Best Cities for Dredge Operatorss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where dredge operatorss 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	TexasState	1.38	$65,580	$68,598	25%
2	IowaState	1.31	$57,990	$65,011	20%
3	OhioState	1.19	$53,310	$58,971	24%
4	WisconsinState	1.19	$54,310	$58,841	24%
5	New JerseyState	1.18	$63,810	$58,649	34%
6	AlabamaState	1.16	$50,030	$57,440	23%
7	LouisianaState	1.09	$48,590	$53,929	26%
8	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.06	$48,980	$52,780	31%
9	FloridaState	1.05	$52,800	$52,020	39%
10	NebraskaState	1.00	$45,290	$49,497	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).