Living Wage in Silicon Valley: Why the Math Doesn't Add Up

Silicon Valley is one of the most prosperous regions in the world. But for many families who live and work here, a paycheck doesn’t always stretch far enough to cover the basics. Barbara, a former Second Harvest client, put it simply: “Sometimes the math just doesn’t work, no matter how hard you’re trying.”

Today, 1 in 6 people in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties turns to Second Harvest of Silicon Valley each month for nutritious food. Half are children and older adults. And nearly 9 in 10 households we recently surveyed include someone who is employed, retired or living with a disability.

So what does it actually take to afford housing, food, child care, gas and health care here? Looking at the numbers helps explain why even households with steady income can find themselves stretched thin — and why so many families face difficult choices about how to cover the basics.

A living wage is the income needed to cover basic necessities, such as housing, food, child care, gas and health care. The amount varies depending on where a family lives and the size and makeup of the household. In Silicon Valley, the gap between minimum wage and what it actually costs to cover these basics can be significant.

The MIT Living Wage Calculator estimates that in 2026, a working adult in Santa Clara County would need to earn approximately $38 an hour to cover their basic needs. For comparison, California’s statewide minimum wage is $16.90 an hour, although some Silicon Valley cities have higher local minimum wages. 

That gap helps explain something we see every day at Second Harvest: having a job doesn’t always mean having enough income to cover everything a household needs. So what does that look like in a monthly budget?

منبع: MIT Living Wage Calculator for Santa Clara County for one working adult. Monthly amounts are rounded from annual estimates. 

For this individual, housing alone total more than $2,600 a month. Add food, transportation, health care and other everyday expenses, and it becomes easier to see how quickly a budget can become stretched.

The example above also assumes an individual can consistently work 40 hours each week. For many hourly workers, that isn’t always possible. Yolanda, a Second Harvest client in San Jose, shared how cancellations at her job can mean fewer hours:

“Work is slow right now. Today we had a few cancellations, so they sent me home. We are having many clients cancel their cleaning service.”

And even when more hours are available, income may still not cover all of a household’s needs. Martha, a Second Harvest client in Redwood City, shared what it can look like when working more hours still isn’t enough:

“I’ll be working about 50 to 60 hours a week to make ends meet and it’s still not enough.”

For Yolanda and Martha, the math looks different. But the pressure is familiar: working more hours isn’t always possible, and even when it is, it doesn’t guarantee that income will cover everything a household needs.

At the same time, changes to food and health care programs are adding another layer of uncertainty for some households. New CalFresh requirements are taking effect, and changes to Medicaid, known as Medi-Cal in California, eligibility and enrollment are being phased in. For households whose budgets already leave little room for unexpected costs, a reduction or interruption in food assistance, or higher health care expenses, can put even more pressure on the money available for everyday necessities.

For families balancing housing, child care, groceries, transportation and health care, losing even a portion of food assistance — or facing higher health care expenses — can put additional pressure on the money available for everyday necessities.

Smokey, 98, San Jose

Working families aren’t the only ones navigating high costs. For older adults living on a fixed income, housing, food, transportation and health care can consume a significant share of what comes in each month.

To illustrate that pressure, we compared the average income from two Social Security checks with MIT’s estimated expenses for a two-adult household in Santa Clara County. While actual expenses for retired households vary, the comparison helps show how quickly basic costs can add up.

منبع: MIT Living Wage Calculator for Santa Clara County.The Living Wage Calculator does not provide expense estimates specifically for retirees, so this chart uses estimates for a household with two working adults and no children. Actual expenses for retirees may vary by category. Monthly amounts are rounded from annual estimates.

For Jocelyn, a Second Harvest client in San Jose, needing support later in life was something she never anticipated:

“We never thought we would be in this position. We worked our whole lives.”

Her experience is a reminder that a lifetime of work does not insulate someone from today’s housing and health care costs.

Food insecurity isn’t always visible. A family can have working adults, stable housing and a steady income and still have difficulty consistently affording nutritious food.

Housing, utilities and other bills often come with fixed due dates and amounts. Food is one of the places households cut back on to try to make the numbers work. In a recent Second Harvest client survey, 96% of respondents said they were cutting back on food so they can afford other necessities.

When there isn’t enough income to cover everything, access to nutritious food can create some much-needed breathing room. It can help families keep nourishing food on the table while preserving limited income for rent, gas, child care, health care and other necessities.

That is why Second Harvest is here. As the cost of living remains high and changes to food and health care programs create new challenges for our neighbors, we will continue working alongside our community to help ensure nutritious food is accessible throughout Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.

When the math doesn’t add up, access to nutritious food can help make more room for what matters.