Is $48 an Hour Good in Austin? Salary, Living Costs, and What It Means in 2026

Earning $48 an hour in Austin, Texas, is a relatively strong wage for most individual workers. At a standard full-time schedule of 40 hours per week and 52 weeks per year, it equals about $99,840 in gross annual income before taxes.

Whether that income is enough for a comfortable lifestyle depends mainly on household size, children, housing costs, debt, transportation, and other personal expenses.

How Much Is $48 an Hour Per Year?

For someone working full time without unpaid time off, the calculation looks like this:

These are gross figures before federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, health insurance, retirement contributions, and other deductions.

Texas does not impose an individual state income tax, although residents still pay applicable federal taxes and other taxes.

Is $48 an Hour Good in Austin?

Current wage data indicates that it is above the overall average for workers in the Austin metropolitan area.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that workers in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metropolitan area had an average hourly wage of $35.85 in May 2025. An hourly rate of $48 is therefore about $12 above the area’s overall mean hourly wage.

However, salaries vary considerably by profession. BLS data shows average hourly pay of $71.09 for management occupations, $58.73 for computer and mathematical jobs, $48.95 for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations, and $44.76 for business and financial operations.

This means the same salary can be high for one occupation but closer to normal for another.

How Does It Compare With Austin’s Living Wage?

The MIT Living Wage Calculator provides another useful comparison. For the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metro area, its 2026 estimate for a single adult with no children is $23.71 per hour.

The estimates rise substantially when children are included. MIT calculates the following living wages for a single working adult:

• No children: $23.71 per hour
• One child: $39.61 per hour
• Two children: $50.67 per hour
• Three children: $63.69 per hour

These estimates are designed around basic household needs rather than a luxury lifestyle.

As a result, $48 per hour is well above MIT’s estimated basic-needs wage for a single adult and also above its estimate for one adult supporting one child. It falls slightly below the estimate for a single adult supporting two children.

What About Housing Costs?

Housing is an important part of the calculation. MIT estimates annual housing expenses of $17,779 for one adult without children in the Austin metro area. Its estimate increases to $22,338 for a single adult with one or two children

Actual housing expenses can be different depending on neighborhood, property type, roommates, lease terms, and whether someone rents or owns.

Transportation is another significant expense. MIT’s estimate for one adult without children is $9,016 annually, while its estimated annual food expense is $4,047

Is $48 an Hour Enough to Live Alone in Austin?

Based on current wage and living-cost data, yes. A person earning this amount full time has gross annual earnings of nearly $100,000, compared with MIT’s estimated required pre-tax annual income of about $49,300 for a single adult without children in the Austin metro area.

Individual circumstances still matter. Large debt payments, expensive housing, frequent travel, or other major expenses can significantly change how far the salary goes.

Final Answer

For a single adult, $48 an hour is a good income in Austin based on current wage and basic-cost data. It is higher than the metropolitan area’s overall average hourly wage and substantially above MIT’s estimated living wage for one adult without children.

For households supported by one income, the answer changes with family size. The same hourly pay remains above the estimated basic-needs level for one adult with one child but falls below MIT’s 2026 estimate for a single working adult supporting two or more children.