How Much To Live “Comfortably” In Bozeman?

When I was a teenager, I wanted a job. The reason I wanted a job was because I wanted money. I wanted money so that I could do fun things with my friends and put gas in my truck.

Granted, I'm a kid of the 80s and times have changed, including the minimum wage.

Back when I joined the workforce, minimum wage was almost 4 dollars an hour. I remember my first radio boss giving me a raise up to 4.25 per hour and telling me how that equaled out to a yearly total of "blah, blah, blah". It was at that point I realized it wasn't my talent that landed the job, but the fact that I was cheap.

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The minimum wage for Montana is currently 10.85 per hour, so let's say that you work a 40 hour week, that means you would make around 22 thousand a year before taxes.

Here in Bozeman, the rent on my apartment is more than 25 thousand dollars a year.

Speaking of Bozeman, they tend to pay a little more than most of Montana. So, let's see you get yourself one of those 24 dollar an hour jobs. With a little math, we find out that works out to just under 50 grand before taxes. According to the market prices, you're still going to need a roommate for a run of the mill apartment.

Ok, ok, many of you will say that those jobs are entry level, and while I agree, the truth is more and more adults are taking those jobs on.

How much do you need to make an hour to live in Bozeman?

According to the numbers, to live "comfortably" in Bozeman, you would need to make around 87 thousand dollars per year, per person. Wait, so how much is that an hour? My math says that's around 42 dollars an hour.

I suppose we should try to define "comfortably".

For some, that's a car that runs, a home with a roof, and some food on the table. For others, that's a new car, a townhome, and drinks with friend 3 nights a week, plus a couple hundred bucks on Door Dash. Then there are all the other adult costs like healthcare and retirement. It's almost like being an adult isn't fun.

Plus, if you want to buy a home in Bozeman, well, you're going to need more than 87 thousand dollars a year. Maybe think Idaho, apparently, that's the new Montana.

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