Pharmacists Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $153K, rent takes 24.4% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,146/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new pharmacists typically earn — is $65K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,892/month. At HUD’s $2,146/month FMR, rent would take 55% 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 — $153K locally vs. $141K nationally, a 9% difference.

District of Columbia pays $153K median vs. the U.S. average of $141K — that’s +9%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 108.88), the purchasing-power equivalent is $141K — below the national median.

The median is $153,400 a year, that works out to about $74 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $64,870, and experienced pharmacists can clear $196,080. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $8,784/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,146/month, which eats 24.4% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

District of Columbia has a Regional Price Parity of 108.88 (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 pharmacists salary is worth about $140,889 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.