Court, Municipal, and License Clerks Salary
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks in Portland-South Portland, ME make a median of $50,880 a year, or about $24.46 an hour. The range runs from $46K at the entry level to $74K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 101.86), that's roughly $49,951 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $2,130/month, about 64.1% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $51K get you in Portland-South Portland?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Portland-South Portland’s Regional Price Parity (101.86). 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
Sponsored links, AffordMap may earn a commission at no cost to you. Learn more
What this looks like in Portland-South Portland
Court, municipal, and license clerks pay in Portland-South Portland tracks closely to the national median, $51K locally vs. $49K nationwide, a 4% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $2,130/month, which is 62.8% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 101.86) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. 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 Portland-South Portland, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Bangor | $46K | $47K |
| Lewiston-Auburn | $49K | $51K |
| Manchester-Nashua | $49K | $46K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Portland-South Portland, ME
Entry-level court, municipal, and license clerks (10th percentile) start around $46K. Mid-career wages sit at $51K. Top earners bring in $74K or more, a $28K 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)
Track court, municipal, and license clerks salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Portland-South Portland numbers change.
Related careers in Office & Admin
Frequently asked questions
Can a court, municipal, and license clerk afford a 2BR apartment alone in Portland-South Portland?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $51K, rent takes 62.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,130/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,000/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 Portland-South Portland?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new court, municipal, and license clerks typically earn — is $46K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,735/month. At HUD’s $2,130/month FMR, rent would take 78% 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 Portland-South Portland?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $51K locally vs. $49K nationally, a 4% difference.
How does Portland-South Portland compare to the national average for court, municipal, and license clerks?
Portland-South Portland pays $51K median vs. the U.S. average of $49K — that’s +4%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 101.86), the purchasing-power equivalent is $50K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do court, municipal, and license clerks make in Portland-South Portland, ME?
The median is $50,880 a year, that works out to about $24 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $45,580, and experienced court, municipal, and license clerks can clear $73,680. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $51K enough to live in Portland-South Portland?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,392/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,130/month, which eats 62.8% 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 Portland-South Portland?
Portland-South Portland has a Regional Price Parity of 101.86 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median court, municipal, and license clerks salary is worth about $49,951 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.