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Living in Minnesota ยท 2026

Is $116,000 enough to live in Minnesota?

Single adult ยท MN ยท 2026 tax brackets ยท Real cost-of-living data

Statewide verdict:Very comfortable

Monthly take-home

$6,892

Avg monthly expenses

$2,331

Avg monthly surplus

$4,561

Savings potential

~66%

After-tax take-home in Minnesota

Gross salary$116,000
Federal income taxโˆ’ $16,874
State income taxโˆ’ $7,554
Social Securityโˆ’ $7,192
Medicareโˆ’ $1,682
Annual take-home$82,698
Effective tax rate28.71%

How $116,000 feels in Minnesota cities

Rent: HUD FMR 2026 ยท Food: USDA Low-Cost Plan ร— COL ยท Transport/Utilities/Healthcare: BLS CES ร— COL

Minneapolis

COL index: 1.17ร— national avg

Very comfortable
Rent (1BR)
$1,600
Food
$484
Transport
$205
Utilities
$193
Healthcare
$234
Total: $2,716/mo
Surplus: $4,176/mo
Rent burden: 23.2% โ€” Affordable (< 25%)
Full Minneapolis analysis โ†’

St Paul

COL index: 1.10ร— national avg

Very comfortable
Rent (1BR)
$1,450
Food
$462
Transport
$193
Utilities
$182
Healthcare
$220
Total: $2,507/mo
Surplus: $4,385/mo
Rent burden: 21.0% โ€” Affordable (< 25%)
Full St Paul analysis โ†’

Rochester

COL index: 0.95ร— national avg

Very comfortable
Rent (1BR)
$1,150
Food
$440
Transport
$166
Utilities
$157
Healthcare
$190
Total: $2,103/mo
Surplus: $4,789/mo
Rent burden: 16.7% โ€” Affordable (< 25%)
Full Rochester analysis โ†’

Duluth

COL index: 0.88ร— national avg

Very comfortable
Rent (1BR)
$1,000
Food
$418
Transport
$154
Utilities
$145
Healthcare
$176
Total: $1,893/mo
Surplus: $4,999/mo
Rent burden: 14.5% โ€” Affordable (< 25%)
Full Duluth analysis โ†’

Bloomington

COL index: 1.08ร— national avg

Very comfortable
Rent (1BR)
$1,400
Food
$418
Transport
$189
Utilities
$178
Healthcare
$216
Total: $2,401/mo
Surplus: $4,491/mo
Rent burden: 20.3% โ€” Affordable (< 25%)
Full Bloomington analysis โ†’

Brooklyn Park

COL index: 1.05ร— national avg

Very comfortable
Rent (1BR)
$1,350
Food
$449
Transport
$184
Utilities
$173
Healthcare
$210
Total: $2,366/mo
Surplus: $4,526/mo
Rent burden: 19.6% โ€” Affordable (< 25%)
Full Brooklyn Park analysis โ†’

50 / 30 / 20 Budget Planner

Based on your monthly take-home of $6,892 ($82,704/yr)

Needs 50%Wants 30%Savings 20%
Needs50%

$3,446

per month

  • โ€บRent / mortgage
  • โ€บGroceries
  • โ€บUtilities
  • โ€บInsurance
  • โ€บMinimum debt payments
  • โ€บTransportation
Wants30%

$2,068

per month

  • โ€บDining out
  • โ€บStreaming services
  • โ€บGym
  • โ€บHobbies
  • โ€บTravel
  • โ€บShopping
Savings20%

$1,378

per month

  • โ€บEmergency fund
  • โ€บ401(k) / IRA
  • โ€บInvestments
  • โ€บDown payment fund
  • โ€บDebt payoff (extra)

Needs / year

$41,352

Wants / year

$24,811

Savings / year

$16,541

Salary Intelligence

Good salary in Minneapolis

Rent represents 23% of take-home income โ€” comfortably within the recommended 25% guideline. This is a solid salary for this location.

Lifestyle score: 7.1/10 (Very Good)

Lifestyle Assessment

A $116,000 salary comfortably supports a very good single lifestyle in Minneapolis, Minnesota, with approximately $4,176/month (~61% of take-home) available for savings โ€” meeting or exceeding the recommended 20% savings rate.

Purchasing Power

Minneapolis's above-average cost of living (index: 1.17) means $116,000 provides the purchasing power of roughly $99,145 in an average-cost US city, or $116,991 in Austin. Moving to a lower-cost state could effectively increase your take-home by thousands.

State & National Benchmark

$116,000 is 130% above the Minnesota individual median of $50,400 and 107% above the US national individual median of $56,000. This is a top-quartile income in this state.

State individual median

$50,400

+130%

State household median

$87,012

+33%

Tax reduction strategies

Maximize 401(k) Contributions โ€” Up to $5,170 in federal tax (22% bracket)
401(k) Age 50+ Catch-Up Contribution โ€” Up to $2,775 additional tax savings (37% bracket)

$116,000 vs. Minnesota income benchmarks

Individual median (Minnesota)

$50,400

+130% vs. this salary

Household median (Minnesota)

$87,012

+33% vs. this salary

Source: US Census Bureau ACS 2023

Related salary insights

Explore other salary levels in Minnesota

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Reviewed by

Finance Editor

CPA, 10+ years in personal finance

Data Sources

Data updated monthly using government datasets.