How much money couples without kids need to get by in every U.S. state

Working couples with no kids need to earn at least $62,766 to cover their basic needs in the U.S. — far less than families who also need to cover additional expenses like child care.

That’s according to a recent analysis by SmartAsset, which looked at the median cost of necessities in each U.S. state, including housing, transportation, health care, taxes and other common expenses, as tracked by the MIT Living Wage calculator. Investment contributions and discretionary expenses like entertainment are not part of these estimates.

In contrast, working couples with one child require a median income of $86,459 to cover their needs. That’s mostly due to child-care expenses, which run a median of about $11,500 per year for a single child in the U.S., according to the study.

Couples who are dual-income, no kids — otherwise known as DINKs — also tend to have lower costs for expenses aside from child care, particularly food, housing and transportation.

These extra savings — roughly 20% for each category — come from having one less mouth to feed, but also because couples tend to live in smaller homes and spend less on transportation than they would otherwise.

With fewer expenses, DINKs are often in a better position to save for retirement or splurge on things like travel. But of course, having kids is not entirely a financial decision.

The difference in income needed to cover basic costs for two working adults varies widely by state, ranging from a high of $76,636 in Hawaii to a low of $54,454 in West Virginia. That’s largely due to housing costs and state taxes.

Additionally, housing costs and other basic expenses tend to be much higher in large cities.

For context, the minimum wage is $12 or less per hour in most states, which works out to about $24,960 or less per year for full-time workers. The federal minimum is just $7.25 an hour, which comes to about $15,000 a year for an individual, or $30,000 for a couple — a far cry from the annual income a couple needs to cover basic expenses in most states.

The highest minimum wage in the U.S. is in California, where some fast food workers earn $20 an hour. However, that still doesn’t cover the basic needs for a family with one or more children in that state.

Here’s a look at how much annual income a couple needs to cover basic needs in every U.S. state.

• Working couple with no children: $58,318
• Working couple with one child: $78,919

• Working couple with no children: $67,798
• Working couple with one child: $97,336

• Working couple with no children: $66,944
• Working couple with one child: $93,603

• Working couple with no children: $54,577
• Working couple with one child: $73,789

• Working couple with no children: $75,602
• Working couple with one child: $109,043

• Working couple with no children: $69,920
• Working couple with one child: $104,536

• Working couple with no children: $69,794
• Working couple with one child: $108,789

• Working couple with no children: $62,947
• Working couple with one child: $92,283

• Working couple with no children: $63,567
• Working couple with one child: $86,553

• Working couple with no children: $64,496
• Working couple with one child: $87,202

• Working couple with no children: $76,636
• Working couple with one child: $118,115

• Working couple with no children: $62,628
• Working couple with one child: $86,237

• Working couple with no children: $65,064
• Working couple with one child: $92,026

• Working couple with no children: $59,836
• Working couple with one child: $83,673

• Working couple with no children: $58,263
• Working couple with one child: $84,103

• Working couple with no children: $58,773
• Working couple with one child: $80,253

• Working couple with no children: $56,705
• Working couple with one child: $77,128

• Working couple with no children: $57,567
• Working couple with one child: $77,050

• Working couple with no children: $63,054
• Working couple with one child: $91,261

• Working couple with no children: $68,352
• Working couple with one child: $96,154

• Working couple with no children: $76,237
• Working couple with one child: $118,065

• Working couple with no children: $58,768
• Working couple with one child: $85,127

• Working couple with no children: $62,904
• Working couple with one child: $94,693

• Working couple with no children: $56,960
• Working couple with one child: $74,404

• Working couple with no children: $58,136
• Working couple with one child: $80,545

• Working couple with no children: $60,363
• Working couple with one child: $83,877

• Working couple with no children: $58,670
• Working couple with one child: $84,039

• Working couple with no children: $64,382
• Working couple with one child: $93,985

• Working couple with no children: $67,155
• Working couple with one child: $97,876

• Working couple with no children: $70,303
• Working couple with one child: $100,487

• Working couple with no children: $59,442
• Working couple with one child: $81,894

• Working couple with no children: $73,630
• Working couple with one child: $108,461

• Working couple with no children: $61,259
• Working couple with one child: $85,416

• Working couple with no children: $57,189
• Working couple with one child: $80,486

• Working couple with no children: $56,945
• Working couple with one child: $82,399

• Working couple with no children: $55,727
• Working couple with one child: $77,294

• Working couple with no children: $69,249
• Working couple with one child: $100,203

• Working couple with no children: $63,788
• Working couple with one child: $91,647

• Working couple with no children: $67,601
• Working couple with one child: $98,788

• Working couple with no children: $59,341
• Working couple with one child: $81,470

• Working couple with no children: $58,568
• Working couple with one child: $78,711

• Working couple with no children: $58,544
• Working couple with one child: $79,299

• Working couple with no children: $60,091
• Working couple with one child: $82,285

• Working couple with no children: $64,468
• Working couple with one child: $88,135

• Working couple with no children: $66,731
• Working couple with one child: $97,273

• Working couple with no children: $65,582
• Working couple with one child: $92,875

• Working couple with no children: $71,238
• Working couple with one child: $101,909

• Working couple with no children: $54,424
• Working couple with one child: $76,231

• Working couple with no children: $58,938
• Working couple with one child: $86,364

• Working couple with no children: $60,577
• Working couple with one child: $82,599

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