Best Cities for Dental Laboratory Technicianss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where dental laboratory technicianss 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	North DakotaState	1.47	$67,580	$72,981	17%
2	MassachusettsState	1.35	$72,800	$67,097	37%
3	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.34	$75,480	$66,502	41%
4	MaineState	1.29	$64,020	$64,148	24%
5	NebraskaState	1.29	$58,590	$64,033	21%
6	KansasState	1.27	$56,790	$63,100	22%
7	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.23	$56,790	$61,196	27%
8	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.23	$59,920	$60,832	34%
9	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.22	$55,170	$60,493	26%
10	FloridaState	1.19	$59,790	$58,906	35%
11	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.19	$58,780	$59,075	30%
12	ArkansasState	1.17	$49,960	$57,891	21%
13	ColoradoState	1.17	$61,220	$58,083	36%
14	MinnesotaState	1.15	$56,090	$57,235	27%
15	New HampshireState	1.15	$60,610	$57,179	31%
16	MississippiState	1.14	$47,770	$56,333	22%
17	West VirginiaState	1.14	$47,740	$56,698	21%
18	Columbus, OHMetro	1.13	$52,570	$56,225	30%
19	IndianaState	1.11	$49,920	$55,160	25%
20	OklahomaState	1.11	$48,670	$54,994	24%
21	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.11	$59,940	$55,244	41%
22	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.09	$61,250	$54,300	39%
23	MichiganState	1.08	$49,570	$53,705	27%
24	OhioState	1.08	$48,480	$53,628	26%
25	TennesseeState	1.08	$48,880	$53,421	31%
26	IowaState	1.07	$47,520	$53,274	24%
27	KentuckyState	1.07	$46,770	$52,847	25%
28	MissouriState	1.07	$46,870	$52,901	26%
29	South DakotaState	1.07	$48,370	$53,271	24%
30	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.07	$51,050	$53,067	37%
31	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.07	$49,060	$53,038	29%
32	AlabamaState	1.06	$45,760	$52,537	25%
33	GeorgiaState	1.06	$49,310	$52,794	34%
34	IllinoisState	1.06	$51,380	$52,752	31%
35	North CarolinaState	1.06	$49,700	$52,648	31%
36	WashingtonState	1.06	$56,400	$52,563	40%
37	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.06	$50,700	$52,376	38%
38	WisconsinState	1.03	$47,170	$51,105	28%
39	PennsylvaniaState	1.02	$49,280	$50,804	32%
40	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.02	$57,610	$50,402	46%
41	VirginiaState	1.01	$51,900	$50,145	36%
42	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.01	$60,510	$50,341	62%
43	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.00	$48,010	$49,393	40%
44	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.00	$45,710	$49,685	34%
45	IdahoState	0.99	$47,380	$49,098	30%
46	MontanaState	0.99	$47,560	$49,336	28%
47	New MexicoState	0.99	$45,300	$49,239	28%
48	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.99	$47,080	$49,144	38%
49	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.99	$50,850	$49,130	38%
50	TexasState	0.98	$46,330	$48,462	36%
51	NevadaState	0.97	$48,190	$48,094	36%
52	ArizonaState	0.96	$47,930	$47,502	38%
53	OregonState	0.96	$48,800	$47,379	39%
54	UtahState	0.95	$47,110	$47,016	38%
55	New YorkState	0.94	$52,460	$46,631	42%
56	Rhode IslandState	0.91	$45,320	$45,095	40%
57	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.91	$48,800	$45,269	44%
58	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.90	$47,200	$44,612	43%
59	MarylandState	0.88	$47,850	$43,819	42%
60	New JerseyState	0.88	$47,270	$43,447	46%
61	CaliforniaState	0.86	$47,410	$42,827	57%
62	LouisianaState	0.86	$38,490	$42,719	33%
63	HawaiiState	0.83	$45,300	$41,182	63%
64	South CarolinaState	0.81	$37,170	$40,402	41%
65	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.80	$46,460	$39,880	59%
66	DelawareState	0.77	$38,500	$38,119	42%

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