Living in Mississippi · 2026
Is $42,000 enough to live in Mississippi?
Single adult · MS · 2026 tax brackets · Real cost-of-living data
Monthly take-home
$2,823
Avg monthly expenses
$1,829
Avg monthly surplus
$994
Savings potential
~35%
After-tax take-home in Mississippi
How $42,000 feels in Mississippi cities
Rent: HUD FMR 2026 · Food: USDA Low-Cost Plan × COL · Transport/Utilities/Healthcare: BLS CES × COL
Jackson
COL index: 0.83× national avg
Gulfport
COL index: 0.88× national avg
Southaven
COL index: 0.91× national avg
Hattiesburg
COL index: 0.85× national avg
Biloxi
COL index: 0.91× national avg
Meridian
COL index: 0.80× national avg
50 / 30 / 20 Budget Planner
Based on your monthly take-home of $2,823 ($33,876/yr)
$1,412
per month
- ›Rent / mortgage
- ›Groceries
- ›Utilities
- ›Insurance
- ›Minimum debt payments
- ›Transportation
$847
per month
- ›Dining out
- ›Streaming services
- ›Gym
- ›Hobbies
- ›Travel
- ›Shopping
$565
per month
- ›Emergency fund
- ›401(k) / IRA
- ›Investments
- ›Down payment fund
- ›Debt payoff (extra)
Needs / year
$16,938
Wants / year
$10,163
Savings / year
$6,775
Salary Intelligence
Moderate salary in JacksonRent takes 32% of take-home income, which is above the ideal 25% but still manageable. Savings will be limited; consider lower-cost housing to improve your financial position.
Lifestyle Assessment
A $42,000 salary comfortably supports a very good single lifestyle in Jackson, Mississippi, with approximately $1,110/month (~39% of take-home) available for savings — meeting or exceeding the recommended 20% savings rate.
Purchasing Power
Due to Jackson's low cost of living (index: 0.83), $42,000 here has the purchasing power of roughly $93,614 in San Francisco or $98,675 in New York City. Your dollar goes significantly further here.
State & National Benchmark
$42,000 is 35% above the Mississippi individual median ($31,100) and 25% below the US national median of $56,000.
State individual median
$31,100
+35%
State household median
$52,985
-21%
Tax reduction strategies
$42,000 vs. Mississippi income benchmarks
Individual median (Mississippi)
$31,100
+35% vs. this salary
Household median (Mississippi)
$52,985
-21% vs. this salary
Source: US Census Bureau ACS 2023
Related salary insights
Explore other salary levels in Mississippi
Data Sources
- •Tax calculations: IRS federal tax tables
- •Rent data: HUD Fair Market Rents
- •Cost-of-living index: C2ER / ACCRA Cost of Living Index
Data updated monthly using government datasets.