Best Cities for Compensation and Benefits Managerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where compensation and benefits managerss 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	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.27	$216,580	$189,484	12%
2	WashingtonState	1.24	$199,190	$185,638	11%
3	ConnecticutState	1.23	$197,970	$183,987	10%
4	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.20	$215,180	$179,018	18%
5	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.19	$162,490	$178,169	9%
6	GeorgiaState	1.17	$163,060	$174,582	10%
7	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.17	$167,450	$174,791	11%
8	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.15	$166,100	$171,591	12%
9	MassachusettsState	1.14	$184,070	$169,650	15%
10	MinnesotaState	1.12	$163,390	$166,724	9%
11	DelawareState	1.10	$166,070	$164,426	10%
12	MichiganState	1.10	$151,620	$164,269	9%
13	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.10	$185,590	$163,515	17%
14	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.10	$163,390	$164,211	11%
15	ColoradoState	1.05	$165,770	$157,277	13%
16	New YorkState	1.05	$175,620	$156,107	13%
17	OhioState	1.05	$141,920	$156,991	9%
18	OregonState	1.05	$161,470	$156,767	12%
19	Columbus, OHMetro	1.05	$147,100	$157,326	11%
20	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.05	$145,340	$157,124	10%
21	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.05	$168,540	$156,345	13%
22	IllinoisState	1.04	$151,730	$155,780	10%
23	New JerseyState	1.04	$168,370	$154,752	13%
24	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.02	$171,950	$152,438	14%
25	CaliforniaState	1.01	$166,730	$150,614	16%
26	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.01	$145,930	$150,134	13%
27	Rhode IslandState	1.00	$149,340	$148,597	12%
28	VirginiaState	0.99	$153,660	$148,464	12%
29	TennesseeState	0.97	$132,780	$145,115	11%
30	North CarolinaState	0.96	$135,240	$143,263	12%
31	PennsylvaniaState	0.96	$139,040	$143,340	11%
32	TexasState	0.96	$136,930	$143,232	12%
33	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.96	$148,520	$143,498	13%
34	District of ColumbiaState	0.94	$160,990	$140,849	16%
35	WisconsinState	0.93	$127,920	$138,592	10%
36	AlabamaState	0.91	$118,470	$136,016	10%
37	New MexicoState	0.91	$124,390	$135,207	10%
38	IowaState	0.89	$118,250	$132,567	10%
39	NebraskaState	0.89	$121,630	$132,929	10%
40	UtahState	0.89	$132,620	$132,355	14%
41	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.89	$155,380	$133,373	17%
42	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.89	$122,630	$133,293	13%
43	IndianaState	0.88	$118,180	$130,586	11%
44	KentuckyState	0.87	$114,290	$129,141	10%
45	MaineState	0.87	$129,690	$129,950	12%
46	New HampshireState	0.87	$136,950	$129,198	14%
47	ArizonaState	0.86	$129,890	$128,731	14%
48	MarylandState	0.86	$139,860	$128,077	14%
49	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.86	$123,540	$128,420	15%
50	KansasState	0.85	$114,070	$126,744	11%
51	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.85	$124,430	$126,325	17%
52	FloridaState	0.84	$127,960	$126,069	16%
53	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.83	$115,200	$124,138	13%
54	OklahomaState	0.82	$107,760	$121,763	11%
55	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.82	$129,800	$122,684	16%
56	MissouriState	0.81	$106,490	$120,192	12%
57	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.81	$131,450	$121,152	19%
58	AlaskaState	0.79	$122,490	$117,440	13%
59	ArkansasState	0.78	$100,810	$116,813	10%
60	NevadaState	0.77	$115,180	$114,950	15%
61	LouisianaState	0.74	$99,840	$110,810	13%
62	South CarolinaState	0.73	$99,630	$108,293	15%
63	MississippiState	0.71	$89,250	$105,248	12%
64	HawaiiState	0.67	$110,120	$100,109	26%
65	IdahoState	0.63	$90,020	$93,285	16%

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