WASHINGTON — D.C. is one of the most expensive cities in terms of the cost of living comfortably, says GoBankingRates.com.
Their list defines living “comfortably” by a 50-30-20 rule — 50 percent of income for necessities, 30 percent for discretionary spending and 20 percent toward savings, a generous household budgeting principle.
By that measure, a person in D.C. needs to earn $80,273 a year to live comfortably — ranking third-highest in the U.S.
San Francisco is the most expensive city for comfortable living at $110,357 a year, while New York ranks second at $86,466.
Based on a median income in Washington of $70,848, the median income is $9,425 below what’s needed to live well in the nation’s capital.
See GoBankingRates’ full list of comfortable costs of living by city, and the comparison with each city’s median income.
