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This is how much money you need to make to be happy living in Arizona, survey finds

By FOX 10 Staff
Published  July 6, 2022 2:00pm MST
Lifestyle
FOX 10 Phoenix

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PHOENIX - A new study is revealing how much money Arizona residents "need" to make to be happy.

A survey from Purdue University and GoBankingRates.com found that you need a minimum annual salary of $108,360 to be happy in Arizona, just a tenth of a percent higher than the national average.

"The state’s 3.3% unemployment rate is lower than the rest of the country," GOBankingRates stated.

According to the study, Arizonans can get by on a minimum salary of $61,920 to satisfy their "emotional well-being."

"Globally, we find that satiation occurs at $95,000 for life evaluation and $60,000 to $75,000 for emotional well-being," said the study’s authors in the journal. The study also noted that the ideal income for "life satisfaction" in North America is $105,000.

"It’s important to keep in mind, though, that ‘happiness’ is subjective. The cost to live comfortably can vary from person to person," GOBankingRates noted.

Among the states with the lowest salary needed to be happy were Mississippi, Kansas, Oklahoma and Alabama, though with the rising costs due to inflation, every state requires over $87,000 annual salary in order to live happily.

As for the states with the highest required salary, they're the ones you probably expect: California, New York and Hawaii. California's required salary is $149,310, New York is $155,610, and in Hawaii, you need to be making over $202,965 in order to be happy, the survey found.

GOBankingRates said it determined the cost-of-living-adjusted minimum salary needed to be happy based on income satiation levels identified by Purdue University researchers. It also factored in each city’s cost of living index, unemployment rate, as well as property and violent crime rates.