re: Amount you need to earn to live comfortably by state

It's kind of a worthless measure. Obviously two professionals who can make 100k each and work from semi-rural Alabama will have a nice lifestyle with 200k on a purely economic level. But their kids will be going to school in a rural Alabama county, there probably aren't endless good housing options, etc.

Meanwhile if you take 200k and 2 kids to a semi-nice part of Birmingham, you're managing but likely not as comfortably as two professionals around a non-major city would like (and not as comfortably as they'd be doing 5-10 years ago).

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The numbers in the OP all scream upper middle class, which “comfort” loving seems to be a perfect tie in

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Yeah, it's all about the definition of "comfortable."

I would have said my family was "comfortable" growing up, which to me means that we didn't lack for any necessities. I would say for about half of my childhood we were lower middle class and then moved up to solid middle class by the time I got to middle school, but we were nowhere near upper middle class.

Sounds like you and the author of the chart define "comfortable" as meaning that you have several luxuries as well as necessities.

I don't think either use of the word is wrong.

I think American society has become much more luxury oriented and disposable minded than it was when I was growing up in the 70s and 80s.

In the town I live in people don't buy a house that is more than 15-20 years old and just move into it. If they buy one that old, it's going to be seriously renovated. Sometimes people will buy it and tear it down and rebuild on the lot. People can't just have any house and customize it with drapes and wall paint anymore. It's got to be a custom designed space just for them. I think all those ridiculous reality house-buying shows are a driver for that trend. And I'm talking about young people buying their first house as well as older people who have been around the block a time or two.

Same with vehicles. My parents bought exactly one brand new vehicle in their whole lives. When they first got married in 1963 they bought a Volkswagen Beetle and shared it. Every other vehicle they ever bought was used, and they would always have one "good" vehicle that was reliable enough to take out of town and one "just for around town" vehicle. They didn't see the need to have two "good" ones at a time.

We handed down clothes, bikes, toys, vehicles, and it was just something that everyone expected to do. And I don't just mean within my own family (well, vehicles were confined to the family unit, but the first three) either. Our moms would trade clothes and toys and other kid things when their kids would outgrow them so that other kids they knew could use them. Now people just throw stuff out and buy new.

In short, middle class culture in America growing up was a good bit different than it is now in general. It was a lot more conservation-minded and thrifty and more about needs and less about wants. We knew some people who were more like most people are today, of course—everyone wasn't like we were—but those people were generally thought of in the community as spend-thrifts.

So I'm not saying you're wrong. I just don't use that word that way.

If we mean "upper middle class," then yeah. $195,000 in Alabama is a good number.

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I grew up in a trailer early in life. I was a happy kid and never went hungry and was safe with loving parents. I wouldn’t call that comfort living, but surely it would be for some

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Yeah, I think that's the takeaway. What's considered "comfortable" is subjective.

This is just dumb. The Georgia number is way off.

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oh and frick Boston

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Green is not only the color of envy, but of the Celtics who are about to go up 2-0.

This is such a load of crap. Literally insane to think people need this level of support to 'live comfortably'. You can do it for far, far less. The fine print says its based on
50% spending on necessities
30% spending on discretionary spending
20% on savings

So in LA, based on the projected $194,000 estimate. That translates to
* $97,000 on necessities, or $8100 per month
* $58,200 on discretionary spending, or $4,900 per month
* $39,000 savings, or $3300 per month

5 grand a month as walking around money? Every single frickin' month? Holeee crap. If both of you are working full-time, and spending adequate time with two kids, you shouldnt have the time to spend $5K a month. Every month

190K in Louisiana is OT Baller stuff.

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190K in Louisiana is OT Baller stuff.

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For a household? I'm not saying it's not pretty good money, but I'd say that's upper middle class.

12,000 take home pay after taxes per month

Let’s see 50% of that

Mortgage totality-2,000(that gets you a solid 3 bed/2bath house most places in Louisiana after all insurance). So comfort, not close to extravegent

Childcare-1,200 a month

Health insurance for family- 900

Car ins-300

Cell phone/intenet(necessity for working people)-200

Monthly food for family of 4 ($40 a day?)- 1200

Gas-250 for vehicle

Utilities-200

That comes out to $6,250 a month, or 50% just like the OP graph shows