LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – State Rep. Bill Schuette (R-Midland) recently posted on X, “To make life more affordable in Michigan, we need to cut government red tape.”

But how affordable is the state of Michigan?

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Salary.com estimated the cost of living for a single person in Michigan to be $26,640 a year. That monthly cost broke down this way: Housing ($1,008), food ($388), energy ($154), transportation ($388), healthcare ($282).

The average annual wage in Michigan is projected to be $72,332 as of the first quarter of 2025, according to the U.S. Census.

However, the investment adviser website SmartAsset put out a 2025 report that a Michigan resident needed to make at least $87,235 to “live comfortably.”

SmartAsset Michigan ranked 36th in the nation for the amount of salary needed to live comfortably.

SmartAsset defined “living comfortably” as “being able to afford hobbies, vacations, retirement savings, education funds, and the occasional emergency – in addition to necessities like housing, groceries, transportation and medical expenses.”

It stated living comfortably meant 50% of your income went to necessities, 30% was discretionary spending and 20% went to retirement or paying off debt.