Best Cities for Education Administrators, All Others

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where education administrators, all others 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	KansasState	1.38	$117,810	$130,900	11%
2	TennesseeState	1.36	$118,330	$129,322	13%
3	OklahomaState	1.33	$112,170	$126,746	10%
4	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.33	$117,810	$126,950	13%
5	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.30	$118,890	$123,586	16%
6	District of ColumbiaState	1.29	$140,670	$123,071	18%
7	New MexicoState	1.29	$113,110	$122,946	11%
8	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.27	$128,410	$121,371	16%
9	South DakotaState	1.26	$108,990	$120,033	11%
10	West VirginiaState	1.23	$98,450	$116,924	10%
11	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.23	$132,400	$117,376	18%
12	ArizonaState	1.22	$117,170	$116,125	15%
13	KentuckyState	1.22	$102,610	$115,944	11%
14	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.22	$106,910	$116,207	15%
15	MarylandState	1.21	$125,500	$114,927	16%
16	North DakotaState	1.16	$101,870	$110,011	12%
17	AlabamaState	1.14	$94,610	$108,622	12%
18	South CarolinaState	1.11	$97,240	$105,696	15%
19	North CarolinaState	1.10	$98,880	$104,746	16%
20	VirginiaState	1.10	$108,820	$105,140	17%
21	GeorgiaState	1.09	$96,510	$103,330	18%
22	IowaState	1.09	$92,970	$104,226	12%
23	WyomingState	1.08	$95,420	$102,602	12%
24	ColoradoState	1.07	$107,120	$101,632	21%
25	DelawareState	1.07	$102,430	$101,416	16%
26	MississippiState	1.04	$83,890	$98,927	13%
27	AlaskaState	1.03	$101,970	$97,766	16%
28	PennsylvaniaState	1.03	$95,190	$98,134	16%
29	WisconsinState	1.01	$88,470	$95,850	15%
30	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.99	$86,260	$94,583	17%
31	OregonState	0.98	$96,330	$93,524	20%
32	Rhode IslandState	0.98	$93,980	$93,512	19%
33	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.98	$90,000	$92,975	22%
34	LouisianaState	0.97	$83,050	$92,175	15%
35	MissouriState	0.97	$82,030	$92,585	15%
36	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.97	$91,680	$92,141	19%
37	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.97	$95,190	$91,971	20%
38	CaliforniaState	0.95	$99,650	$90,018	27%
39	MinnesotaState	0.95	$88,330	$90,133	17%
40	ArkansasState	0.94	$76,990	$89,212	14%
41	Columbus, OHMetro	0.94	$83,710	$89,529	19%
42	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.93	$84,790	$88,507	21%
43	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.93	$95,290	$88,395	23%
44	WashingtonState	0.92	$93,590	$87,223	24%
45	MichiganState	0.91	$80,190	$86,880	17%
46	IndianaState	0.90	$77,680	$85,834	16%
47	NebraskaState	0.90	$78,210	$85,475	16%
48	New YorkState	0.90	$96,250	$85,556	23%
49	OhioState	0.90	$77,640	$85,885	16%
50	MaineState	0.89	$84,440	$84,609	18%
51	FloridaState	0.87	$84,220	$82,975	25%
52	TexasState	0.87	$79,060	$82,699	21%
53	VermontState	0.87	$85,100	$83,024	20%
54	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	0.87	$99,990	$83,186	38%
55	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.86	$93,590	$81,881	28%
56	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.85	$79,060	$81,337	24%
57	MassachusettsState	0.84	$86,540	$79,760	31%
58	IllinoisState	0.83	$77,180	$79,240	20%
59	UtahState	0.83	$78,840	$78,683	23%
60	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.80	$86,540	$76,247	35%
61	IdahoState	0.78	$71,690	$74,290	20%
62	New JerseyState	0.77	$79,980	$73,511	27%
63	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.76	$83,990	$72,094	32%
64	MontanaState	0.75	$68,580	$71,141	20%
65	New HampshireState	0.75	$75,700	$71,415	25%
66	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.74	$76,620	$70,618	32%
67	HawaiiState	0.72	$75,130	$68,300	38%

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