The income needed to live comfortably is rising in nearly all major cities — but that number can look drastically different depending on what part of the country you live in. 

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In a new analysis, researchers at GOBankingRates crunched the latest data from Zillow, the Federal Reserve and the Bureau of Labor Statistics to determine what it takes to live comfortably in America’s 50 largest cities.

More specifically, we calculated the income needed to follow the 50/30/20 budgeting rule: 50% of your income towards mandatory expenses, 30% of your income towards savings and 20% of your income toward wants. Our findings show you need to make $106,000 to live comfortably in Phoenix.

The best way to get a handle on your finances and determine the income needed to live comfortably is to create a budget. But with so many budgeting methods to choose from, it can be hard to know where to start.

One method is the 50/30/20 budget, which breaks down your income into mandatory expenses (50% of your income), savings (30%) and wants (20%). The idea is to prioritize necessary spending and savings while still allowing for some guilt-free discretionary spending.

But how realistic is that allocation? 

GOBankingRates looked at data from the Zillow Home Value Index, the Federal Reserve, the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey and other sources to find out how much people living in America’s 50 largest cities spend on mandatory expenses like housing, groceries, healthcare, transportation and miscellaneous necessities. That amount was doubled to indicate how much you’d have to earn to live comfortably using the 50/30/20 budget.

Key Findings

Here are some important takeaways from the study:

  • Your budget goes furthest in the South and Midwest. All of the cities within the top five for budget-friendliness are located in those regions, and two are located in the same state: Oklahoma.
  • You’ll need a big budget to live comfortably in large California cities. The five least-budget-friendly cities are located there: San Jose, where you’ll get the least mileage out of your budget, followed by San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles and Long Beach.
  • The gap between the lowest and highest incomes needed to live comfortably is huge. In Detroit, you need $64,725, while in San Jose, it’s $258,255 — nearly four times more than in Detroit.