Best Cities for Architecture Teachers, Postsecondarys

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where architecture teachers, postsecondarys 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	ConnecticutState	1.18	$122,880	$114,201	15%
2	New YorkState	1.16	$126,430	$112,382	18%
3	MichiganState	1.13	$100,700	$109,101	13%
4	IllinoisState	1.11	$104,580	$107,372	15%
5	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.11	$121,660	$107,189	25%
6	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.10	$103,210	$106,622	19%
7	TexasState	1.09	$101,040	$105,690	16%
8	PennsylvaniaState	1.08	$101,740	$104,887	15%
9	VirginiaState	1.06	$105,940	$102,357	18%
10	UtahState	1.05	$102,180	$101,976	18%
11	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.05	$105,770	$102,193	18%
12	MinnesotaState	1.01	$95,560	$97,510	16%
13	KansasState	0.99	$85,970	$95,522	14%
14	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.99	$95,560	$96,040	19%
15	MassachusettsState	0.98	$102,920	$94,857	26%
16	CaliforniaState	0.97	$103,520	$93,514	26%
17	MarylandState	0.97	$102,240	$93,626	20%
18	AlabamaState	0.96	$80,770	$92,732	14%
19	IndianaState	0.96	$84,040	$92,862	15%
20	LouisianaState	0.95	$83,000	$92,120	15%
21	MississippiState	0.95	$77,930	$91,899	14%
22	North CarolinaState	0.95	$86,850	$92,002	18%
23	OklahomaState	0.95	$81,800	$92,429	14%
24	Rhode IslandState	0.95	$92,010	$91,552	20%
25	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.95	$88,490	$92,370	20%
26	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.94	$103,830	$90,840	25%
27	IowaState	0.92	$79,100	$88,677	14%
28	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.92	$100,560	$89,149	24%
29	OhioState	0.91	$79,520	$87,965	16%
30	TennesseeState	0.89	$79,170	$86,525	19%
31	WisconsinState	0.89	$79,980	$86,652	16%
32	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.89	$84,000	$86,420	23%
33	NebraskaState	0.87	$77,540	$84,743	16%
34	South CarolinaState	0.86	$76,900	$83,587	20%
35	MontanaState	0.83	$77,630	$80,529	17%
36	OregonState	0.81	$80,640	$78,291	24%
37	FloridaState	0.80	$78,960	$77,793	26%
38	ColoradoState	0.79	$80,530	$76,404	28%
39	New JerseyState	0.79	$83,620	$76,857	26%
40	WashingtonState	0.79	$81,950	$76,375	28%
41	New MexicoState	0.78	$69,820	$75,891	18%
42	District of ColumbiaState	0.77	$84,950	$74,322	30%
43	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.76	$79,650	$73,887	27%
44	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.75	$78,960	$72,774	31%
45	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.70	$79,100	$67,897	34%

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