Can you live off of a certified medical assistant salary?

Jm0136 · Mar 13, 2016

If you are single with No children it could be manageable. Many moons ago I worked as a CMA but money was tight. After car note, rent, gas, and food I had barely enough money left to do anything extra. I usually went out to eat once a week and went out with friends once a month. I would probably recommend maybe at least obtaining an LPN license. But you could obtain even more financial independence with the RN degree. The opportunities would also be enormous.

JustBeachyNurse, LPN · Mar 13, 2016

Depends. In my area the pay is $10-12/hr if you can find a job.

Missingyou, CNA · Mar 21, 2016

I manage just fine as a CNA. I don't have any kids to support and I live comfortably on my own. I can't afford any fancy or such things, but I do well on my own with the money I make.

evolvingrn, BSN, RN · Mar 21, 2016

I don't know how they do it, single and young ....sure. But not easily with kids .

LivingLife2017 · Mar 28, 2017

It will be very tight, unless you have a SO with income.

penny reverential, ADN, BSN · Mar 29, 2017

If I worked full-time, I'd be making mid-30s per year (before taxes). I'm not married, don't have kids. I could get by, not living in luxury. If you're deciding what to do and don't want to be an RN, I'd go for an LVN/LPN, if they get jobs in offices like CMAs do. Where I live, they earn more money and frankly have better responsibilities.

LoveJRenee, BSN, RN · Apr 1, 2017

really depends on your lifestyle and the area you live. When I was making 11.50/ hr with 2 small children.. we lived a simple, modest life. I paid for my car in cash, had a reasonable priced apartment and kept a budget. I didn't feel deprived. Today I make a lot more but still live a simple life as a medical assistant. I'm not certified but it's never kept me from getting a job. The money as a medical assistant gets better with time and experience and it helps to get in with a specialist. However I agree with the others... go to school to be a LVN/LPN, it's the same amount of time and it more money plus it may be easier to bridge it to a RN program.

whiteorchid81 · Apr 5, 2017

I worked as an MA for about 13 years. All those years working (from single and no kids to married with kids) I lived paycheck to paycheck. As pp stated it all depends on lifestyle and area where you live. I lived in south cali and now in colorado, both areas have a pretty high cost of living. From what ive seen, the cost of living has always gone up. Expect to see prices for food, utilities, and everything else to go up. So if you're looking for a job that can provide you for more than just paycheck to paycheck then look into LVN/LPN or RN.

Amethya · Apr 6, 2017

It depends how much you can earn as that. Right now I'm a medical aide at a school and I'm paid $14/hr. Where I used to work at a cardiologist, they paid me $12.50/hr.