Best Cities for Economistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where economistss 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	DelawareState	1.26	$159,120	$157,545	10%
2	KansasState	1.24	$138,790	$154,211	9%
3	New JerseyState	1.23	$167,550	$153,998	13%
4	AlabamaState	1.20	$129,960	$149,208	9%
5	District of ColumbiaState	1.18	$167,590	$146,623	15%
6	North CarolinaState	1.16	$136,150	$144,227	11%
7	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.16	$152,730	$144,357	13%
8	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.11	$128,520	$138,491	12%
9	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.11	$156,750	$138,963	15%
10	IdahoState	1.09	$131,270	$136,031	11%
11	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.08	$139,530	$134,812	14%
12	VirginiaState	1.07	$137,590	$132,937	14%
13	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.07	$122,980	$132,951	11%
14	MarylandState	1.06	$144,680	$132,491	14%
15	MissouriState	1.06	$117,010	$132,065	11%
16	OhioState	1.06	$120,000	$132,743	10%
17	GeorgiaState	1.05	$122,570	$131,231	14%
18	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.04	$151,510	$130,052	18%
19	TennesseeState	1.03	$117,650	$128,579	13%
20	TexasState	1.02	$121,420	$127,008	14%
21	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.02	$122,570	$126,622	16%
22	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.01	$122,170	$125,689	16%
23	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.98	$117,600	$122,756	15%
24	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.98	$116,990	$121,611	16%
25	New YorkState	0.97	$136,660	$121,476	16%
26	OregonState	0.95	$122,120	$118,563	16%
27	PennsylvaniaState	0.95	$115,000	$118,557	14%
28	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.94	$107,450	$116,793	15%
29	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.93	$106,350	$116,612	14%
30	ColoradoState	0.92	$121,410	$115,190	18%
31	MichiganState	0.92	$106,350	$115,222	13%
32	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.91	$122,120	$113,284	18%
33	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.89	$126,420	$110,604	21%
34	IowaState	0.87	$96,310	$107,971	12%
35	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.87	$118,030	$108,783	21%
36	CaliforniaState	0.86	$119,410	$107,868	23%
37	MinnesotaState	0.86	$105,120	$107,265	15%
38	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.86	$107,030	$107,568	17%
39	AlaskaState	0.85	$111,040	$106,462	15%
40	ArkansasState	0.85	$91,560	$106,095	12%
41	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.84	$103,690	$105,269	20%
42	OklahomaState	0.82	$89,980	$101,672	13%
43	WashingtonState	0.82	$109,300	$101,864	21%
44	FloridaState	0.81	$102,430	$100,916	20%
45	MassachusettsState	0.79	$106,380	$98,046	25%
46	ConnecticutState	0.76	$101,400	$94,238	19%
47	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.76	$108,140	$95,278	28%
48	MontanaState	0.74	$89,340	$92,676	15%
49	MaineState	0.73	$91,480	$91,663	17%
50	NevadaState	0.73	$91,340	$91,158	19%
51	WisconsinState	0.73	$84,000	$91,008	16%
52	IndianaState	0.72	$80,750	$89,227	16%
53	NebraskaState	0.66	$75,880	$82,929	17%
54	KentuckyState	0.65	$71,400	$80,678	16%
55	LouisianaState	0.65	$73,050	$81,077	17%
56	New HampshireState	0.65	$86,130	$81,255	22%
57	ArizonaState	0.63	$79,610	$78,900	23%
58	HawaiiState	0.61	$83,050	$75,500	34%

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