Best Cities for Broadcast Technicianss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where broadcast technicianss 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	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.67	$103,180	$99,691	19%
2	District of ColumbiaState	1.59	$108,270	$94,724	23%
3	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.47	$81,030	$87,600	17%
4	PennsylvaniaState	1.39	$80,470	$82,959	19%
5	New HampshireState	1.29	$81,150	$76,557	23%
6	IllinoisState	1.28	$74,210	$76,191	21%
7	ArizonaState	1.22	$73,040	$72,389	25%
8	NevadaState	1.22	$73,070	$72,924	24%
9	ColoradoState	1.18	$74,040	$70,247	30%
10	New YorkState	1.18	$78,840	$70,080	28%
11	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.15	$74,490	$68,654	33%
12	WisconsinState	1.13	$62,400	$67,606	21%
13	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.12	$75,010	$66,498	32%
14	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.11	$69,910	$66,078	29%
15	CaliforniaState	1.10	$72,800	$65,763	37%
16	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.10	$63,500	$65,329	30%
17	FloridaState	1.07	$64,950	$63,990	32%
18	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.06	$57,600	$63,158	25%
19	MarylandState	0.98	$64,030	$58,636	31%
20	WashingtonState	0.97	$62,070	$57,847	37%
21	Columbus, OHMetro	0.97	$54,290	$58,064	29%
22	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.97	$53,500	$57,651	29%
23	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.97	$57,610	$57,899	31%
24	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.96	$65,300	$57,130	40%
25	VirginiaState	0.94	$57,940	$55,981	33%
26	MaineState	0.93	$55,110	$55,220	28%
27	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.93	$53,170	$55,501	34%
28	ConnecticutState	0.92	$58,930	$54,768	32%
29	AlabamaState	0.91	$47,290	$54,294	24%
30	New MexicoState	0.91	$49,990	$54,337	25%
31	OhioState	0.90	$48,720	$53,894	26%
32	IowaState	0.88	$46,820	$52,489	24%
33	MichiganState	0.87	$47,730	$51,712	28%
34	North DakotaState	0.87	$48,090	$51,933	24%
35	TennesseeState	0.87	$47,340	$51,738	32%
36	TexasState	0.87	$49,440	$51,715	34%
37	South CarolinaState	0.86	$46,860	$50,935	32%
38	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.86	$49,420	$51,054	39%
39	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.86	$50,540	$51,310	41%
40	GeorgiaState	0.85	$47,340	$50,685	36%
41	North CarolinaState	0.85	$47,780	$50,614	33%
42	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.85	$46,480	$50,522	34%
43	OklahomaState	0.84	$44,530	$50,316	26%
44	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.84	$53,650	$49,768	40%
45	LouisianaState	0.83	$44,440	$49,323	28%
46	Rhode IslandState	0.83	$49,580	$49,333	36%
47	IndianaState	0.82	$44,400	$49,061	28%
48	ArkansasState	0.81	$41,870	$48,517	25%
49	MontanaState	0.81	$46,600	$48,340	29%
50	MinnesotaState	0.80	$46,790	$47,745	33%
51	NebraskaState	0.80	$43,680	$47,738	29%
52	MissouriState	0.79	$41,600	$46,953	30%
53	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.79	$45,020	$46,798	41%
54	IdahoState	0.78	$44,730	$46,352	32%
55	KansasState	0.78	$41,600	$46,222	30%
56	KentuckyState	0.76	$40,240	$45,469	29%
57	HawaiiState	0.75	$49,200	$44,727	58%
58	MassachusettsState	0.73	$47,260	$43,558	57%
59	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.73	$49,590	$43,692	62%
60	OregonState	0.72	$44,420	$43,126	43%
61	WyomingState	0.71	$39,380	$42,344	30%
62	South DakotaState	0.59	$32,150	$35,407	36%
63	MississippiState	0.55	$27,750	$32,724	39%
64	West VirginiaState	0.54	$27,310	$32,435	37%
65	UtahState	0.53	$31,490	$31,427	57%

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