Best Cities for Bartenderss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where bartenderss 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	HawaiiState	2.02	$76,490	$69,536	37%
2	New YorkState	1.58	$61,210	$54,409	36%
3	WashingtonState	1.52	$55,830	$52,032	41%
4	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.48	$58,180	$50,901	45%
5	MaineState	1.43	$48,920	$49,018	32%
6	District of ColumbiaState	1.37	$53,920	$47,174	47%
7	VirginiaState	1.32	$47,070	$45,478	40%
8	ArizonaState	1.30	$45,070	$44,668	40%
9	VermontState	1.29	$45,450	$44,341	38%
10	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.24	$48,030	$42,580	50%
11	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.23	$45,590	$42,291	47%
12	New JerseyState	1.18	$44,020	$40,460	49%
13	New MexicoState	1.17	$36,980	$40,196	34%
14	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.17	$36,780	$40,329	40%
15	MichiganState	1.16	$36,780	$39,848	36%
16	Columbus, OHMetro	1.15	$37,000	$39,572	42%
17	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.14	$37,390	$39,029	48%
18	North CarolinaState	1.13	$36,470	$38,633	43%
19	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.11	$37,460	$38,030	55%
20	OregonState	1.10	$38,900	$37,767	49%
21	DelawareState	1.06	$36,840	$36,475	44%
22	Rhode IslandState	1.06	$36,410	$36,229	50%
23	ColoradoState	1.05	$38,170	$36,214	58%
24	ConnecticutState	1.05	$38,780	$36,041	49%
25	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.03	$37,360	$35,312	54%
26	West VirginiaState	1.02	$29,630	$35,190	34%
27	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.02	$42,270	$35,166	89%
28	FloridaState	1.01	$35,150	$34,631	59%
29	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.01	$36,040	$34,821	53%
30	MarylandState	1.00	$37,580	$34,414	54%
31	MassachusettsState	1.00	$37,440	$34,507	72%
32	MissouriState	0.99	$30,090	$33,962	41%
33	OhioState	0.99	$30,880	$34,159	41%
34	MississippiState	0.97	$28,320	$33,396	38%
35	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.97	$37,760	$33,269	81%
36	NebraskaState	0.96	$30,180	$32,984	42%
37	CaliforniaState	0.95	$36,220	$32,719	75%
38	KentuckyState	0.95	$28,780	$32,520	40%
39	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.95	$30,300	$32,651	51%
40	AlabamaState	0.94	$27,980	$32,124	41%
41	South DakotaState	0.94	$29,400	$32,379	39%
42	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.94	$29,750	$32,162	48%
43	IllinoisState	0.93	$31,200	$32,033	50%
44	UtahState	0.93	$32,150	$32,086	56%
45	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.93	$34,700	$31,982	71%
46	North DakotaState	0.91	$29,040	$31,361	40%
47	KansasState	0.90	$27,940	$31,044	44%
48	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.89	$35,510	$30,481	77%
49	TennesseeState	0.87	$27,480	$30,033	55%
50	AlaskaState	0.85	$30,460	$29,204	54%
51	ArkansasState	0.85	$25,090	$29,073	42%
52	PennsylvaniaState	0.85	$28,420	$29,299	55%
53	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.85	$28,190	$29,304	66%
54	IdahoState	0.82	$27,240	$28,228	53%
55	OklahomaState	0.82	$24,790	$28,011	47%
56	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.81	$27,600	$27,739	64%
57	MinnesotaState	0.80	$26,900	$27,449	57%
58	NevadaState	0.80	$27,460	$27,405	63%
59	MontanaState	0.79	$26,010	$26,981	52%
60	New HampshireState	0.79	$28,800	$27,170	66%
61	WisconsinState	0.74	$23,460	$25,417	55%
62	IndianaState	0.73	$22,770	$25,160	56%
63	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.72	$24,170	$24,866	79%
64	GeorgiaState	0.71	$22,830	$24,443	74%
65	IowaState	0.71	$21,720	$24,350	53%
66	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.70	$23,350	$24,122	83%
67	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.70	$21,980	$23,891	71%
68	TexasState	0.69	$22,690	$23,734	73%
69	WyomingState	0.69	$22,030	$23,688	54%
70	LouisianaState	0.67	$20,850	$23,141	60%
71	South CarolinaState	0.61	$19,370	$21,054	78%

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