Optometrists Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $150K, rent takes 21.2% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,865/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new optometrists typically earn — is $100K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $6,132/month. At HUD’s $1,865/month FMR, rent would take 30% of that take-home — manageable on an entry-level income.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $150K locally vs. $137K nationally, a 10% difference.

Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford pays $150K median vs. the U.S. average of $137K — that’s +10%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 102.75), the purchasing-power equivalent is $146K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $150,340 a year, that works out to about $72 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $99,840, and experienced optometrists can clear $158,610. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $8,787/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,865/month, which eats 21.2% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford has a Regional Price Parity of 102.75 (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 optometrists salary is worth about $146,316 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.