Whats a good salary to you?

[Donjuan]

It depends if you live where I do (kansas) or some bigger area with a much higher cost of living

 

[RS3579]

100k is still a good salary. It’s a lot more than most are making. It’s not the amount one makes, but the amount one lives off of.

 

[Ucsdryder]

I thought the same thing

We all did!

 

[Wrench]

Advice for you young guys who are looking to make a decent living wearing gloves.....

Find yourself an apprenticeship in energy. Hydro, nuclear, transmission, steam.....anything energy pays better. You can be a millwright, electrician, lineman, operator, dispatcher, welder, pipeliner, rig worker......but try to work closer to the source.

I spent a lot of years chasing construction bucks across the country and the closer to the source you get.....the bigger the numbers get. I worked gas from the meter clear to the well through the utility and transmission company back to the producer. I worked power from the house back to the dams and generators and it's true for both.

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

In my field, as an associate (non-owner) veterinarian, I believe I'm way above the national average. My W-2 says I made $204k in 2024 and I've increased each year since being started at a base salary of $65k + production in 2014 after graduation. I'm thankful and fortunate that I paid my nominal Vet school student loans off the week after I graduated. I work with a couple of DVMs with $350k+ in student loans and have no end in sight. Much different ROI compared to physicians.

Now that's a eat what you kill salary (22% commission). After taxes, health insurance (wife and 3 kids), seems like much less, probably in the ball park of $50-60K less. Work 4 days a week and average 50-55 hrs per work week.

My wife owns her insurance brokerage business with 2 partners and has been in business for 3 years. They're going gangbusters and she'll most likely exceed me this year. Once she's making a good 1-1.5x what I'm making, I think I'll try to go out on my own. Tired of having corporate goons tell me what to do and how to practice. As a practice owner, sky is the limit on earnings.

10/10 don't think I would recommend this profession for most folks, and definitely not my children.

 

[loganwayne]

I think you have to take in the area your living to. The median household here is 60k. When my wife was still working we were 150k. Now we decided it's best for her to stay home right now and raise our son we are on my salary only 115k not including bonuses. I still feel like we are better off than most. We have a relative small amount of debit compared to our peers and we pretty much go and do the things we want to do.

 

[Hnthrdr]

In my field, as an associate (non-owner) veterinarian, I believe I'm way above the national average. My W-2 says I made $204k in 2024 and I've increased each year since being started at a base salary of $65k + production in 2014 after graduation. I'm thankful and fortunate that I paid my nominal Vet school student loans off the week after I graduated. I work with a couple of DVMs with $350k+ in student loans and have no end in sight. Much different ROI compared to physicians.

Now that's a eat what you kill salary (22% commission). After taxes, health insurance (wife and 3 kids), seems like much less, probably in the ball park of $50-60K less. Work 4 days a week and average 50-55 hrs per work week.

My wife owns her insurance brokerage business with 2 partners and has been in business for 3 years. They're going gangbusters and she'll most likely exceed me this year. Once she's making a good 1-1.5x what I'm making, I think I'll try to go out on my own. Tired of having corporate goons tell me what to do and how to practice. As a practice owner, sky is the limit on earnings.

10/10 don't think I would recommend this profession for most folks, and definitely not my children.

Are you large or small animal?

 

[Schmo]

A good salary is one that gives you wealth. What is wealth? Answer: discretionary time. If your bills are paid, and you have time to spend with your family, and can take time off here and there without it putting you into financial hardship, you’re doing alright. Many look around at the $80k or $100k vehicle that someone drives, or the million dollar house someone owns and wishes they could have it. All the while not realizing that the person they envy works 80 hours a week to make payments on it all.

I don’t make a big income, but my bills are paid, there’s some extra, and I take 4-6 weeks off per year for different things, including hunting.

 

[Rsudduth36]

I’m a Rig welder so I travel for work constantly. Live full time in my 5th wheel with wife and baby and am able to afford for her to be a full time mom. I clear over 4K a week, but haven’t been to my home state in 2 years now.

I will say depending on what state you live in 100k might be alright, but I couldn’t imagine only making that in a year. It would be a struggle. I’ve been working a lot on the East coast the past few years and their cost of living is pretty high.


