What salary do you need to live in Washington, DC?

What housing costs in Washington

Median gross rent, meaning contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities, runs $1,839, $2,054 and $2,375 a month for one, two and three bedrooms across Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV. The largest of those is 29% more than the smallest.

The median value of owner-occupied homes in the metro is $579,900. That works out to 4.6× the local median household income of $126,684, a mid-range ratio.

BEA's Regional Price Parity for the metro is 108.9, where 100 is the US average. In plain terms, the full basket of goods, services and housing costs 8.9% more than average, so $100,000 here buys roughly what $91,841 would at average US prices.

How much you need to earn in Washington

For two bedrooms, $373,000 is where Washington turns Comfortable. Below that, $185,000 marks the start of Okay and $92,000 the start of Tight; under $92,000 the score reads Stretched. Rent at the Comfortable line is 7% of gross pay.

Royal is out of reach at any income here. The price-level part of the score is fixed by the metro's parity of 108.9, so even when rent and home prices become tiny next to income the total tops out at 84, short of the 85 the top band needs.

Each figure is the lowest income, to the next $1,000, at which the calculator itself would show that grade for a two-bedroom in Washington.

What different incomes look like in Washington

Choosing a bigger place in Washington at $75,000 trims the score from 21 to 17 without leaving Stretched.

None of the four salaries reaches Comfortable for two bedrooms; even $150,000 scores 39, Tight, which fits the $373,000 line above.

How Washington ranks among 387 metros

Out of 387 metros, Washington has the 15th highest price parity and the 15th highest two-bedroom rent, which puts it in the top 10% on overall prices and in the top 10% on rent.

Next to Washington on the national rent ranking: Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($2,080) and San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA ($2,052).

Washington vs. the rest of DC

Compared with DC as a whole, two-bedroom rent in Washington is about the same ($2,054 vs. $2,083) and the median home is 21% lower ($579,900 vs. $737,100). Because the metro spans DC, Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia, the comparison uses DC, where Washington itself is.

The DC figure for the Comfortable line, using state medians, is $429,000 against $373,000 for Washington.

No other metro in the data is based in DC, so the comparison uses the closest matches nationwide on rent and price parity: San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA, Salinas, CA, and Kahului-Wailuku, HI.

Washington's median income on the scale

A household at the Washington median income of $126,684 would see a two-bedroom score of 34 — Tight — with rent at 19% of income. The Comfortable line is 194% above what the median household makes. Statewide, the DC median household ($109,870) grades Tight on the state's own medians. A household figure may pool several earners, unlike a single salary.

All figures are pre-tax estimates from public data, not financial advice.