Most of Raleigh is in Wake County, where a full-time job needs to pay at least $50.69 an hour before taxes to take home four times the typical studio rent.
Across the 36 ZIP codes in Raleigh with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $1,250 to $1,720 a month. At the middle rent, $1,530, a full-time job would need to pay $50.31 an hour before taxes.
What the standard would be at each ZIP code's own studio rent. The calculator and the official standard use the county figure.
| ZIP | County | Studio rent | Pay needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27601 | Wake County | $1,540/mo | $50.69/hr |
| 27602 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27603 | Wake County | $1,410/mo | $45.79/hr |
| 27604 | Wake County | $1,430/mo | $46.54/hr |
| 27605 | Wake County | $1,610/mo | $53.32/hr |
| 27606 | Wake County | $1,460/mo | $47.67/hr |
| 27607 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27608 | Wake County | $1,590/mo | $52.57/hr |
| 27609 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27610 | Wake County | $1,250/mo | $39.76/hr |
| 27611 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27612 | Wake County | $1,720/mo | $57.47/hr |
| 27613 | Wake County | $1,490/mo | $48.80/hr |
| 27614 | Wake County | $1,540/mo | $50.69/hr |
| 27615 | Wake County | $1,660/mo | $55.21/hr |
| 27616 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27617 | Wake County | $1,680/mo | $55.96/hr |
| 27619 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27620 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27622 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27623 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27624 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27627 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27628 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27629 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27636 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27640 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27656 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27658 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27661 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27675 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27676 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27690 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27695 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27697 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
| 27699 | Wake County | $1,530/mo | $50.31/hr |
Under the Four Times Rent standard, a full-time job in Raleigh needs to pay at least $50.69 an hour before taxes, about $105,429 a year. That is the figure for Wake County, where the typical studio rent is $1,540 a month.
Yes. Across the 36 ZIP codes in Raleigh with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $1,250 to $1,720 a month. At the middle rent of $1,530, the pay needed would be $50.31 an hour.
The minimum wage in Wake County is $7.25 an hour. The Four Times Rent standard there is 7.0 times that.
The Four Times Rent standard: a month of full-time work (160 hours) should take home at least four times the typical rent on a studio apartment in the county where the work is done. Rents: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents. Taxes: 2026 federal and state income taxes plus Social Security and Medicare, for a single filer. Why four times rent? · Method and data downloads