Can a Illustrator afford to live in Seattle?

Comfortable24% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Illustrator · Seattle
$79,449
Income tax (~21% effective)
United States
– $16,361
Take-home pay
$5,257/mo
$63,088
Living costs (1 person)
$3,980/mo · derived
– $47,760
Savings potential
$1,277/mo · 24% of take-home
$15,328

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

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

How we calculated this

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

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~21%). 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.