How Far Does A $100,000 Salary Really Go In 2024?
Sarah Mitchell is a marketing director in McAllen, Texas. On her generous $100,000 annual salary, one might be inclined to suppose that she lives luxuriously and can afford more than mere day-to-day necessities.
But Mitchell has discovered, like so many other high-earning professionals, that the glamour and appeal of a $100,000 salary is not what it used to be. Once considered the golden benchmark of career and job success, high-earners are realizing that the salary comes with a high price tag to pay—especially in popular U.S. cities and states such as Los Angeles, California, or in New York City.
“A typical monthly budget, allocated to necessities like mortgage, utilities, groceries, healthcare, and personal expenses, leaves little room for significant savings or luxury expenditures,” says Mitchell, relating her experience.
“The primary drawback of this salary scale is its decreasing purchasing power. $100,000 is no longer sufficient to guarantee a comfortable lifestyle without financial strain,” she says. “Based on my analysis and current living expenses, one would need a salary north of $215,000 to maintain the same standard of living that a $100,000 salary could have previously afforded.”
(This interview and others related below are edited for length and clarity.)
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Why Is $100,000 Not Enough?
The high-paying jobs board for roles that pay more than $100,000 a year, Ladders, explains:
“As inflation rocketed, salary goal posts moved. The once gold standard $100,000 salary shifted. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation calculator, to match the buying power of a $100,000 job one generation ago in 1994, you’d need to earn more than $215,000 today.”
Although inflation was feverishly high last year and reached a tipping point at which it cooled in June 2024, consumers are still left to handle the aftermath and some prices have remained too high to be covered by a regular “high” salary.
What would have been more than enough to cover monthly expenses in addition to putting aside money for a rainy day, savings, investments, and retirement, as well as luxury or one-time purchases, is now just enough to get by and survive.
Jeff Mains, founder and CEO of Champion Leadership Group—also based in Texas like Mitchell, commented, “If you’d told me a decade ago that $100,000 wouldn’t feel like enough, I probably wouldn’t have believed it. But in today’s economy, that figure feels closer to $50,000 than a six-figure sum. For me, the real problem isn’t just inflation; it’s how lifestyle inflation has crept into our everyday expenses.
“In Texas, where I’m based, housing prices have shot up, property taxes are no joke, and even essentials like groceries are taking bigger bites out of the budget. My typical monthly budget runs well over $7,000 when you factor in mortgage, utilities, insurance, and basic family needs, and that doesn’t leave much room for the unexpected.”
It turns out that there are several factors that impact how much one is able to really earn after making $100,000. These factors include:
- Creeping expenses that seem to appear out of nowhere
- Your city and state
- Rising taxes
Bennett Heyn, Ohio-born marketing business analyst at Adobe, makes close to $110,000 a year. He worked his way up the ladder from being an intern, and initially thought that such a salary as he makes currently would be his dream salary—in his own words, it would be “insane” to make that much money.
However, living in California made him realize that half of his salary was just fleeting away. “After California taxes & deductions like 401k and insurance, I actually only earned $50k,” Heyn says. “$50,000 is not enough to live in the Bay Area because I have to pay $2,800 in rent and about $100-200 in groceries per week, $200-300 for going out to eat per week, parking tickets, and other expenses.”
But Heyn has discovered a solution: side hustles.
Enter: Work-From-Home Side Hustles
“I have taken on a bunch of side hustles to make enough income where I can freely go out to dinner and travel,” Heyn says.
His current financial ambition? To be in a position with his side hustle career that he is able to make $200,000 or more. The business analyst from Ohio is already well on his way towards achieving his goal, having made nearly $100,000 from his side hustles in real estate investing and SEO services alone.
Mitchell, the marketing director quoted earlier in this story, boosts her income through engaging in side hustles such as freelance marketing consulting and delivering digital marketing workshops, which she says also enhances her professional skills.
How To Start A Side Hustle To Make Money From Home In 2024
Here are some steps you can take so that you too, can supplement and boost the income from your job with a work-from-home side hustle:
- Assess your financial and career goals.
- Identify what you are passionate about.
- Make a list of what skills you excel in.
- Begin to hone existing skills and learn new high-income skills.
- Conduct extensive research on your target market and the industry—including your freelance competition.
- Craft your unique voice and personal branding.
- Be persistent and patient with the journey.
- Continuously learn, improve, and upskill to keep your skill set sharp.
- Invest in yourself and in your side hustle.
- Carve out time for your side hustle amongst other commitments so it receives the dedication and attention it deserves.
Pretty soon, you’ll find that you won’t need to worry about being limited by your $100,000 a year salary. Although the ever-changing goalpost for salaries can be discouraging, it’s a relief to know that your hands are not tied. Through following the above steps, you can achieve ultimate financial independence and freedom.