Best Cities for Conservation Scientistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where conservation scientistss 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	1.26	$110,200	$91,681	34%
2	LouisianaState	1.22	$80,190	$89,001	16%
3	AlabamaState	1.21	$77,000	$88,404	15%
4	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.21	$99,360	$88,085	24%
5	WyomingState	1.20	$81,310	$87,430	15%
6	District of ColumbiaState	1.19	$99,400	$86,964	25%
7	WisconsinState	1.18	$79,540	$86,176	16%
8	ArkansasState	1.16	$73,320	$84,959	14%
9	IdahoState	1.15	$81,330	$84,280	18%
10	South DakotaState	1.15	$76,400	$84,141	15%
11	NebraskaState	1.14	$76,400	$83,497	16%
12	New MexicoState	1.14	$76,800	$83,478	16%
13	North DakotaState	1.14	$77,280	$83,456	15%
14	West VirginiaState	1.14	$69,910	$83,029	14%
15	KentuckyState	1.11	$71,980	$81,333	16%
16	ColoradoState	1.10	$84,820	$80,474	26%
17	OklahomaState	1.10	$71,270	$80,531	16%
18	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.09	$76,210	$79,220	25%
19	UtahState	1.08	$78,850	$78,693	23%
20	OregonState	1.07	$80,790	$78,437	24%
21	IowaState	1.06	$69,240	$77,623	16%
22	TennesseeState	1.06	$70,500	$77,049	21%
23	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.06	$83,580	$77,532	26%
24	MontanaState	1.05	$73,920	$76,680	18%
25	AlaskaState	1.04	$79,260	$75,992	21%
26	MaineState	1.04	$75,900	$76,052	20%
27	MarylandState	1.04	$83,290	$76,273	24%
28	Rhode IslandState	1.04	$76,130	$75,751	24%
29	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.03	$75,090	$75,467	24%
30	GeorgiaState	1.02	$69,240	$74,133	25%
31	KansasState	1.02	$67,200	$74,667	18%
32	VirginiaState	1.02	$77,380	$74,763	24%
33	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.01	$77,860	$73,592	26%
34	MinnesotaState	1.00	$71,280	$72,735	22%
35	NevadaState	1.00	$73,030	$72,884	24%
36	WashingtonState	1.00	$78,450	$73,113	29%
37	CaliforniaState	0.99	$79,810	$72,096	34%
38	MassachusettsState	0.99	$78,740	$72,571	34%
39	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.99	$82,380	$72,073	32%
40	IllinoisState	0.98	$69,590	$71,448	23%
41	IndianaState	0.98	$64,570	$71,348	20%
42	MissouriState	0.98	$63,130	$71,253	20%
43	TexasState	0.98	$68,620	$71,778	24%
44	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.98	$69,380	$71,674	28%
45	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.98	$66,120	$71,870	24%
46	Columbus, OHMetro	0.97	$66,110	$70,706	24%
47	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.97	$68,620	$70,597	28%
48	MississippiState	0.96	$59,510	$70,177	18%
49	New HampshireState	0.96	$74,650	$70,425	25%
50	OhioState	0.96	$63,160	$69,867	20%
51	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.95	$78,580	$69,233	39%
52	ConnecticutState	0.94	$73,860	$68,643	25%
53	MichiganState	0.94	$63,500	$68,797	21%
54	New YorkState	0.94	$76,990	$68,436	29%
55	North CarolinaState	0.94	$64,460	$68,284	24%
56	VermontState	0.94	$70,130	$68,420	24%
57	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.93	$63,050	$67,942	24%
58	ArizonaState	0.91	$66,750	$66,155	27%
59	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.90	$76,940	$66,043	35%
60	DelawareState	0.87	$63,850	$63,218	25%
61	PennsylvaniaState	0.87	$61,480	$63,381	25%
62	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.87	$58,960	$63,741	24%
63	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.86	$57,110	$62,621	26%
64	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.86	$61,690	$62,629	33%
65	HawaiiState	0.82	$65,740	$59,764	44%
66	New JerseyState	0.81	$64,020	$58,842	34%
67	South CarolinaState	0.78	$52,310	$56,859	29%
68	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.78	$58,590	$56,609	33%
69	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.72	$50,300	$52,505	36%
70	FloridaState	0.69	$51,130	$50,374	40%
71	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.65	$51,130	$47,124	48%

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