Best Cities for Bill and Account Collectorss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where bill and account collectorss 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	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.37	$77,360	$64,359	49%
2	AlaskaState	1.24	$60,810	$58,303	27%
3	VermontState	1.20	$57,630	$56,224	30%
4	MassachusettsState	1.17	$59,800	$55,115	45%
5	District of ColumbiaState	1.16	$62,230	$54,444	41%
6	KentuckyState	1.16	$48,330	$54,610	24%
7	ConnecticutState	1.14	$57,930	$53,838	32%
8	WisconsinState	1.13	$49,090	$53,185	27%
9	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.13	$48,580	$53,268	30%
10	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.12	$59,800	$52,687	51%
11	CaliforniaState	1.11	$57,930	$52,331	47%
12	West VirginiaState	1.11	$43,960	$52,209	23%
13	IowaState	1.10	$46,000	$51,570	25%
14	Rhode IslandState	1.10	$52,000	$51,741	35%
15	Columbus, OHMetro	1.10	$48,200	$51,551	32%
16	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.10	$47,380	$51,500	33%
17	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.10	$58,110	$51,516	41%
18	MichiganState	1.09	$47,130	$51,062	28%
19	OhioState	1.09	$46,230	$51,139	27%
20	South DakotaState	1.09	$46,620	$51,344	25%
21	KansasState	1.08	$45,760	$50,844	27%
22	MinnesotaState	1.08	$49,580	$50,592	31%
23	New MexicoState	1.08	$46,560	$50,609	27%
24	OklahomaState	1.08	$44,820	$50,644	26%
25	North DakotaState	1.07	$46,660	$50,389	25%
26	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.07	$46,750	$50,377	33%
27	IndianaState	1.06	$45,240	$49,989	28%
28	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.06	$48,350	$49,948	40%
29	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.06	$48,080	$49,979	39%
30	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.06	$46,270	$50,022	31%
31	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.06	$53,620	$49,740	40%
32	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.06	$49,070	$49,817	42%
33	GeorgiaState	1.05	$46,300	$49,572	37%
34	IllinoisState	1.05	$48,140	$49,425	33%
35	OregonState	1.05	$50,880	$49,398	38%
36	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.05	$47,790	$49,167	40%
37	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.05	$57,440	$49,305	47%
38	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.05	$49,160	$49,407	36%
39	HawaiiState	1.04	$53,570	$48,700	53%
40	MaineState	1.04	$48,890	$48,988	32%
41	NevadaState	1.03	$48,750	$48,653	36%
42	New JerseyState	1.03	$52,510	$48,263	41%
43	PennsylvaniaState	1.02	$46,660	$48,103	33%
44	TexasState	1.02	$45,710	$47,814	36%
45	ArizonaState	1.01	$47,740	$47,314	38%
46	ColoradoState	1.01	$50,090	$47,524	44%
47	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.01	$49,110	$47,449	39%
48	MissouriState	1.00	$41,760	$47,133	30%
49	MontanaState	1.00	$45,420	$47,116	30%
50	NebraskaState	1.00	$43,210	$47,224	29%
51	South CarolinaState	1.00	$43,140	$46,891	35%
52	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.00	$49,970	$47,231	40%
53	AlabamaState	0.98	$40,330	$46,303	29%
54	DelawareState	0.98	$46,680	$46,218	35%
55	FloridaState	0.97	$46,410	$45,724	44%
56	MarylandState	0.97	$50,010	$45,797	40%
57	North CarolinaState	0.97	$42,910	$45,456	36%
58	ArkansasState	0.96	$39,110	$45,319	27%
59	UtahState	0.96	$45,240	$45,150	40%
60	WashingtonState	0.96	$48,460	$45,163	47%
61	WyomingState	0.96	$42,110	$45,280	28%
62	TennesseeState	0.95	$40,920	$44,721	37%
63	MississippiState	0.94	$37,680	$44,434	29%
64	IdahoState	0.92	$41,880	$43,399	34%
65	LouisianaState	0.92	$39,130	$43,430	32%
66	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.92	$46,870	$43,198	52%
67	VirginiaState	0.90	$43,770	$42,290	43%
68	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.90	$48,460	$42,397	54%
69	New HampshireState	0.89	$44,450	$41,934	43%
70	New YorkState	0.89	$47,170	$41,929	47%
71	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.89	$40,040	$41,795	45%

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