Military Enlisted Salary in Daytona Beach, FL: Median $39,404 in 2026
Daytona Beach (FL) · COL index 97 · Unemployment 3.7% · Metro pop 630,000 · Rank #147 of 283 for Military Enlisted salary
A Military Enlisted in Daytona Beach earns an estimated median of $39,404 per year. That figure starts from the Florida state-level BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics median[1]($42,100) and scales it by Daytona Beach's composite cost-of-living index of 97 (US = 100). The 10th percentile comes in around $27,312; the 90th percentile reaches $92,876. After federal, Florida state (no state income tax), and FICA taxes, a single-filer Military Enlisted takes home approximately $33,790/year — about $2,816/month or $1,300 every other week.
Compared to the national Military Enlisted median of $41,000, Daytona Beach pays -3.9%. Relative to the Daytona Beach median household income of $52,400, a Military Enlistedsalary runs -24.8%. Local unemployment is 3.7%[3], with an estimated 364 annual Military Enlisted openings inferred from metro population share and national employment (1,290,000).
Military Enlisted Snapshot — Daytona Beach (2026)
Every row cites a primary public dataset. Rent + home values use Zillow where the metro is in the ZHVI/ZORI coverage set; otherwise ACS + census tract fallbacks.
| Metric | Daytona Beach | National | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Military Enlisted median salary | $39,404 | $41,000 | [1] |
| 10th percentile | $27,312 | $29,500 | [1] |
| 90th percentile | $92,876 | $74,000 | [1] |
| Annual take-home (single filer) | $33,790 | — | [8][10] |
| Median home value (ZHVI) | $295,000 | — | [5] |
| Median rent (ZORI) | $1,350/mo | — | [5] |
| HUD Fair Market Rent (2BR) | $1,250/mo | — | [6] |
| Median household income (ACS) | $52,400 | — | [7] |
| Cost-of-living index | 97.0 | 100.0 | [4] |
| Unemployment rate | 3.7% | — | [3] |
How Military Enlisted Salaries Work in Daytona Beach
City-level wages aren't published directly by BLS for most SOC codes. We build them by anchoring to the Florida state-level OEWS median ($42,100) and scaling by Daytona Beach's composite cost-of-living index (97)[1][4]. That index combines Census ACS rent, Zillow ZHVI, BLS CPI, and AdvisorSmith / ApartmentAdvisor inputs to produce one number per metro. When BLS publishes a separate metro-level wage (MSA-level OEWS), that takes priority — a handful of large metros including New York, LA, Chicago, and DC have this coverage.
On top of the gross wage, the standard US payroll stack applies: federal income tax using 2025 IRS brackets and the $15,000 single standard deduction[8], FICA (Social Security 6.2% up to $176,100 wage base + Medicare 1.45%)[9], and no Florida state income tax — a meaningful wedge worth $1,970–$2,758 per year vs average-tax states[10].
Daytona Beach also sits inside a larger metro labor market where commute patterns, remote-work policies, and adjacent-metro wages compete. A tight labor market (unemployment below 4%) gives candidates pricing power in negotiations. Median household income in the metro is $52,400, which frames what "a good Military Enlisted salary" means locally: a $$39,404 wage pays about 75% of the median household income on a single earner.
The deterministic identity: take_home = gross − federal − state − FICA − pre_tax. All math runs client-side; nothing is sent to our servers.
Military Enlisted Salary & Cost-of-Living Context — Daytona Beach
Buy vs rent in Daytona Beach
Monthly PITI on the $295,000 median home in Daytona Beach is ~$2,092/mo — vs a $1,350/mo median rent. Rent burden on median household income is 30.9%, which exceeds the recommended 30% guideline for housing costs.
Cost of Living Breakdown — Daytona Beach
Estimated annual expense shares on a $33,790 take-home, using BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey baseline shares scaled to Daytona Beach's COL index of 97. Housing uses the actual median rent.
BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey shares[1], scaled by Daytona Beach's COL index of 97[4]. Housing uses actual median rent of $1,350/month.
