29.33 $34.50 $38.29 $43.11 $14.67 $20.91 $25.69 $30.21
Poverty Wage $7.52 $10.17 $12.81 $15.46 $10.17 $12.81 $15.46 $18.10 $5.08 $6.41 $7.73 $9.05
Minimum Wage $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25 $7.25

Typical Expenses

The table below shows the costs of each basic need that go into estimating the living wage. Like with the living wage, their values vary by location and family size.

1 ADULT 2 ADULTS

(1 WORKING)

2 ADULTS

(BOTH WORKING)

0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children 0 Children 1 Child 2 Children 3 Children
Food $4,144 $6,094 $9,128 $12,145 $7,597 $9,443 $12,147 $14,818 $7,597 $9,443 $12,147 $14,818
Child Care $0 $12,777 $22,982 $29,959 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $12,777 $22,982 $29,959
Medical $3,246 $8,139 $8,220 $8,305 $6,865 $9,207 $9,509 $9,844 $6,865 $9,207 $9,509 $9,844
Housing $9,008 $12,885 $12,885 $15,954 $11,101 $12,885 $12,885 $15,954 $11,101 $12,885 $12,885 $15,954
Transportation $10,011 $11,585 $14,593 $16,792 $11,585 $14,593 $16,792 $18,628 $11,585 $14,593 $16,792 $18,628
Civic $3,126 $5,504 $6,077 $7,791 $5,504 $6,077 $7,791 $8,643 $5,504 $6,077 $7,791 $8,643
Internet & Mobile $1,477 $1,477 $1,477 $1,477 $2,058 $2,058 $2,058 $2,058 $2,058 $2,058 $2,058 $2,058
Other $4,112 $7,900 $8,276 $9,949 $7,900 $8,763 $9,949 $11,037 $7,900 $8,763 $9,949 $11,037
Required annual income after taxes $35,124 $66,361 $83,639 $102,371 $52,610 $63,026 $71,131 $80,981 $52,610 $75,804 $94,113 $110,940
Annual taxes $6,206 $9,935 $12,031 $16,229 $8,401 $8,740 $8,515 $8,682 $8,401 $11,184 $12,743 $14,723
Required annual income before taxes $41,330 $76,296 $95,670 $118,600 $61,012 $71,766 $79,646 $89,663 $61,012 $86,987 $106,856 $125,664

Typical Annual Salaries

The average annual salaries for various occupations in the table below comes from the latest state-level data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates. When available, this data is specific to a given metro area.

Occupational Area Typical Annual Salary
Management $114,870
Business & Financial Operations $73,660
Computer & Mathematical $81,770
Architecture & Engineering $81,630
Life, Physical, & Social Science $74,970
Community & Social Service $51,060
Legal $108,520
Education, Training, & Library $63,730
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, & Media $53,020
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical $97,930
Healthcare Support $36,610
Protective Service $50,110
Food Preparation & Serving Related $30,670
Building & Grounds Cleaning & Maintenance $35,580
Personal Care & Service $35,870
Sales & Related $46,180
Office & Administrative Support $44,360
Farming, Fishing, & Forestry $40,620
Construction & Extraction $63,070
Installation, Maintenance, & Repair $54,950
Production $44,260
Transportation & Material Moving $42,900