Can a Firefighter afford to live in St. Louis?

Comfortable28% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Firefighter · St. Louis
$52,873
Income tax (~22% effective)
United States
– $11,490
Take-home pay
$3,449/mo
$41,383
Living costs (1 person)
$2,490/mo · derived
– $29,880
Savings potential
$959/mo · 28% of take-home
$11,503

Single professional, after-tax. Salary − tax − living costs = what you could save each year.

Full salary breakdown →Is this a good salary in St. Louis? →Compare St. Louis with another city →

How we calculated this

• Salary: BLS OES median for Firefighter, adjusted for St. Louis.

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~22%). Official calculator.

• Living costs: derived from cost-of-living index for a single professional.

Planning estimates, not financial or tax advice. Updated 2026. Your situation will differ.