Court, Municipal, and License Clerks Salary
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks in Ames, IA make a median of $57,800 a year, or about $27.79 an hour. The range runs from $42K at the entry level to $68K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 88.83), which stretches that salary to about $65,068 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,153/month, about 30.4% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $58K get you in Ames?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Ames’s Regional Price Parity (88.83). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About court, municipal, and license clerks
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What this looks like in Ames
Ames sits well above the national pay line for court, municipal, and license clerks, local pay runs about 19% higher than the U.S. median of $49K. Rent runs $1,153/month for a 2-bedroom (HUD FMR), taking 30.3% of the median take-home. That's within the 30% rule, though not by much. Regional Price Parity sits at 88.83 (national = 100), meaning everyday costs run about 11% cheaper here. Your dollar stretches further than the headline salary suggests. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for court, municipal, and license clerks in metros near Ames, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Des Moines-West Des Moines | $57K | $62K |
| Davenport-Moline-Rock Island | $46K | $52K |
| Cedar Rapids | $55K | $62K |
| Waterloo-Cedar Falls | $49K | $57K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Ames, IA
Entry-level court, municipal, and license clerks (10th percentile) start around $42K. Mid-career wages sit at $58K. Top earners bring in $68K or more, a $26K spread from bottom to top.
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Court, Municipal, and License Clerks salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $66K | +36% | 50 |
| Washington | $65K | +33% | 3,450 |
| California | $63K | +30% | 12,460 |
| Massachusetts | $62K | +27% | 4,360 |
| Rhode Island | $62K | +27% | 660 |
| Oregon | $61K | +26% | 1,820 |
| Connecticut | $60K | +24% | 1,300 |
| Maryland | $58K | +20% | 2,360 |
| Nevada | $57K | +16% | 1,250 |
| Minnesota | $57K | +16% | 5,360 |
| Alaska | $54K | +11% | 650 |
| North Dakota | $54K | +11% | 600 |
| New Jersey | $54K | +10% | 5,710 |
| New York | $54K | +10% | 11,850 |
| Vermont | $53K | +9% | 890 |
| Wisconsin | $52K | +7% | 1,240 |
| Hawaii | $52K | +7% | 510 |
| Utah | $51K | +5% | 1,280 |
| Colorado | $50K | +4% | 7,920 |
| North Carolina | $49K | +1% | 5,240 |
| Arizona | $49K | +0% | 3,560 |
| Michigan | $49K | -0% | 5,620 |
| Maine | $49K | -0% | 1,150 |
| Idaho | $48K | -1% | 1,500 |
| Nebraska | $48K | -1% | 1,210 |
| Iowa | $48K | -1% | 2,390 |
| Ohio | $48K | -1% | 9,550 |
| Florida | $47K | -3% | 11,180 |
| New Mexico | $47K | -4% | 1,040 |
| Illinois | $47K | -4% | 8,370 |
| New Hampshire | $47K | -4% | 550 |
| Texas | $47K | -4% | 15,730 |
| Louisiana | $47K | -4% | 2,900 |
| Wyoming | $47K | -4% | 770 |
| Indiana | $46K | -5% | 3,460 |
| Montana | $46K | -6% | 1,340 |
| Virginia | $46K | -6% | 4,610 |
| Pennsylvania | $45K | -8% | 3,320 |
| Kansas | $45K | -8% | 1,290 |
| Tennessee | $45K | -8% | 3,050 |
| Delaware | $45K | -8% | 980 |
| South Dakota | $44K | -10% | 920 |
| Kentucky | $44K | -10% | 2,370 |
| South Carolina | $43K | -11% | 2,020 |
| Georgia | $43K | -12% | 5,750 |
| Missouri | $41K | -16% | 4,760 |
| Oklahoma | $39K | -20% | 2,730 |
| Alabama | $38K | -21% | 2,050 |
| West Virginia | $38K | -22% | 1,590 |
| Mississippi | $37K | -24% | 2,950 |
| Arkansas | $37K | -24% | 2,090 |
Showing 1–10 of 51 (all 50 states + DC)
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Frequently asked questions
Can a court, municipal, and license clerk afford a 2BR apartment alone in Ames?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $58K, rent takes 30.3% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,153/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,100/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for court, municipal, and license clerks in Ames?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new court, municipal, and license clerks typically earn — is $42K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,519/month. At HUD’s $1,153/month FMR, rent would take 46% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is court, municipal, and license clerk a high-paying job in Ames?
Local pay is 19% above the national median — $58K here vs. $49K nationally.
How does Ames compare to the national average for court, municipal, and license clerks?
Ames pays $58K median vs. the U.S. average of $49K — that’s +19%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 88.83), the purchasing-power equivalent is $65K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do court, municipal, and license clerks make in Ames, IA?
The median is $57,800 a year, that works out to about $28 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $41,980, and experienced court, municipal, and license clerks can clear $67,920. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $58K enough to live in Ames?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,801/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,153/month, which eats 30.3% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a court, municipal, and license clerks salary go in Ames?
Ames has a Regional Price Parity of 88.83 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median court, municipal, and license clerks salary is worth about $65,068 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do court, municipal, and license clerks get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.