Salary vs Housing Affordability in Daytona Beach
Renting
Buying
At $2,816/mo take-home, the 30% rent rule caps housing at $845/mo. Daytona Beach's typical 1–2BR rent runs $1,350/mo[5] (HUD 2BR FMR: $1,250/mo), making rent cost-burdened on a median Military Enlisted salary. For homebuyers, the 7.5× price-to-income ratio is stretched — expect DTI friction on FHA / conventional underwriting without a co-borrower.
How Daytona Beach Stacks Up for Military Enlisteds
Against 283 major US cities: Daytona Beach ranks #147 for nominal Military Enlisted salary, #182 for rent affordability, and #134 for overall purchasing power. High cost of living absorbs much of Daytona Beach's nominal wage premium. Military Enlisteds here often trade pay for lifestyle, proximity to employers, or family roots — consider nearby metros on a salary-to-COL basis.
Nearby Cities — Military Enlisted Salary Comparison
Daytona Beach's closest metros, scaled by each city's cost-of-living index. Useful for relocation decisions where commute or remote-work policies allow a neighboring metro trade-off.
| City | Est. salary | COL | Rent | vs FL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daytona Beach, FL ★ | $39,404 | 97 | $1,350 | — |
| Miami, FL | $53,710 | 131 | $1,951 | +36.3% |
| Tampa, FL | $44,280 | 108 | $1,435 | +12.4% |
| Orlando, FL | $42,640 | 104 | $1,314 | +8.2% |
| Jacksonville, FL | $39,360 | 96 | $1,098 | -0.1% |
| Cape Coral, FL | $43,870 | 107 | $1,600 | +11.3% |
Military Enlisted Job Market in Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach has an estimated 364 annual Military Enlistedopenings, extrapolated from the metro's share of 1,290,000 national Military Enlisteds[1]. The 3.7% unemployment rate[3] signals a competitive labor market where skilled professionals can push for top-of-band offers.
About the profession: Enlisted military members serve in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, or Space Force. Total compensation includes tax-free housing (BAH) and subsistence (BAS) allowances. Typical entry requirement: high school diploma. Projected growth through 2034: 0%[2].
Career Progression & Related Professions in Daytona Beach
Early-career Military Enlisteds in Daytona Beach start around $27,312, reach the city median ($39,404) after 4–8 years, and hit 90th-percentile territory ($92,876) at senior / specialized levels.
Related government & military professions in Daytona Beach
Calculators for Military Enlisteds in Daytona Beach
Other professions in Daytona Beach
Frequently Asked Questions — Military Enlisted in Daytona Beach
How much does a Military Enlisted make in Daytona Beach, FL?
The estimated median salary for a Military Enlisted in Daytona Beach is $39,404/year, scaled from the BLS OEWS Florida state median ($42,100) by Daytona Beach's composite cost-of-living index of 97 (US = 100). After federal, Florida state, and FICA taxes, take-home is approximately $33,790/year or $2,816/month.
Can a Military Enlisted afford to live in Daytona Beach?
On $2,816/month take-home, the 30% rent rule affords $845/month. Daytona Beach's Zillow ZORI median rent is $1,350/mo, HUD's 2BR Fair Market Rent is $1,250/mo. The rent-to-income ratio works out to 41.1%, making housing cost-burdened for a Military Enlisted at the local median. Home-buyers face 7.5× price-to-income, needing roughly 7.5 years to save a 20% down payment at a 20% savings rate.
How much tax does a Military Enlisted pay in Daytona Beach?
On $39,404 gross, a Military Enlisted in Daytona Beach pays approximately $2,600 in federal income tax (6.6% effective), $0 in state income tax (Florida has no state individual income tax), and $3,014 in FICA (Social Security + Medicare). Total effective rate: 14.2%. Some Florida cities levy local income taxes in addition; check your municipal DoR before filing.
How does Daytona Beach rank for Military Enlisted salaries vs other cities?
Daytona Beach ranks #147 out of 283 tracked metros for nominal Military Enlisted salary, #182 for rent affordability (rent-to-income), and #134 for purchasing power (salary ÷ COL). The high-purchasing-power cities tend to be mid-size metros with strong local employers and moderate housing costs; the low-ranked cities trade high nominal pay for steep rents.
