Meter Readers, Utilities Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $59K, rent takes 25.4% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,008/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new meter readers, utilities typically earn — is $37K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,199/month. At HUD’s $1,008/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.

Local pay is 23% above the national median — $59K here vs. $48K nationally.

West Virginia pays $59K median vs. the U.S. average of $48K — that’s +23%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 89.03), the purchasing-power equivalent is $67K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $59,430 a year, that works out to about $29 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $36,650, and experienced meter readers, utilities can clear $86,880. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,969/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,008/month, which eats 25.4% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

West Virginia has a Regional Price Parity of 89.03 (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 meter readers, utilities salary is worth about $66,753 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.