Best Cities for Information Security Analystss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where information security analystss 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	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.13	$176,120	$146,522	21%
2	WashingtonState	1.12	$154,940	$144,399	15%
3	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.10	$161,780	$141,540	16%
4	AlabamaState	1.09	$122,730	$140,907	9%
5	New MexicoState	1.09	$130,070	$141,380	10%
6	North CarolinaState	1.08	$131,540	$139,343	12%
7	GeorgiaState	1.07	$128,970	$138,084	13%
8	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.06	$131,440	$137,203	14%
9	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.06	$133,610	$137,459	14%
10	DelawareState	1.05	$137,030	$135,673	12%
11	TexasState	1.05	$129,890	$135,868	13%
12	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.05	$131,490	$135,837	15%
13	IowaState	1.04	$119,710	$134,204	10%
14	MinnesotaState	1.03	$130,710	$133,378	12%
15	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.03	$122,560	$133,217	13%
16	Columbus, OHMetro	1.02	$122,600	$131,123	13%
17	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.02	$130,710	$131,367	14%
18	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.02	$148,950	$132,048	16%
19	VirginiaState	1.01	$134,900	$130,338	14%
20	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.01	$138,170	$130,595	15%
21	ColoradoState	0.99	$135,220	$128,292	16%
22	IllinoisState	0.99	$124,180	$127,495	13%
23	MarylandState	0.99	$139,640	$127,875	14%
24	South DakotaState	0.99	$116,640	$128,458	10%
25	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.99	$132,560	$128,077	14%
26	TennesseeState	0.98	$115,430	$126,153	13%
27	CaliforniaState	0.97	$138,570	$125,176	20%
28	MassachusettsState	0.97	$136,550	$125,853	20%
29	ArizonaState	0.96	$125,260	$124,143	14%
30	New JerseyState	0.96	$134,820	$123,915	16%
31	FloridaState	0.95	$124,860	$123,015	17%
32	OhioState	0.95	$110,480	$122,212	11%
33	ConnecticutState	0.94	$130,570	$121,348	14%
34	PennsylvaniaState	0.94	$117,770	$121,412	13%
35	ArkansasState	0.93	$103,490	$119,919	10%
36	New YorkState	0.93	$134,660	$119,698	16%
37	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.93	$136,550	$120,308	22%
38	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.93	$108,990	$119,507	13%
39	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.93	$118,970	$120,782	17%
40	District of ColumbiaState	0.91	$135,090	$118,189	19%
41	KentuckyState	0.91	$103,630	$117,096	11%
42	New HampshireState	0.91	$124,000	$116,981	15%
43	MissouriState	0.90	$103,440	$116,749	12%
44	North DakotaState	0.90	$107,540	$116,134	11%
45	HawaiiState	0.89	$126,250	$114,773	23%
46	MichiganState	0.89	$106,230	$115,092	13%
47	South CarolinaState	0.89	$105,800	$115,000	14%
48	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.89	$125,310	$115,493	20%
49	IndianaState	0.87	$101,420	$112,066	12%
50	KansasState	0.87	$100,620	$111,800	12%
51	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.87	$104,010	$112,080	15%
52	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.87	$103,630	$112,032	14%
53	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.86	$129,630	$111,270	21%
54	AlaskaState	0.85	$114,990	$110,249	14%
55	WisconsinState	0.85	$101,550	$110,022	13%
56	Rhode IslandState	0.84	$109,420	$108,876	17%
57	VermontState	0.83	$109,750	$107,073	16%
58	NevadaState	0.82	$106,200	$105,988	16%
59	OklahomaState	0.82	$94,000	$106,215	12%
60	WyomingState	0.82	$98,710	$106,140	12%
61	LouisianaState	0.80	$92,990	$103,208	14%
62	MississippiState	0.80	$87,690	$103,408	12%
63	MaineState	0.79	$101,730	$101,934	15%
64	NebraskaState	0.78	$92,550	$101,148	14%
65	UtahState	0.77	$99,690	$99,491	18%
66	MontanaState	0.66	$81,950	$85,010	17%

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