Best Cities for Anthropologists and Archeologistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where anthropologists and archeologistss 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	MassachusettsState	1.58	$121,300	$111,797	22%
2	NebraskaState	1.46	$94,520	$103,301	13%
3	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.46	$117,080	$103,154	26%
4	IdahoState	1.30	$88,710	$91,927	16%
5	AlabamaState	1.23	$75,690	$86,900	15%
6	AlaskaState	1.22	$89,810	$86,107	18%
7	ConnecticutState	1.20	$91,420	$84,963	21%
8	OregonState	1.17	$84,970	$82,495	22%
9	MontanaState	1.16	$79,420	$82,386	17%
10	PennsylvaniaState	1.16	$79,660	$82,124	20%
11	WyomingState	1.16	$76,400	$82,151	15%
12	KentuckyState	1.15	$72,230	$81,616	16%
13	OklahomaState	1.15	$71,740	$81,062	16%
14	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.12	$85,160	$78,998	25%
15	VirginiaState	1.10	$80,230	$77,517	24%
16	HawaiiState	1.09	$84,530	$76,845	34%
17	North CarolinaState	1.09	$73,130	$77,468	21%
18	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.09	$79,780	$77,082	24%
19	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.09	$87,400	$77,482	27%
20	IowaState	1.07	$67,270	$75,415	17%
21	MissouriState	1.07	$66,930	$75,542	19%
22	New MexicoState	1.05	$68,180	$74,109	18%
23	UtahState	1.04	$73,920	$73,772	24%
24	ArkansasState	1.02	$62,160	$72,028	17%
25	IndianaState	1.00	$63,730	$70,420	20%
26	TexasState	1.00	$67,700	$70,816	25%
27	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.00	$64,860	$71,118	23%
28	MichiganState	0.99	$64,700	$70,098	21%
29	South DakotaState	0.98	$63,130	$69,526	18%
30	WashingtonState	0.98	$74,790	$69,702	30%
31	North DakotaState	0.97	$63,830	$68,931	18%
32	South CarolinaState	0.97	$63,130	$68,620	24%
33	WisconsinState	0.97	$63,130	$68,397	21%
34	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.96	$62,330	$67,750	25%
35	MinnesotaState	0.95	$65,920	$67,265	23%
36	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.94	$65,920	$66,251	27%
37	TennesseeState	0.93	$60,310	$65,913	25%
38	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.93	$60,690	$65,611	23%
39	CaliforniaState	0.92	$72,240	$65,257	38%
40	ColoradoState	0.92	$68,620	$65,104	32%
41	OhioState	0.92	$59,160	$65,442	21%
42	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.92	$74,630	$65,293	35%
43	ArizonaState	0.91	$65,290	$64,708	28%
44	NevadaState	0.91	$64,390	$64,261	27%
45	West VirginiaState	0.91	$54,340	$64,537	19%
46	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.90	$62,000	$63,786	31%
47	GeorgiaState	0.89	$58,990	$63,158	29%
48	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.89	$60,780	$63,181	31%
49	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	0.89	$76,010	$63,236	50%
50	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.87	$59,330	$61,291	33%
51	IllinoisState	0.86	$59,560	$61,150	26%
52	New JerseyState	0.86	$66,230	$60,873	33%
53	New YorkState	0.84	$67,220	$59,751	33%
54	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.84	$58,500	$59,391	35%
55	FloridaState	0.83	$59,270	$58,394	35%
56	New HampshireState	0.82	$61,160	$57,698	31%
57	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.79	$65,240	$56,000	42%
58	LouisianaState	0.75	$47,750	$52,997	26%
59	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.72	$55,370	$51,032	44%
60	MarylandState	0.70	$54,160	$49,597	37%
61	KansasState	0.66	$41,870	$46,522	30%

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