Best Cities for Cartographers and Photogrammetristss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where cartographers and photogrammetristss 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	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.35	$101,810	$109,709	15%
2	MinnesotaState	1.25	$99,850	$101,888	15%
3	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.21	$97,820	$98,312	18%
4	OklahomaState	1.20	$86,410	$97,638	13%
5	IowaState	1.16	$84,570	$94,809	14%
6	NevadaState	1.15	$93,560	$93,373	19%
7	CaliforniaState	1.14	$102,780	$92,846	26%
8	WashingtonState	1.10	$96,100	$89,562	24%
9	NebraskaState	1.09	$81,500	$89,071	15%
10	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.08	$100,080	$87,559	26%
11	MissouriState	1.07	$76,950	$86,851	16%
12	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.07	$101,480	$87,107	27%
13	New MexicoState	1.06	$79,200	$86,087	16%
14	North CarolinaState	1.06	$81,080	$85,890	19%
15	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.06	$93,430	$86,670	23%
16	AlaskaState	1.05	$89,170	$85,494	18%
17	OregonState	1.05	$88,240	$85,670	22%
18	Columbus, OHMetro	1.05	$79,560	$85,091	20%
19	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.05	$77,830	$85,340	19%
20	MassachusettsState	1.04	$92,230	$85,005	29%
21	VirginiaState	1.03	$86,660	$83,729	22%
22	IndianaState	1.02	$74,800	$82,652	17%
23	WisconsinState	1.02	$76,760	$83,164	17%
24	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.02	$79,330	$82,808	23%
25	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.02	$90,030	$82,977	27%
26	ColoradoState	1.01	$86,960	$82,505	25%
27	ArizonaState	1.00	$82,260	$81,526	22%
28	MichiganState	1.00	$75,090	$81,354	18%
29	New JerseyState	1.00	$88,480	$81,324	24%
30	KentuckyState	0.99	$71,470	$80,757	16%
31	South DakotaState	0.99	$72,910	$80,297	16%
32	New YorkState	0.98	$89,290	$79,369	25%
33	TennesseeState	0.98	$72,990	$79,770	21%
34	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.98	$90,910	$80,097	34%
35	MaineState	0.97	$78,670	$78,828	20%
36	South CarolinaState	0.97	$72,260	$78,543	21%
37	ConnecticutState	0.96	$84,100	$78,160	22%
38	FloridaState	0.96	$79,650	$78,473	26%
39	OhioState	0.96	$70,990	$78,529	18%
40	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.96	$71,950	$78,207	22%
41	MarylandState	0.95	$84,360	$77,253	24%
42	TexasState	0.95	$73,970	$77,374	22%
43	North DakotaState	0.94	$71,070	$76,749	17%
44	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.94	$86,660	$76,826	28%
45	IdahoState	0.93	$72,930	$75,575	20%
46	PennsylvaniaState	0.93	$73,180	$75,443	21%
47	WyomingState	0.93	$70,590	$75,903	17%
48	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.93	$72,990	$75,873	26%
49	MontanaState	0.92	$72,220	$74,917	19%
50	UtahState	0.92	$75,220	$75,070	24%
51	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.92	$72,400	$74,486	26%
52	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.91	$78,230	$73,941	26%
53	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.91	$76,830	$74,232	25%
54	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.90	$72,140	$73,239	29%
55	New HampshireState	0.84	$72,130	$68,047	26%
56	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.83	$65,190	$67,345	30%
57	GeorgiaState	0.82	$62,630	$67,056	27%
58	LouisianaState	0.82	$59,990	$66,582	21%
59	IllinoisState	0.69	$54,680	$56,140	29%

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