What is the cost-of-living breakdown for a Military Enlisted in Daytona Beach?
On $33,790 take-home, a reasonable baseline budget for Daytona Beach looks like: housing $16,200/yr (47.9%); food $3,982/yr; transportation $3,338/yr; healthcare $2,344/yr; utilities $1,664/yr; savings + discretionary $6,262/yr. Numbers use BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey shares scaled to Daytona Beach's COL index of 97 and the city's actual median rent.
What's the Military Enlisted job market like in Daytona Beach?
Daytona Beach's unemployment rate is 3.7% across the metro of 630,000. Estimated annual Military Enlisted openings: ~364 (extrapolated from 1,290,000 nationally employed and the metro's population share). The tight labor market favors candidates in salary negotiations.
Do Daytona Beach employers pay above or below the Florida median for Military Enlisteds?
Not consistently — Daytona Beach's estimated Military Enlisted median of $39,404 is 3.9% below the national median. The trade-off is usually lower rents and (in some cases) lower state taxes, which can leave real purchasing power competitive.
Methodology — How we compute this page
Wage estimate. The Daytona Beach median is derived from the Florida state-level BLS OEWS median ($42,100), scaled by Daytona Beach's composite cost-of-living index of 97. When BLS publishes a direct MSA-level wage for the occupation, that takes priority over the scaled state median. Percentile bands inherit the same scale factor.
Housing + rent. Median home value uses Zillow ZHVI; median rent prefers Zillow ZORI and falls back to Census ACS median gross rent. HUD Fair Market Rents (50th-percentile 2BR) are shown where HUD publishes the metro. Price-to-income and rent-to-income ratios use the estimated Military Enlistedmedian (not the city's overall median household income) — to reflect the specific role-vs-city affordability picture.
Tax math. Federal tax uses 2025 IRS brackets and the $15,000 single standard deduction. FICA is Social Security 6.2% up to the $176,100 wage base + Medicare 1.45% (+ 0.9% Additional Medicare above $200,000). State tax uses Florida's 2026 brackets from the state DoR (mirrored via Tax Foundation where the DoR's publication is paywalled or split). Local income taxes (e.g. NYC, Portland-OR supplemental, OH municipal) are NOT included — check your municipal authority for specifics.
Cost of living. The 97index is the composite used by CalcFi's /data/cities.ts, which merges Census ACS, BLS CPI shelter, Zillow ZORI, and commercial COL estimators. The COL-adjusted salary on this page assumes the statewide RPP = 103.6(BEA) approximates the state's purchasing power; cities are then scaled relative to that.
Refresh cadence. BLS OEWS releases annually (typically March); BEA RPP releases annually in December; IRS brackets adjust in October; Zillow ZHVI/ZORI updates monthly; HUD FMR publishes annually in August for the upcoming fiscal year. The dateModified shown above auto-bumps to the most recent retrievedAt on any sourced value the page consumes.
Known limits. Metro-level OEWS coverage is partial — only ~50 large MSAs have separately published occupation wages; the rest inherit state-level estimates scaled by COL. Rent and home data may trail the real-time market by 1–3 months (Zillow) or 8–12 months (ACS). Rankings are capped to the city set in our dataset (283 metros), not every incorporated US city.
Sources
Every number on this page cites a primary public dataset. Last reviewed (auto-bumped on the next ISR refresh after an ETL run).
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) — state-level occupational wages — www.bls.gov/oes. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- BLS Employment Projections — 2024–34 occupational growth rates — www.bls.gov/emp. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics — metro-level unemployment rate — www.bls.gov/lau. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities (state + metro) — www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- Zillow Research — ZHVI (home value index) + ZORI (observed rent index) — www.zillow.com/research/data. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- HUD Fair Market Rents — 50th-percentile 2-bedroom FY — www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, metro level — www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- Internal Revenue Service — Federal individual income tax brackets and standard deductions — www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-publication-17. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- Social Security Administration — OASDI / Medicare contribution and wage-base rules — www.ssa.gov. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
- Florida Department of Revenue — 2026 individual income tax brackets (accessed via Tax Foundation mirror) — taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/state-income-tax-rates. Retrieved 2026-06-14.
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