Best Cities for Food Preparation Workerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where food preparation 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	North DakotaState	1.13	$36,800	$39,741	32%
2	Columbus, OHMetro	1.12	$36,930	$39,497	42%
3	WyomingState	1.10	$36,110	$38,828	33%
4	NebraskaState	1.09	$35,210	$38,481	36%
5	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.09	$43,830	$38,346	60%
6	OhioState	1.08	$34,530	$38,197	36%
7	WashingtonState	1.08	$40,910	$38,127	56%
8	GeorgiaState	1.07	$35,250	$37,741	48%
9	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.07	$45,580	$37,920	83%
10	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.06	$36,090	$37,283	54%
11	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.06	$34,390	$37,380	46%
12	ColoradoState	1.05	$38,960	$36,964	57%
13	WisconsinState	1.05	$34,070	$36,912	38%
14	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.04	$36,330	$36,883	57%
15	ArizonaState	1.03	$36,750	$36,422	49%
16	New MexicoState	1.03	$33,370	$36,272	38%
17	OregonState	1.03	$37,450	$36,359	51%
18	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.03	$33,060	$36,250	44%
19	MaineState	1.02	$36,030	$36,102	43%
20	MassachusettsState	1.02	$38,900	$35,853	70%
21	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.02	$34,640	$36,008	54%
22	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.02	$38,730	$35,928	56%
23	CaliforniaState	1.01	$39,350	$35,547	69%
24	DelawareState	1.01	$35,930	$35,574	45%
25	IllinoisState	1.01	$34,850	$35,780	45%
26	MinnesotaState	1.01	$34,850	$35,561	44%
27	MissouriState	1.01	$31,510	$35,564	39%
28	VermontState	1.01	$36,550	$35,659	47%
29	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.01	$34,180	$35,678	53%
30	FloridaState	1.00	$35,920	$35,389	57%
31	Rhode IslandState	1.00	$35,470	$35,294	51%
32	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.00	$35,100	$35,276	51%
33	MontanaState	0.99	$33,860	$35,124	40%
34	South CarolinaState	0.99	$32,180	$34,978	47%
35	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.99	$39,660	$34,943	77%
36	District of ColumbiaState	0.98	$39,600	$34,646	64%
37	HawaiiState	0.98	$38,160	$34,691	75%
38	New HampshireState	0.98	$36,780	$34,698	52%
39	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.98	$32,230	$34,731	48%
40	AlaskaState	0.97	$35,720	$34,247	46%
41	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.97	$39,770	$34,137	68%
42	ConnecticutState	0.96	$36,650	$34,061	51%
43	IowaState	0.96	$30,360	$34,036	38%
44	MichiganState	0.96	$31,180	$33,781	43%
45	KansasState	0.95	$30,280	$33,644	41%
46	NevadaState	0.95	$33,460	$33,393	52%
47	South DakotaState	0.95	$30,430	$33,513	38%
48	UtahState	0.95	$33,540	$33,473	53%
49	VirginiaState	0.95	$34,900	$33,720	54%
50	West VirginiaState	0.95	$28,360	$33,682	35%
51	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.95	$34,560	$33,391	55%
52	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.94	$35,080	$33,157	57%
53	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.94	$36,090	$33,263	68%
54	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.94	$37,630	$33,360	64%
55	IndianaState	0.93	$29,700	$32,818	43%
56	IdahoState	0.92	$31,510	$32,653	46%
57	MarylandState	0.92	$35,500	$32,509	57%
58	New JerseyState	0.92	$35,540	$32,665	61%
59	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.92	$30,120	$32,562	47%
60	AlabamaState	0.91	$27,930	$32,067	41%
61	ArkansasState	0.91	$27,660	$32,051	38%
62	North CarolinaState	0.91	$30,260	$32,055	52%
63	OklahomaState	0.91	$28,540	$32,249	41%
64	TexasState	0.91	$30,650	$32,061	54%
65	New YorkState	0.90	$35,610	$31,653	62%
66	PennsylvaniaState	0.90	$30,840	$31,794	50%
67	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.90	$30,740	$31,626	62%
68	TennesseeState	0.89	$28,700	$31,366	53%
69	MississippiState	0.88	$26,240	$30,943	41%
70	KentuckyState	0.86	$26,850	$30,339	43%
71	LouisianaState	0.74	$23,620	$26,215	53%

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