Tour and Travel Guides Salary
In Helena, MT, tour and travel guides earn $45,140 at the median, or about $21.7 an hour. The range runs from $26K at the entry level to $48K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 95.67), that's roughly $47,183 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,404/month, about 45.6% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $45K get you in Helena?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Helena’s Regional Price Parity (95.67). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About tour and travel guides
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What this looks like in Helena
Helena sits well above the national pay line for tour and travel guides, local pay runs about 18% higher than the U.S. median of $38K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,404/month, which is 45.8% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 95.67) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. The pay premium is real, but so are the offsets.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for tour and travel guides in metros near Helena, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Bozeman | $49K | $48K |
| Boise City | $38K | $39K |
| Rapid City | $35K | $40K |
| Casper | $51K | $54K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Helena, MT
Entry-level tour and travel guides (10th percentile) start around $26K. Mid-career wages sit at $45K. Top earners bring in $48K or more, a $22K spread from bottom to top.
Tour and Travel Guides pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Tour and Travel Guides salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $54K | +42% | 1,420 |
| District of Columbia | $49K | +29% | 380 |
| Wyoming | $47K | +23% | 560 |
| California | $46K | +21% | 6,900 |
| Hawaii | $46K | +21% | 1,370 |
| Vermont | $46K | +20% | 140 |
| Maine | $45K | +18% | 270 |
| New York | $44K | +17% | 2,870 |
| Alaska | $44K | +16% | 1,660 |
| Kansas | $44K | +15% | 400 |
| Colorado | $43K | +12% | 2,150 |
| Florida | $42K | +9% | 2,720 |
| New Hampshire | $42K | +9% | 260 |
| Maryland | $40K | +6% | 510 |
| Georgia | $40K | +5% | 1,080 |
| Montana | $40K | +5% | 680 |
| Minnesota | $40K | +4% | 630 |
| Nevada | $39K | +3% | 620 |
| Oregon | $39K | +3% | 530 |
| Utah | $39K | +1% | 1,630 |
| Rhode Island | $38K | +0% | 210 |
| Idaho | $38K | -0% | 460 |
| Massachusetts | $38K | -1% | 1,760 |
| Arizona | $38K | -1% | 2,450 |
| New Mexico | $37K | -3% | 360 |
| Illinois | $37K | -4% | 1,090 |
| New Jersey | $37K | -4% | 390 |
| Kentucky | $36K | -5% | 1,010 |
| North Dakota | $35K | -7% | 90 |
| South Carolina | $35K | -8% | 660 |
| South Dakota | $35K | -8% | 440 |
| Connecticut | $35K | -8% | 220 |
| Michigan | $35K | -8% | 1,160 |
| Arkansas | $34K | -10% | 160 |
| Tennessee | $34K | -11% | 1,840 |
| Delaware | $33K | -13% | 330 |
| Texas | $33K | -13% | 2,250 |
| Pennsylvania | $33K | -14% | 1,970 |
| Ohio | $33K | -14% | 1,000 |
| North Carolina | $33K | -15% | 1,650 |
| Oklahoma | $32K | -16% | 350 |
| Louisiana | $32K | -16% | 580 |
| Missouri | $32K | -16% | 1,360 |
| Alabama | $32K | -17% | 410 |
| Nebraska | $32K | -17% | 340 |
| Indiana | $31K | -19% | 700 |
| Wisconsin | $30K | -21% | 910 |
| West Virginia | $29K | -25% | 270 |
| Mississippi | $27K | -28% | 150 |
| Iowa | $22K | -41% | 330 |
Showing 1–10 of 50 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track tour and travel guides salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Helena numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a tour and travel guide afford a 2BR apartment alone in Helena?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $45K, rent takes 45.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,404/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $900/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for tour and travel guides in Helena?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new tour and travel guides typically earn — is $26K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $1,550/month. At HUD’s $1,404/month FMR, rent would take 91% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is tour and travel guide a high-paying job in Helena?
Local pay is 18% above the national median — $45K here vs. $38K nationally.
How does Helena compare to the national average for tour and travel guides?
Helena pays $45K median vs. the U.S. average of $38K — that’s +18%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 95.67), the purchasing-power equivalent is $47K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do tour and travel guides make in Helena, MT?
The median is $45,140 a year, that works out to about $22 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $25,830, and experienced tour and travel guides can clear $47,790. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $45K enough to live in Helena?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,063/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,404/month, which eats 45.8% 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.
How far does a tour and travel guides salary go in Helena?
Helena has a Regional Price Parity of 95.67 (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 tour and travel guides salary is worth about $47,183 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do tour and travel guides get paid the most?
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.