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[PredatorSlayer]

I feel bad for teachers. My wife teaches first grade and makes $60k a year. I make more than 6 times that and work less hours than she does. I know she gets holidays and her summer break is about 2.5 months…still, its a grind being a teacher. Parents don't discipline anymore at home and their kids are disrespectful little shits.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I am a retired aerospace executive and I retired in mid 2000. The last year I worked a full year I made a salary of $150K plus bonus. That was a pretty good wage 25 years ago, today I really don't know. Today I live on a little less than 100K. I am not in debt to anyone, so my retirement income suits me fine.

 

[willfrye027]

A good salary is one that gives you wealth. What is wealth? Answer: discretionary time. If your bills are paid, and you have time to spend with your family, and can take time off here and there without it putting you into financial hardship, you’re doing alright. Many look around at the $80k or $100k vehicle that someone drives, or the million dollar house someone owns and wishes they could have it. All the while not realizing that the person they envy works 80 hours a week to make payments on it all.

I don’t make a big income, but my bills are paid, there’s some extra, and I take 4-6 weeks off per year for different things, including hunting.

 

[Jpsmith1]

A few years ago, I was disappointed that I missed the $100k mark by a couple hundred bucks.

Last year, I fell similarly short of $125k

I feel like we should be doing better than we are but we don't worry about paying bills.

 

[ddowning]

Wife did and owns her own practice that employees 15 other people two of them docs, I make 100 and wife makes 6x or more than me, it’s great, it’s also super stressful some days and it is constant work for her being the boss, gotta make a lot of money to pay 15 people and keep the lights on and pay yourself to make it worth it. Plus wait till the tax man comes and takes about 180k of your money away every year… well there goes my entire salary and then another good paying salary…

I've never been close to $700k, but the more I figure out how to earn in business the more I question if it is worth it to earn that much money for the government. Having more for my family is good, but it sure is a kick in the junk to write a check for more than we used to make after already paying the estimated tax all year.

I would definitely have to buy a heavy bag and beat the hell out of it every year in April if I had to write a check for $180k.

 

[ddowning]

I agree..

It's a dangerous, toxic behavior that can really make people do dumb things.

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It really depends on perspective. When I want a little motivationto go harder, I look to people who have the life I want and think about what it took for them to get there.

When I'm too intense and need to reel it in, I realize how far I've come. If there had been no motivation, I would still be broke in a dead end job with guaranteed retirement. During that time, I thought it would be impossible to get where I am now financially. My career is not even half over.

Gratitude is very important to happiness, but as long as you realize that people with money and stuff didn't get there because they are lucky, comparison can be a good thing.

 

[TaperPin]

My first real job paid $1.85/hr and I worked about 45 hrs a week in the summer. For a junior high kid who didn’t spend money on a vehicle and dreamed about the latest rifles in Guns and Ammo all day, I was living large with a new rifle every month. Lever action Browning 22, Remington 700 270 and 243, Marlin 22 mag. Living the dream! The next summer I picked up a Ruger #1 22-250 and topped it with a 12x Leupold. For a 7th/8th/9th grader I couldn’t complain. Oh, and don’t forget the Farrah Faucet poster purchased at the local drug store - nice! Back then the NRA actually helped promote shooting and not just funneling money to politicians, fancy suits and corporate jets - paid for my own dues and subscriptions to Guns and Ammo, Peterson’s Hunting and Shooting Times. I might have been the happiest junior high kid in town.

 

[cnelk]

I never made $100k in my life. Everything I have is paid for except a small mortgage with a low interest rate.
I put 2 kids through college, been retired for 5 years, own property in 2 states, do a little handyman work occasionally, hunt and fish whenever I want, and still put 20% into savings/investment every month.

Want to know how?
See post #13

 

[roosiebull]

Back in they day i used to think 100k was a great salary these days that doesn't go that far. Based on my industry a decent salary is about 140k. What is a decent, good, great salary to you?

I think it greatly depends on where you live and your lifestyle, it’s hard to answer because the answer is pretty broad. I don’t even know what my wife and I gross, but it’s enough because of her, she is much better with money than me

If I was single and made out combined income, I would probably be broke

 

[LongWayAround]

Twenty some years ago, my dad told me that he made about 100k/yr as a successful car dealer. I thought he was just killing it, and he was. It was always my goal to get there and still is.

Unfortunately, I'm not playing with 2003 dollars...

To this day, it's the only time I have ever asked him what he made.

 

[LongWayAround]

I am surprised by the number of people in this thread who seem to think 100k is peanuts, even with inflation.