Best Cities for Helpers, Construction Trades, All Others

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where helpers, construction trades, 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	MissouriState	1.37	$51,630	$58,273	24%
2	WashingtonState	1.35	$61,750	$57,549	37%
3	IowaState	1.27	$48,430	$54,294	24%
4	IllinoisState	1.20	$49,880	$51,211	32%
5	WisconsinState	1.18	$46,580	$50,466	28%
6	KentuckyState	1.16	$43,680	$49,356	26%
7	OhioState	1.16	$44,870	$49,635	28%
8	IndianaState	1.14	$43,860	$48,464	29%
9	New YorkState	1.13	$54,480	$48,427	41%
10	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.12	$57,680	$47,987	65%
11	ArizonaState	1.11	$47,830	$47,403	38%
12	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.07	$41,670	$45,691	35%
13	MississippiState	1.06	$38,300	$45,165	28%
14	ColoradoState	1.05	$47,030	$44,620	47%
15	VermontState	1.05	$46,090	$44,966	37%
16	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.05	$44,320	$44,995	47%
17	LouisianaState	1.04	$39,960	$44,351	31%
18	AlaskaState	1.03	$45,860	$43,969	36%
19	CaliforniaState	1.03	$48,430	$43,749	56%
20	Columbus, OHMetro	1.03	$41,210	$44,075	38%
21	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.03	$42,780	$44,012	44%
22	ArkansasState	1.02	$37,440	$43,384	28%
23	MichiganState	1.01	$39,840	$43,164	34%
24	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.01	$41,850	$43,233	46%
25	GeorgiaState	1.00	$39,890	$42,709	43%
26	TexasState	1.00	$40,610	$42,479	41%
27	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.98	$47,460	$41,815	65%
28	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.98	$48,840	$41,923	56%
29	MassachusettsState	0.97	$44,720	$41,217	61%
30	South CarolinaState	0.97	$37,990	$41,293	40%
31	TennesseeState	0.97	$37,730	$41,235	40%
32	North CarolinaState	0.96	$38,480	$40,763	41%
33	VirginiaState	0.96	$42,310	$40,879	45%
34	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.96	$46,350	$41,090	52%
35	IdahoState	0.95	$39,240	$40,663	37%
36	MarylandState	0.95	$44,360	$40,623	45%
37	New MexicoState	0.95	$37,280	$40,522	34%
38	OklahomaState	0.95	$35,830	$40,486	32%
39	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.95	$42,950	$40,595	47%
40	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.95	$38,920	$40,626	46%
41	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.95	$37,460	$40,497	38%
42	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.95	$37,340	$40,587	42%
43	MontanaState	0.94	$38,550	$39,990	35%
44	OregonState	0.94	$41,410	$40,204	46%
45	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.93	$42,840	$39,740	50%
46	FloridaState	0.91	$39,500	$38,916	52%
47	NebraskaState	0.91	$35,470	$38,765	35%
48	PennsylvaniaState	0.90	$37,210	$38,361	42%
49	NevadaState	0.88	$37,440	$37,365	47%
50	New JerseyState	0.88	$41,080	$37,757	53%
51	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.86	$40,030	$36,894	61%
52	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.86	$35,300	$36,694	53%
53	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.84	$37,210	$35,952	51%
54	ConnecticutState	0.83	$37,990	$35,307	50%
55	KansasState	0.83	$31,710	$35,233	39%
56	HawaiiState	0.66	$30,900	$28,091	93%
57	UtahState	0.66	$28,120	$28,064	64%

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