Can a Journalist afford to live in Portland?

Comfortable29% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Journalist · Portland
$78,013
Income tax (~29% effective)
United States
– $22,937
Take-home pay
$4,590/mo
$55,076
Living costs (1 person)
$3,250/mo · derived
– $39,000
Savings potential
$1,340/mo · 29% of take-home
$16,076

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

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

How we calculated this

• Salary: BLS OES median for Journalist, adjusted for Portland.

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~29%). 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.