Best Cities for Computer Hardware Engineerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where computer hardware engineerss 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	New MexicoState	1.11	$165,350	$179,728	8%
2	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.08	$209,860	$174,592	18%
3	TexasState	1.06	$163,860	$171,402	10%
4	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.04	$162,870	$167,562	12%
5	CaliforniaState	1.03	$185,180	$167,281	15%
6	AlabamaState	0.97	$136,990	$157,279	8%
7	ArizonaState	0.97	$158,280	$156,868	11%
8	WashingtonState	0.97	$169,120	$157,614	13%
9	MassachusettsState	0.96	$167,600	$154,470	16%
10	ColoradoState	0.92	$156,080	$148,083	14%
11	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.92	$156,750	$148,157	13%
12	NebraskaState	0.91	$134,950	$147,486	9%
13	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.91	$167,600	$147,665	18%
14	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.91	$169,120	$147,962	16%
15	HawaiiState	0.90	$159,880	$145,345	18%
16	New YorkState	0.90	$163,470	$145,307	14%
17	District of ColumbiaState	0.88	$163,360	$142,922	15%
18	North CarolinaState	0.88	$134,670	$142,659	12%
19	TennesseeState	0.88	$130,830	$142,984	12%
20	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.88	$129,990	$142,533	11%
21	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.88	$137,450	$142,879	14%
22	IowaState	0.87	$125,120	$140,269	9%
23	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.87	$159,480	$141,383	15%
24	ArkansasState	0.86	$120,290	$139,386	9%
25	MarylandState	0.86	$152,730	$139,863	13%
26	IllinoisState	0.85	$133,220	$136,776	12%
27	MinnesotaState	0.85	$134,300	$137,041	11%
28	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.85	$126,510	$137,511	12%
29	IdahoState	0.84	$131,570	$136,342	11%
30	South CarolinaState	0.84	$125,110	$135,989	12%
31	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.84	$158,530	$136,077	17%
32	DelawareState	0.83	$135,690	$134,347	12%
33	VirginiaState	0.83	$139,030	$134,329	14%
34	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.83	$134,300	$134,975	13%
35	FloridaState	0.82	$134,160	$132,177	15%
36	KentuckyState	0.81	$116,200	$131,299	10%
37	New JerseyState	0.81	$142,880	$131,324	15%
38	OhioState	0.81	$118,160	$130,708	11%
39	MichiganState	0.80	$119,670	$129,653	11%
40	Columbus, OHMetro	0.80	$120,950	$129,358	13%
41	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.79	$125,680	$127,594	16%
42	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.77	$135,220	$124,627	18%
43	New HampshireState	0.75	$129,140	$121,830	15%
44	Rhode IslandState	0.74	$119,510	$118,915	15%
45	MissouriState	0.73	$103,980	$117,359	12%
46	NevadaState	0.72	$116,530	$116,297	15%
47	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.72	$108,360	$116,767	14%
48	KansasState	0.70	$101,750	$113,056	12%
49	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.70	$108,480	$113,236	17%
50	South DakotaState	0.69	$101,400	$111,674	11%
51	IndianaState	0.67	$98,350	$108,674	13%
52	OklahomaState	0.67	$95,600	$108,023	12%
53	GeorgiaState	0.66	$100,210	$107,291	17%
54	UtahState	0.66	$106,950	$106,737	17%
55	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.64	$100,220	$103,533	19%
56	LouisianaState	0.57	$83,550	$92,730	15%
57	MississippiState	0.57	$78,320	$92,358	14%
58	WisconsinState	0.56	$83,670	$90,650	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).