Do you or could you live on your own w/ CNA pay?

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I know it would depend on your location, but does your CNA job pay enough for you to live on your own? I am almost finished with my CNA class and was just wondering if you can live off the pay as a CNA. Im in CA btw.

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

Not for me. I get payed fairly decent for a CNA but it would not be enough to cover rent and all my other bills. I rely on my husband and I's income combined to pay rent, bills etc.

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Depends on several factors. Where you live, the place you are working, if you are full time, and whether you have kids.

My first CNA job paid 12.35 an hour and I got 36 hours a week typically. It was enough to get by, but I would occasionally work 48 hours in a week to pad my check, although 48 hours doing CNA work is brutal on the body and the mind.

Many CNA jobs pay far less. I think CA lies on the low side of the pay spectrum over all, and once immigration "reform" passes, I suspect the pay and job situation there will get substantially worse as the market is flooded with newly legalized "immigrants".

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We are simply using my pay check as a second income. We could not live completly on just the one cna job. Though I have heard some having a cna job and working per dem somewhere else. Its hard to live and pay all your bills and have the ends meet sometimes. Especially when you look at just what food and gas costs us now days.

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I used to make $16 an hour working part time and if I were full time I could have made enough to pay rent, car insurance and take care of my son and I.

My cousin makes $21 an hour doing pool and she makes enough to pay her rent, car, and other bills and take care of her 3 children however, she works crazy doubles and 16 hour shifts to afford her expensive lifestyle.

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I live in CA and was able to live by myself with my pay. Working in the registry for various hospitals, I made about $17 an hour. It is doable, but there were a lot of times I had to work extra shifts to cover my bills. Most of my cases were sitter cases, though. Depending on the sitter case that could be easier or more tough than taking care of more.

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Specializes in ICU.

I never did, but I could have. I worked a different job at the same pay rate for a few years ($10/hr) and I could more or less support myself. I say that because I was still on my parents' health insurance plan at the time. I wouldn't have been able to afford my own health insurance, but other than that I did well enough.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg, Psych, Geri, LTC, Tele,.

I could not live on CNA pay. I'm in CA, and am a newer CNA (less than 1 yr last time I applied for jobs) my job offers were 9-11.50 per hour. This is what motivated me to enter an LVN program, from which ill graduate from, having had my CNA for less than 2 yrs.

At this point, since I live in low income housing, with rent around 700 and get child support, I think I could make it work (I receive food stamps and medi-cal).

But because I just couldn't see how to live on those wages, I detoured my RN goals to get my LVN to prayerfully be able to supports myself and my kids while completing my educational goals.

HTH!

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Not when I worked 24 hours a patient care tech. As a unit clerk/paramedic, I can manage it but I choose not to. My boyfriend pays a lot because he makes about 80,000 a year whereas I make about 25,000 a year.

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Yes. I was a single mom with 4 kids and we lived off of my money without child support.

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