Best Cities for Air Traffic Controllerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where air traffic controllerss get the most value from their salary after accounting for cost of living. A score above 1.00 means better than national average.

How we calculate this: City Score = (Local Salary ÷ National Median) ÷ (Local Cost ÷ National Avg Cost). A score of 1.20 means 20% better purchasing power than average.

#	Location	Score	Raw Salary	Adjusted Salary	Rent/Income
1	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.32	$178,310	$195,515	8%
2	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.30	$186,640	$192,810	10%
3	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.30	$186,510	$191,883	10%
4	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.30	$198,590	$191,874	10%
5	GeorgiaState	1.29	$178,420	$191,028	10%
6	IllinoisState	1.26	$181,560	$186,407	9%
7	VirginiaState	1.25	$191,820	$185,333	10%
8	MinnesotaState	1.22	$176,840	$180,449	9%
9	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.22	$179,670	$180,573	10%
10	KansasState	1.20	$159,700	$177,444	8%
11	TexasState	1.20	$170,080	$177,908	10%
12	IndianaState	1.19	$158,810	$175,481	8%
13	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.18	$161,700	$174,246	10%
14	TennesseeState	1.16	$157,330	$171,945	10%
15	ColoradoState	1.14	$177,380	$168,292	12%
16	New MexicoState	1.09	$148,550	$161,467	8%
17	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.09	$155,540	$161,684	12%
18	UtahState	1.07	$158,310	$157,994	11%
19	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.05	$174,870	$155,027	14%
20	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.04	$175,280	$153,351	15%
21	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.03	$150,700	$152,995	14%
22	WashingtonState	1.02	$162,570	$151,510	14%
23	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.01	$162,140	$149,438	15%
24	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.00	$173,020	$148,515	16%
25	CaliforniaState	0.98	$160,080	$144,607	17%
26	FloridaState	0.98	$147,530	$145,350	14%
27	KentuckyState	0.98	$127,800	$144,407	9%
28	HawaiiState	0.97	$158,700	$144,273	18%
29	NevadaState	0.95	$140,920	$140,639	12%
30	OklahomaState	0.94	$123,220	$139,232	9%
31	MissouriState	0.93	$122,200	$137,923	10%
32	ArizonaState	0.92	$136,800	$135,580	13%
33	North CarolinaState	0.92	$129,230	$136,896	12%
34	PennsylvaniaState	0.92	$132,350	$136,443	12%
35	AlabamaState	0.89	$114,960	$131,986	10%
36	ConnecticutState	0.88	$140,940	$130,985	13%
37	MichiganState	0.87	$118,930	$128,852	11%
38	New YorkState	0.87	$144,960	$128,853	15%
39	ArkansasState	0.86	$109,760	$127,184	10%
40	Rhode IslandState	0.85	$126,300	$125,672	14%
41	NebraskaState	0.82	$111,710	$122,087	11%
42	New JerseyState	0.82	$132,230	$121,535	16%
43	South CarolinaState	0.82	$112,030	$121,772	13%
44	MarylandState	0.81	$131,290	$120,229	15%
45	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.81	$135,720	$119,577	23%
46	AlaskaState	0.80	$123,950	$118,840	13%
47	North DakotaState	0.79	$107,990	$116,620	11%
48	MassachusettsState	0.78	$125,060	$115,263	22%
49	LouisianaState	0.75	$99,810	$110,777	13%
50	MaineState	0.73	$107,270	$107,485	14%
51	VermontState	0.72	$109,140	$106,478	16%
52	MontanaState	0.71	$101,380	$105,166	13%
53	MississippiState	0.70	$88,110	$103,903	12%
54	IowaState	0.69	$90,790	$101,783	13%
55	WyomingState	0.68	$93,580	$100,624	13%
56	District of ColumbiaState	0.28	$47,760	$41,785	53%

Data Sources: Salary: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS). Cost of Living: BEA Regional Price Parities (2024). Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2025).