Can a Illustrator afford to live in Memphis?

Comfortable29% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Illustrator · Memphis
$47,640
Income tax (~16% effective)
United States
– $7,692
Take-home pay
$3,329/mo
$39,948
Living costs (1 person)
$2,380/mo · derived
– $28,560
Savings potential
$949/mo · 29% of take-home
$11,388

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

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

How we calculated this

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

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~16%). 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.