Best Cities for Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animalss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animalss 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	1.57	$48,460	$57,553	21%
2	AlaskaState	1.32	$50,450	$48,370	32%
3	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.31	$47,950	$48,191	37%
4	MinnesotaState	1.28	$46,020	$46,959	33%
5	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.21	$50,100	$44,415	48%
6	MississippiState	1.20	$37,430	$44,139	29%
7	North DakotaState	1.19	$40,320	$43,542	29%
8	HawaiiState	1.17	$47,050	$42,773	61%
9	KentuckyState	1.17	$38,030	$42,972	30%
10	AlabamaState	1.15	$36,620	$42,044	31%
11	IdahoState	1.15	$40,580	$42,052	35%
12	MaineState	1.15	$42,170	$42,255	37%
13	WashingtonState	1.15	$45,370	$42,283	50%
14	South DakotaState	1.14	$38,000	$41,850	30%
15	WyomingState	1.14	$38,920	$41,849	30%
16	IndianaState	1.13	$37,530	$41,470	34%
17	IowaState	1.12	$36,480	$40,897	31%
18	KansasState	1.12	$37,060	$41,178	34%
19	North CarolinaState	1.12	$38,750	$41,049	40%
20	NebraskaState	1.11	$37,220	$40,678	34%
21	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.11	$40,180	$40,792	51%
22	New MexicoState	1.08	$36,400	$39,565	35%
23	VermontState	1.08	$40,730	$39,737	42%
24	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.08	$37,860	$39,520	48%
25	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.07	$44,930	$39,309	59%
26	MontanaState	1.05	$37,010	$38,392	37%
27	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.05	$35,710	$38,481	43%
28	MarylandState	1.04	$41,760	$38,242	48%
29	OklahomaState	1.04	$33,670	$38,045	34%
30	South CarolinaState	1.04	$35,090	$38,141	43%
31	ColoradoState	1.03	$39,740	$37,704	56%
32	New HampshireState	1.02	$39,520	$37,283	48%
33	VirginiaState	1.02	$38,670	$37,362	49%
34	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.02	$40,320	$37,403	53%
35	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.02	$45,140	$37,554	84%
36	MissouriState	1.01	$32,950	$37,190	38%
37	DelawareState	1.00	$36,940	$36,574	44%
38	TennesseeState	1.00	$33,720	$36,852	45%
39	Columbus, OHMetro	1.00	$34,220	$36,599	45%
40	FloridaState	0.99	$36,790	$36,246	56%
41	PennsylvaniaState	0.99	$35,360	$36,454	44%
42	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.99	$32,950	$36,129	44%
43	New JerseyState	0.98	$38,960	$35,809	55%
44	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.98	$35,030	$36,039	54%
45	LouisianaState	0.97	$31,940	$35,450	39%
46	TexasState	0.97	$33,920	$35,481	49%
47	WisconsinState	0.97	$32,970	$35,720	39%
48	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.97	$36,640	$35,401	52%
49	MassachusettsState	0.96	$38,280	$35,281	71%
50	MichiganState	0.96	$32,660	$35,385	41%
51	ArizonaState	0.95	$35,160	$34,846	51%
52	CaliforniaState	0.95	$38,640	$34,905	70%
53	IllinoisState	0.95	$33,840	$34,743	46%
54	OhioState	0.94	$31,200	$34,513	40%
55	OregonState	0.94	$35,480	$34,447	54%
56	ArkansasState	0.93	$29,340	$33,998	36%
57	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.93	$36,820	$33,935	66%
58	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.92	$38,410	$33,841	80%
59	UtahState	0.90	$32,970	$32,904	54%
60	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.90	$32,120	$33,182	60%
61	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.90	$30,280	$32,913	52%
62	ConnecticutState	0.89	$35,140	$32,658	54%
63	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.88	$37,720	$32,378	72%
64	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.87	$29,400	$31,784	48%
65	NevadaState	0.86	$31,700	$31,637	55%
66	New YorkState	0.85	$34,860	$30,987	64%
67	GeorgiaState	0.83	$28,410	$30,418	60%

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