The show New Girl is one of the few series that actually tries to present its characters at work, explaining how they could possibly afford that giant California loft. From Schmidt in his office, Jess in her classroom to Nick at the bar, everyone gets a storyline revolving around the way they earn a living.
The characters of New Girl make much more than the national average salary for most Americans, however, the cost of living in Los Angeles is a lot more than other areas of the country. Throughout the course of the show they get promoted, demoted, fired, and everything in between, showcasing true career realities in an otherwise fictional world. Please note, all numbers reflect the time in which the article was written.
Nick Miller – Bartender/Writer
Law school drop-out Nick Miller began the series as a bartender, struggling the most out of his loft mates to pay rent on time and contribute to any and all expenses.
Bartenders in the Los Angeles area, where New Girl takes places typically make around $42, 217/yr, not including tips from those they serve. Later on in the series, Nick pursues his dream of becoming a writer with the publication of his book, The Pepperwood Chronicles. As an author in LA, he’d make around $75,400/yr, which is still significantly less than his friends.
Cece Parekh – Model
Cece immediately catches the eye of Schmidt as Jess’s model best friend. Over the course of the series, she holds many different jobs, such as a part-time bartender and eventual owner of her own agency.
Before marrying Schmidt, Cece lives in an apartment with her fellow models. The average income for a Los Angeles-based model is around $58, 257/yr, making her job the second-lowest paying one of the group. When she starts her own business, however, her yearly wages are around $109,485/yr, allowing for Schmidt to be a stay-at-home dad to their daughter Ruth.
Coach – Personal Trainer
When Coach returns to the show in Season 3, he becomes just that — a coach. Previously a skilled athlete, Coach knows the ins and outs of fitness.
A personal trainer in LA makes about $69,465/yr, putting him on the lower job paying scale in comparison to the other characters on the show. However, Coach’s personality (and nickname) embody that of a teacher, trainer, and leader which makes his job a perfect fit, no matter the monetary value.
Robby McFerrin – Factory Designer
Cece’s boyfriend turned Jess’s boyfriend turned Jess’s third cousin Robby is presented as extremely well-off in his introduction. Schmidt quickly realizes that he can’t intimidate Robby because Robby is happy and successful and mostly unbothered.
Robby’s job is stated to be someone who designs factories. He is an industrial designer who would make around $70,410/yr in LA. This allows him to afford his boat, nice home, and the gardener who also works for Vin Diesel.
Winston Bishop & Aly Nelson – Detectives for LAPD
Winston has plenty of odd jobs throughout seven seasons of New Girl. He was a basketball player, babysitter, radio show host, and finally ended up becoming a detective for the Los Angeles Police Department.
Aly Nelson was Winston’s partner in the LAPD and became his wife and the woman he had children with. They would both average around $80,053/yr as detectives, which is definitely a good thing for people who want a family.
Reagan Lucas – Pharmaceutical Salesperson
Reagan temporarily replaced Jess as a loft mate and Nick’s love interest in Season 5 of the series while the original ‘new girl’ was away at jury duty.
Reagan’s demeanor is strong-willed, persuasive, and direct. Her career as a Pharmaceutical Salesperson is a great fit, given her nature. She would bring home about $91,857/yr, thankfully enough for her to move out after Jess returns back to her room in the loft.
Jessica Day – Teacher/Principal
Jess Day loved her role as a teacher, except for when she faced off with students who didn’t quite see eye-to-eye with her way of doing things.
As a teacher in LA, Jess would on average make $66,699/yr, more than most other teachers around the country. She suffers to help the loft at one point after getting terminated, but is re-hired as a college creative writing teacher, a vice-principal, and ends the series as a principal, making $121,900/yr, nearly double what she made as a sixth-grade teacher.
Schmidt – Head of Marketing
Part of the fun of Schmidt’s character is that fans never quite get to know exactly what it is that he does for work. Viewers know he works with mostly female colleagues, and that he makes enough to support his friends/loft mates in their times of need.
Schmidt likely works in a powerful position at a large corporation. He is shown to do some marketing strategy work. A marketing head/professional makes around $121,995/yr in LA. Couple that with Schmidt’s fastidious tidiness and desire to be in control, and it’s safe to assume he also saved quite a bit of money along the way.
Ryan Geauxinue – Headmaster
Originally a middle school teacher alongside Jess, Ryan goes from teacher salary to fancy headmaster by the end of his time his relationship with Ms. Day, and his run on New Girl.
His promotion results in an increase of salary. Although his job as a headmaster is similar to that of Jess’s eventual principal position, headmasters at prestigious academies make a little more, coming in at about $123,500/yr.
Sam Sweeney – Pediatrician
Jess’s second serious relationship post-Spencer in the show is with Sam Sweeney. Their relationships begins as merely a hookup until they start to develop true feelings for each other and decide to give one another a chance.
As a pediatrician in LA, Sam would bring home around $200,587/yr, giving him the biggest salary of the characters on the show. Of course, his money is never what draws Jess to him, it’s his goofy smile and love for his patients.
