Best Cities for Dental Assistantss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where dental assistantss 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	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.51	$72,370	$72,734	25%
2	MinnesotaState	1.39	$65,270	$66,602	24%
3	North DakotaState	1.30	$57,770	$62,387	20%
4	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.29	$74,600	$62,063	51%
5	MaineState	1.25	$60,070	$60,190	26%
6	OregonState	1.20	$59,490	$57,757	32%
7	New HampshireState	1.17	$59,530	$56,160	32%
8	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.16	$59,890	$55,557	36%
9	AlaskaState	1.15	$57,710	$55,331	28%
10	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.14	$50,110	$54,945	29%
11	IowaState	1.13	$48,430	$54,294	24%
12	WashingtonState	1.13	$58,090	$54,138	39%
13	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.13	$62,040	$54,278	43%
14	IndianaState	1.12	$48,670	$53,779	26%
15	KentuckyState	1.12	$47,730	$53,932	24%
16	MassachusettsState	1.11	$57,980	$53,438	47%
17	North CarolinaState	1.11	$50,380	$53,369	31%
18	ConnecticutState	1.10	$56,850	$52,835	33%
19	District of ColumbiaState	1.10	$60,580	$53,001	42%
20	MichiganState	1.10	$48,820	$52,893	27%
21	OhioState	1.10	$47,970	$53,064	26%
22	South DakotaState	1.10	$47,900	$52,753	24%
23	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.09	$50,060	$52,255	36%
24	MissouriState	1.08	$45,970	$51,885	27%
25	OklahomaState	1.08	$45,740	$51,684	25%
26	Columbus, OHMetro	1.08	$48,760	$52,150	32%
27	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.08	$48,190	$51,929	32%
28	South CarolinaState	1.07	$47,320	$51,435	32%
29	VermontState	1.07	$52,760	$51,473	32%
30	WisconsinState	1.07	$47,520	$51,484	27%
31	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.07	$58,160	$51,242	53%
32	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.07	$47,690	$51,557	30%
33	NebraskaState	1.06	$46,660	$50,995	27%
34	TennesseeState	1.06	$46,720	$51,060	32%
35	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.05	$48,540	$50,457	38%
36	GeorgiaState	1.04	$46,840	$50,150	36%
37	IllinoisState	1.04	$48,610	$49,908	32%
38	Rhode IslandState	1.04	$50,150	$49,900	36%
39	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.04	$45,920	$49,913	34%
40	ArkansasState	1.03	$42,830	$49,629	25%
41	PennsylvaniaState	1.03	$47,930	$49,412	32%
42	LouisianaState	1.02	$44,090	$48,935	29%
43	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.02	$47,570	$48,940	40%
44	ArizonaState	1.01	$49,000	$48,563	37%
45	MontanaState	1.01	$46,680	$48,423	29%
46	WyomingState	1.01	$44,990	$48,376	26%
47	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.01	$47,210	$48,771	41%
48	New MexicoState	1.00	$44,400	$48,261	28%
49	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.00	$49,570	$47,894	39%
50	IdahoState	0.99	$45,880	$47,544	31%
51	TexasState	0.99	$45,430	$47,521	37%
52	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.99	$46,890	$47,604	44%
53	DelawareState	0.98	$47,600	$47,129	34%
54	FloridaState	0.98	$47,620	$46,916	43%
55	NevadaState	0.98	$47,110	$47,016	37%
56	MississippiState	0.96	$39,160	$46,179	27%
57	ColoradoState	0.95	$48,340	$45,863	46%
58	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.95	$48,410	$45,756	42%
59	CaliforniaState	0.94	$50,110	$45,266	54%
60	New JerseyState	0.94	$49,390	$45,395	44%
61	VirginiaState	0.94	$46,670	$45,092	40%
62	West VirginiaState	0.94	$37,960	$45,083	26%
63	AlabamaState	0.93	$39,080	$44,868	29%
64	MarylandState	0.93	$48,620	$44,524	41%
65	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.92	$47,860	$44,111	51%
66	New YorkState	0.89	$48,110	$42,764	46%
67	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.88	$47,540	$42,145	50%
68	HawaiiState	0.85	$44,720	$40,655	64%
69	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.84	$46,900	$40,258	58%
70	UtahState	0.78	$37,760	$37,685	47%

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