Living comfortably in Georgia now requires a six-figure income for a single adult, according to anew study examining the salaries needed to cover everyday expenseswhile following a common budgeting guideline.
SmartAsset's 2026 "What It Takes to Live Comfortably in Each State" study ranks Georgia No. 21 nationally for the income needed by a single adult to live comfortably.
Here's what the numbers show.
How much do you need to live comfortably in Georgia?
According to SmartAsset, a single adult in Georgia needs to earn $100,714 a year to live comfortably.
For a family of four, the study puts the required annual income at $214,573.
The amount needed for a single adult in Georgia increased 1.1% from 2025, according to the study.
Georgia's ranking puts it roughly in the middle of the 50 states when it comes
to the income needed for a comfortable lifestyle.
How does Georgia compare with other states?
The amount needed varies significantly depending on where someone lives.
Hawaii ranked No. 1, with a single adult needing an estimated $129,002 annually to live comfortably.
Massachusetts followed at $127,213, while California ranked third at $126,797.
New York and New Jersey rounded out the top five, with single adults needing $124,342 and $113,776, respectively.
At the other end of the ranking, West Virginia had the lowest estimated income requirement, at $81,245 for a single adult.
Louisiana ranked No. 47 at $84,739, followed by Kentucky at $84,074 and Arkansas at $83,242.
What about a family of four?
The income requirements are considerably higher for households with two working adults and two children.
In Georgia, SmartAsset estimates a family of four needs $214,573 annually to live comfortably. For comparison, Massachusetts had the highest family-of-four figure in the study at $329,555.
Methodology
SmartAsset used data from the MIT Living Wage Calculator to estimate basic living expenses for two household types: a single adult with no children and a household with two working adults and two children.
- A single adult with no children
- A household with two working adults and two children
The MIT data was last updated in February 2026, according to SmartAsset.
The study then adjusted those estimates using the 50/30/20 budgeting rule. Under that approach, 50% of income goes toward needs, 30% toward wants and 20% toward savings and debt payments.
SmartAsset treated the living-wage estimate as the amount needed for necessities, or 50% of the total budget, to calculate the income needed for its "comfortable" benchmark.
The study is therefore an estimate based on a specific budgeting method, not a determination of how much money every Georgia household needs to live comfortably.
For the full report, visit smartasset.com/data-studies/heres-the-salary-it-takes-to-live-comfortably-in-each-u-s-state.
Vanessa Johns is the Trending Topics Reporter for the Deep South Connect Team Georgia, covering food and entertainment. Email her at Vcountryman@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: It now takes $100K+ to live comfortably in Georgia, study finds
