Best Cities for Dietitians and Nutritionistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where dietitians and nutritionistss 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	West VirginiaState	1.39	$89,440	$106,223	11%
2	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.34	$122,910	$102,255	31%
3	CaliforniaState	1.17	$98,850	$89,295	27%
4	AlaskaState	1.10	$87,980	$84,353	19%
5	IowaState	1.07	$72,690	$81,491	16%
6	OregonState	1.07	$84,180	$81,728	23%
7	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.07	$95,450	$81,931	28%
8	New MexicoState	1.06	$74,730	$81,228	17%
9	WisconsinState	1.06	$74,930	$81,181	17%
10	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.05	$77,710	$80,279	25%
11	MinnesotaState	1.04	$77,540	$79,122	20%
12	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.04	$77,540	$79,774	25%
13	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.04	$85,860	$79,647	25%
14	GeorgiaState	1.03	$73,200	$78,373	23%
15	KentuckyState	1.03	$69,520	$78,554	17%
16	OklahomaState	1.03	$69,560	$78,599	17%
17	WashingtonState	1.03	$84,220	$78,490	27%
18	LouisianaState	1.02	$70,460	$78,202	18%
19	New JerseyState	1.02	$84,450	$77,619	26%
20	TexasState	1.02	$74,440	$77,866	22%
21	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.02	$74,930	$78,215	24%
22	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.02	$77,780	$78,171	23%
23	DelawareState	1.01	$78,060	$77,287	21%
24	OhioState	1.01	$69,530	$76,914	18%
25	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.01	$74,110	$77,037	25%
26	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.01	$76,050	$77,208	27%
27	NebraskaState	1.00	$70,160	$76,678	18%
28	South CarolinaState	1.00	$69,970	$76,054	22%
29	Columbus, OHMetro	1.00	$71,200	$76,150	22%
30	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.00	$87,580	$76,623	30%
31	AlabamaState	0.99	$66,190	$75,993	17%
32	ArkansasState	0.99	$65,540	$75,944	16%
33	IllinoisState	0.99	$73,520	$75,483	21%
34	North DakotaState	0.99	$70,040	$75,637	17%
35	VermontState	0.99	$77,450	$75,561	22%
36	ConnecticutState	0.98	$80,600	$74,907	23%
37	FloridaState	0.98	$76,050	$74,926	27%
38	MississippiState	0.98	$63,700	$75,118	17%
39	VirginiaState	0.98	$77,380	$74,763	24%
40	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.98	$68,390	$74,989	21%
41	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.98	$69,820	$75,237	22%
42	HawaiiState	0.97	$81,920	$74,473	35%
43	IdahoState	0.97	$71,610	$74,207	20%
44	KansasState	0.97	$66,830	$74,256	19%
45	MissouriState	0.97	$65,450	$73,871	19%
46	MontanaState	0.97	$71,580	$74,253	19%
47	TennesseeState	0.97	$67,620	$73,902	22%
48	IndianaState	0.96	$66,450	$73,425	19%
49	New YorkState	0.96	$82,480	$73,316	27%
50	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.96	$79,750	$73,502	31%
51	MichiganState	0.95	$66,850	$72,427	20%
52	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.95	$74,860	$72,329	26%
53	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.95	$67,260	$72,714	21%
54	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.95	$81,750	$72,473	29%
55	ColoradoState	0.94	$75,510	$71,641	29%
56	District of ColumbiaState	0.94	$82,150	$71,872	31%
57	North CarolinaState	0.94	$67,560	$71,568	23%
58	South DakotaState	0.94	$64,890	$71,465	18%
59	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.94	$75,970	$71,805	27%
60	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.94	$65,790	$71,511	24%
61	MarylandState	0.93	$77,800	$71,245	26%
62	Rhode IslandState	0.93	$71,300	$70,945	25%
63	MassachusettsState	0.92	$76,660	$70,654	35%
64	PennsylvaniaState	0.91	$67,410	$69,495	23%
65	WyomingState	0.91	$64,370	$69,215	18%
66	NevadaState	0.90	$69,030	$68,892	25%
67	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.90	$77,840	$68,581	39%
68	New HampshireState	0.89	$71,840	$67,774	26%
69	MaineState	0.85	$64,610	$64,739	24%
70	UtahState	0.85	$65,310	$65,180	27%
71	ArizonaState	0.84	$64,410	$63,835	28%

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