Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $74K, rent takes 24.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,180/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new environmental scientists and specialists, including healths typically earn — is $57K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,427/month.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $74K locally vs. $82K nationally, a 9% difference.

Southwest Virginia nonmetropolitan area pays $74K median vs. the U.S. average of $82K — that’s -9%.

The median is $74,450 a year, that works out to about $36 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $57,110, and experienced environmental scientists and specialists, including healths can clear $109,590. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,750/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,180/month, which eats 24.8% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Southwest Virginia nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median environmental scientists and specialists, including health salary is worth about $74,450 in national-average purchasing power.

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.