Fundraisers Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $71K, rent takes 43.6% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,922/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,300/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new fundraisers typically earn — is $50K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,984/month. At HUD’s $1,922/month FMR, rent would take 64% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $71K locally vs. $73K nationally, a 2% difference.

Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro pays $71K median vs. the U.S. average of $73K — that’s -2%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 105.42), the purchasing-power equivalent is $68K — below the national median.

The median is $71,340 a year, that works out to about $34 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $49,730, and experienced fundraisers can clear $103,860. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,405/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,922/month, which eats 43.6% 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.

Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro has a Regional Price Parity of 105.42 (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 fundraisers salary is worth about $67,672 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.