Best Cities for Labor Relations Specialistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where labor relations 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	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.16	$133,270	$110,874	28%
2	North DakotaState	1.15	$101,220	$109,309	12%
3	New JerseyState	1.14	$118,370	$108,796	18%
4	IllinoisState	1.12	$104,180	$106,961	15%
5	MissouriState	1.11	$93,840	$105,914	13%
6	West VirginiaState	1.10	$88,020	$104,537	11%
7	WisconsinState	1.09	$95,750	$103,738	14%
8	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.09	$118,520	$104,423	26%
9	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.09	$119,200	$104,287	22%
10	MinnesotaState	1.08	$100,760	$102,816	15%
11	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.08	$98,890	$103,225	18%
12	Columbus, OHMetro	1.08	$96,100	$102,781	16%
13	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.08	$101,970	$103,523	20%
14	MassachusettsState	1.07	$111,260	$102,544	24%
15	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.07	$101,270	$101,779	18%
16	District of ColumbiaState	1.06	$115,600	$101,137	22%
17	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.05	$92,860	$100,065	17%
18	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.03	$95,550	$98,302	20%
19	MaineState	1.02	$96,680	$96,874	16%
20	WashingtonState	1.02	$104,100	$97,018	22%
21	ArizonaState	1.01	$97,070	$96,204	19%
22	DelawareState	1.01	$97,390	$96,426	17%
23	IdahoState	1.01	$93,110	$96,487	15%
24	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.01	$99,840	$96,464	19%
25	CaliforniaState	1.00	$105,810	$95,583	26%
26	VirginiaState	1.00	$98,730	$95,391	19%
27	PennsylvaniaState	0.99	$91,320	$94,144	17%
28	MississippiState	0.98	$79,360	$93,585	14%
29	WyomingState	0.98	$87,310	$93,882	14%
30	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.98	$105,210	$93,271	23%
31	KansasState	0.96	$82,750	$91,944	15%
32	North CarolinaState	0.96	$86,270	$91,388	18%
33	New MexicoState	0.95	$83,770	$91,054	15%
34	NebraskaState	0.94	$81,910	$89,519	15%
35	New YorkState	0.94	$100,500	$89,333	22%
36	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.94	$86,590	$89,452	22%
37	IowaState	0.93	$79,140	$88,722	14%
38	OhioState	0.93	$80,150	$88,662	16%
39	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.93	$102,980	$88,395	26%
40	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.93	$81,340	$88,413	19%
41	Rhode IslandState	0.92	$88,030	$87,592	21%
42	GeorgiaState	0.91	$81,480	$87,238	21%
43	LouisianaState	0.91	$78,110	$86,693	16%
44	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.91	$93,590	$86,818	23%
45	MarylandState	0.90	$94,030	$86,108	21%
46	IndianaState	0.89	$77,190	$85,293	16%
47	South CarolinaState	0.89	$78,050	$84,837	19%
48	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.89	$78,900	$85,297	18%
49	TennesseeState	0.88	$76,930	$84,077	20%
50	VermontState	0.88	$85,870	$83,776	20%
51	ColoradoState	0.87	$87,150	$82,685	25%
52	KentuckyState	0.87	$73,550	$83,107	16%
53	TexasState	0.87	$79,640	$83,305	21%
54	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.86	$79,350	$82,484	24%
55	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.85	$73,760	$80,877	20%
56	FloridaState	0.84	$81,700	$80,493	25%
57	MichiganState	0.84	$73,760	$79,913	18%
58	New HampshireState	0.84	$84,780	$79,981	22%
59	OregonState	0.82	$80,490	$78,146	24%
60	NevadaState	0.81	$77,240	$77,086	23%
61	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.81	$83,650	$77,097	29%
62	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.80	$80,310	$75,907	25%
63	AlaskaState	0.78	$77,870	$74,660	21%
64	ConnecticutState	0.78	$79,620	$73,996	24%
65	MontanaState	0.76	$70,360	$72,988	19%
66	ArkansasState	0.75	$62,070	$71,924	17%
67	HawaiiState	0.74	$77,310	$70,282	37%
68	OklahomaState	0.74	$62,400	$70,508	19%
69	South DakotaState	0.67	$57,900	$63,767	20%
70	UtahState	0.64	$61,190	$61,068	29%
71	AlabamaState	0.58	$48,120	$55,247	24%

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