Salary comparison
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks: Los Angeles vs Madison
Madison, WI pays about 17.6% more for court, municipal, and license clerks on paper — $75,990 vs $64,610. But once you factor in what it costs to live there, Madison comes out ahead by $11,380 a year in real buying power.
Los Angeles, CA
$64,610
$58,820
$74,040
$31.06
100
$64,610/yr
Median adjusted for local cost of living.
Madison, WI
$75,990
$50,400
$75,990
$36.54
100
$75,990/yr
Median adjusted for local cost of living.
What the numbers mean in practice
The headline gap is $11,380 a year (17.6%) in favor of Madison. That is the raw salary difference before any living costs.
Los Angeles runs a cost index of 100 against the national baseline of 100; Madison sits at 100. After adjusting the median for those costs, Madison is the better deal by $11,380 a year — that is what each paycheck actually buys locally.
If you are weighing a move from Los Angeles to Madison for this role, the raise needs to beat 17.6% to come out ahead after living costs. Anything below that and you are earning more on paper but keeping less.
Common questions
Where do court, municipal, and license clerks earn more, Los Angeles or Madison?
Madison pays $75,990 on median — about 17.6% more than Los Angeles ($64,610). Based on BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Which city is the better deal after living costs?
Madison. Once you divide each median by the local cost index, Madison gives you roughly$75,990 of real buying power versus $64,610 in the other city.