Best Cities for Astronomerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where astronomerss 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	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.08	$156,750	$138,963	15%
2	ArizonaState	0.99	$129,020	$127,869	14%
3	VirginiaState	0.97	$128,930	$124,570	15%
4	MarylandState	0.94	$132,620	$121,447	15%
5	CaliforniaState	0.87	$123,540	$111,599	22%
6	HawaiiState	0.72	$102,000	$92,727	28%

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