Pharmacists Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $158K, rent takes 31.4% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $3,105/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $3,000/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new pharmacists typically earn — is $129K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $7,719/month.

Local pay is 12% above the national median — $158K here vs. $141K nationally.

Western Washington nonmetropolitan area pays $158K median vs. the U.S. average of $141K — that’s +12%.

The median is $158,080 a year, that works out to about $76 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $128,650, and experienced pharmacists can clear $181,890. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $9,900/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $3,105/month, which eats 31.4% 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.

Western Washington 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 pharmacists salary is worth about $158,080 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.