Best Cities for First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where first-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workerss 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	WashingtonState	1.26	$59,400	$55,359	38%
2	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.22	$61,610	$53,902	43%
3	District of ColumbiaState	1.13	$57,170	$50,017	44%
4	IndianaState	1.13	$44,880	$49,591	28%
5	ConnecticutState	1.12	$52,940	$49,201	36%
6	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.12	$47,280	$49,353	38%
7	North DakotaState	1.10	$44,720	$48,294	26%
8	VermontState	1.10	$49,820	$48,605	34%
9	ColoradoState	1.09	$50,550	$47,960	44%
10	MaineState	1.09	$47,990	$48,086	32%
11	Rhode IslandState	1.09	$48,400	$48,159	37%
12	DelawareState	1.08	$48,120	$47,644	34%
13	North CarolinaState	1.08	$45,010	$47,680	35%
14	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.08	$45,630	$47,432	41%
15	New HampshireState	1.06	$49,710	$46,896	38%
16	MinnesotaState	1.05	$45,270	$46,194	34%
17	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.05	$46,110	$46,342	39%
18	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.05	$55,520	$46,190	68%
19	MontanaState	1.04	$44,010	$45,654	31%
20	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.04	$45,240	$45,929	46%
21	OregonState	1.03	$46,950	$45,583	41%
22	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.03	$48,900	$45,362	44%
23	South DakotaState	1.02	$40,640	$44,758	28%
24	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.02	$46,580	$45,005	41%
25	AlaskaState	1.01	$46,570	$44,650	35%
26	HawaiiState	1.01	$48,880	$44,436	59%
27	New JerseyState	1.01	$48,420	$44,504	45%
28	PennsylvaniaState	1.01	$43,050	$44,381	36%
29	NevadaState	1.00	$44,030	$43,942	40%
30	TennesseeState	1.00	$40,500	$44,262	37%
31	VirginiaState	1.00	$45,550	$44,010	41%
32	FloridaState	0.99	$44,470	$43,813	46%
33	IowaState	0.99	$38,760	$43,453	29%
34	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.99	$40,530	$43,816	35%
35	MississippiState	0.98	$36,530	$43,078	29%
36	WisconsinState	0.98	$39,670	$42,979	33%
37	AlabamaState	0.97	$37,110	$42,606	31%
38	MassachusettsState	0.97	$46,600	$42,949	58%
39	NebraskaState	0.97	$39,230	$42,874	32%
40	New MexicoState	0.97	$39,310	$42,728	32%
41	CaliforniaState	0.96	$46,980	$42,439	58%
42	KansasState	0.96	$38,220	$42,467	32%
43	MissouriState	0.96	$37,400	$42,212	33%
44	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.96	$38,570	$42,292	38%
45	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.96	$39,210	$42,252	39%
46	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.96	$47,580	$42,181	50%
47	New YorkState	0.95	$47,190	$41,947	47%
48	South CarolinaState	0.95	$38,520	$41,870	39%
49	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.95	$45,500	$41,935	54%
50	GeorgiaState	0.94	$38,600	$41,328	44%
51	OhioState	0.94	$37,340	$41,305	34%
52	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.94	$47,090	$41,489	65%
53	MichiganState	0.93	$37,940	$41,105	35%
54	IllinoisState	0.92	$39,470	$40,524	40%
55	KentuckyState	0.92	$35,810	$40,463	32%
56	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.92	$39,240	$40,537	49%
57	Columbus, OHMetro	0.92	$37,790	$40,417	41%
58	ArizonaState	0.91	$40,550	$40,188	44%
59	OklahomaState	0.91	$35,420	$40,023	33%
60	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.91	$46,970	$40,318	58%
61	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.91	$36,850	$40,054	42%
62	IdahoState	0.90	$38,190	$39,575	38%
63	LouisianaState	0.90	$35,800	$39,734	35%
64	WyomingState	0.90	$36,820	$39,591	32%
65	ArkansasState	0.89	$33,800	$39,166	31%
66	West VirginiaState	0.89	$33,070	$39,276	30%
67	MarylandState	0.88	$42,450	$38,874	47%
68	UtahState	0.88	$38,750	$38,673	46%
69	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.88	$37,730	$38,817	50%
70	TexasState	0.87	$36,480	$38,159	46%
71	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.83	$38,760	$36,635	52%

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