Best Cities for Financial Risk Specialistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where financial risk specialistss 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	New HampshireState	1.27	$158,320	$149,358	12%
2	MaineState	1.20	$141,020	$141,303	11%
3	North CarolinaState	1.19	$132,040	$139,873	12%
4	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.19	$133,530	$139,384	13%
5	DelawareState	1.18	$139,440	$138,059	12%
6	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.18	$166,240	$138,303	23%
7	WyomingState	1.10	$119,550	$128,548	10%
8	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.08	$130,880	$126,454	15%
9	New YorkState	1.04	$136,830	$121,627	16%
10	VirginiaState	1.04	$126,510	$122,232	15%
11	MassachusettsState	1.02	$130,400	$120,184	21%
12	IowaState	1.01	$105,680	$118,475	11%
13	New JerseyState	1.01	$129,220	$118,768	17%
14	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.00	$132,580	$116,811	23%
15	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.00	$134,330	$117,524	20%
16	CaliforniaState	0.99	$129,110	$116,631	21%
17	WashingtonState	0.98	$123,150	$114,772	18%
18	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.98	$105,110	$115,252	14%
19	ColoradoState	0.97	$120,300	$114,137	18%
20	MississippiState	0.97	$96,100	$113,325	11%
21	MissouriState	0.97	$100,620	$113,567	12%
22	MichiganState	0.96	$103,940	$112,611	13%
23	West VirginiaState	0.96	$94,350	$112,055	11%
24	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.96	$119,720	$113,157	17%
25	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.96	$103,990	$113,033	15%
26	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.96	$126,510	$112,154	19%
27	IndianaState	0.93	$99,250	$109,669	13%
28	OhioState	0.93	$98,650	$109,126	13%
29	TexasState	0.93	$103,760	$108,536	16%
30	GeorgiaState	0.92	$100,570	$107,677	17%
31	MinnesotaState	0.92	$105,420	$107,571	15%
32	South CarolinaState	0.92	$99,520	$108,174	15%
33	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.92	$104,850	$108,316	18%
34	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.92	$100,620	$108,427	15%
35	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.92	$99,680	$107,762	14%
36	IllinoisState	0.91	$104,300	$107,084	15%
37	MarylandState	0.91	$117,130	$107,262	17%
38	OregonState	0.91	$109,580	$106,388	17%
39	PennsylvaniaState	0.91	$103,040	$106,227	15%
40	Columbus, OHMetro	0.91	$100,350	$107,326	15%
41	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.91	$103,760	$106,749	18%
42	ConnecticutState	0.90	$113,990	$105,939	17%
43	WisconsinState	0.90	$97,820	$105,980	13%
44	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.90	$105,420	$105,950	17%
45	MontanaState	0.89	$100,920	$104,689	13%
46	Rhode IslandState	0.89	$104,470	$103,950	17%
47	NebraskaState	0.88	$94,280	$103,038	13%
48	ArizonaState	0.87	$102,800	$101,883	17%
49	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.86	$98,820	$100,325	21%
50	NevadaState	0.85	$100,010	$99,810	17%
51	TennesseeState	0.85	$90,950	$99,399	17%
52	FloridaState	0.84	$99,900	$98,424	21%
53	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.84	$95,250	$99,012	20%
54	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.83	$113,230	$97,193	24%
55	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.83	$105,500	$97,866	20%
56	OklahomaState	0.82	$85,140	$96,203	14%
57	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.82	$104,500	$96,313	23%
58	New MexicoState	0.81	$87,260	$94,848	14%
59	AlabamaState	0.80	$81,750	$93,858	14%
60	KansasState	0.80	$84,790	$94,211	15%
61	District of ColumbiaState	0.74	$99,230	$86,815	25%
62	South DakotaState	0.74	$78,960	$86,960	15%
63	KentuckyState	0.72	$74,640	$84,339	15%
64	AlaskaState	0.70	$85,370	$81,850	19%
65	HawaiiState	0.70	$89,860	$81,691	32%
66	North DakotaState	0.69	$74,630	$80,594	16%
67	IdahoState	0.68	$76,870	$79,658	19%
68	UtahState	0.66	$77,770	$77,615	23%
69	ArkansasState	0.65	$66,110	$76,605	16%
70	LouisianaState	0.55	$58,440	$64,861	22%

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