Can a Illustrator afford to live in Madison?

Comfortable22% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Illustrator · Madison
$57,397
Income tax (~23% effective)
United States
– $13,149
Take-home pay
$3,687/mo
$44,248
Living costs (1 person)
$2,860/mo · derived
– $34,320
Savings potential
$827/mo · 22% of take-home
$9,928

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

Full salary breakdown →Is this a good salary in Madison? →Compare Madison with another city →

How we calculated this

• Salary: BLS OES median for Illustrator, adjusted for Madison.

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~23%). 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.