Best Cities for Dental Hygienistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where dental hygienistss 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	AlaskaState	1.30	$132,690	$127,220	12%
2	WashingtonState	1.25	$131,160	$122,237	17%
3	District of ColumbiaState	1.22	$137,220	$120,052	18%
4	OregonState	1.21	$122,080	$118,524	16%
5	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.19	$139,990	$116,464	27%
6	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.19	$133,740	$117,008	20%
7	NevadaState	1.17	$115,290	$115,060	15%
8	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.16	$123,100	$114,193	17%
9	CaliforniaState	1.15	$124,930	$112,855	22%
10	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.15	$112,630	$113,196	16%
11	OklahomaState	1.12	$97,580	$110,260	12%
12	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.12	$116,130	$109,764	17%
13	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.09	$98,480	$107,043	16%
14	MinnesotaState	1.08	$103,970	$106,092	15%
15	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.08	$122,980	$105,562	22%
16	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.08	$119,170	$105,647	20%
17	MissouriState	1.07	$92,750	$104,684	13%
18	WisconsinState	1.07	$96,540	$104,594	13%
19	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.07	$101,870	$104,805	19%
20	ColoradoState	1.06	$109,580	$103,966	20%
21	New MexicoState	1.06	$95,940	$104,283	13%
22	North CarolinaState	1.06	$97,850	$103,655	16%
23	TexasState	1.06	$99,240	$103,808	17%
24	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.06	$100,370	$103,688	19%
25	Columbus, OHMetro	1.06	$96,880	$103,615	16%
26	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.05	$98,390	$102,704	18%
27	GeorgiaState	1.04	$95,490	$102,238	18%
28	IndianaState	1.04	$92,330	$102,022	14%
29	MontanaState	1.04	$98,440	$102,116	14%
30	South DakotaState	1.04	$92,210	$101,553	12%
31	NebraskaState	1.03	$92,580	$101,180	14%
32	ArizonaState	1.02	$101,010	$100,109	18%
33	ArkansasState	1.02	$86,760	$100,533	12%
34	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.02	$92,750	$99,946	17%
35	IllinoisState	1.01	$96,670	$99,251	16%
36	MarylandState	1.01	$107,830	$98,745	19%
37	VirginiaState	1.01	$102,950	$99,469	18%
38	DelawareState	1.00	$98,910	$97,931	16%
39	IdahoState	1.00	$94,650	$98,083	15%
40	MaineState	1.00	$97,680	$97,876	16%
41	New JerseyState	1.00	$107,040	$98,382	20%
42	North DakotaState	1.00	$90,530	$97,765	13%
43	OhioState	1.00	$88,990	$98,440	14%
44	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.00	$94,030	$97,744	20%
45	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.99	$100,820	$97,411	19%
46	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.99	$95,870	$97,330	22%
47	New HampshireState	0.97	$101,250	$95,519	19%
48	VermontState	0.97	$97,470	$95,093	18%
49	IowaState	0.96	$84,010	$94,182	14%
50	LouisianaState	0.96	$85,240	$94,606	15%
51	New YorkState	0.96	$106,130	$94,338	21%
52	ConnecticutState	0.95	$100,690	$93,578	19%
53	MassachusettsState	0.95	$100,640	$92,756	27%
54	TennesseeState	0.94	$84,640	$92,503	18%
55	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.94	$84,480	$92,632	17%
56	MichiganState	0.93	$83,790	$90,780	16%
57	South CarolinaState	0.93	$84,340	$91,674	18%
58	UtahState	0.93	$91,120	$90,938	20%
59	WyomingState	0.93	$85,130	$91,538	14%
60	FloridaState	0.92	$91,980	$90,621	22%
61	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.92	$101,990	$89,859	30%
62	KentuckyState	0.91	$78,830	$89,073	15%
63	HawaiiState	0.90	$97,570	$88,700	29%
64	West VirginiaState	0.89	$73,840	$87,696	14%
65	Rhode IslandState	0.88	$86,910	$86,478	21%
66	PennsylvaniaState	0.85	$80,610	$83,103	19%
67	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.84	$75,960	$82,119	19%
68	MississippiState	0.81	$67,280	$79,340	16%
69	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.78	$82,780	$76,295	30%
70	AlabamaState	0.72	$61,160	$70,218	19%

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