Best Cities for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service 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	District of ColumbiaState	1.57	$60,400	$52,843	42%
2	HawaiiState	1.42	$52,630	$47,845	54%
3	MontanaState	1.17	$37,750	$39,160	36%
4	CaliforniaState	1.15	$42,720	$38,591	64%
5	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.12	$43,800	$37,597	62%
6	Rhode IslandState	1.06	$35,770	$35,592	50%
7	VermontState	1.05	$36,030	$35,151	47%
8	WashingtonState	1.05	$37,770	$35,200	60%
9	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.05	$42,460	$35,324	89%
10	ArizonaState	1.04	$35,380	$35,064	51%
11	FloridaState	1.03	$35,040	$34,522	59%
12	IllinoisState	1.03	$33,710	$34,610	47%
13	MaineState	1.02	$34,320	$34,389	45%
14	South DakotaState	1.02	$30,990	$34,130	37%
15	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.02	$37,230	$34,313	66%
16	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.02	$34,090	$34,261	52%
17	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.02	$39,240	$34,331	67%
18	ColoradoState	1.01	$35,640	$33,814	62%
19	MassachusettsState	1.01	$36,650	$33,779	74%
20	OregonState	1.01	$35,030	$34,010	55%
21	ConnecticutState	1.00	$35,960	$33,420	52%
22	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.00	$36,350	$33,720	59%
23	AlaskaState	0.99	$34,540	$33,116	47%
24	GeorgiaState	0.98	$30,880	$33,062	55%
25	MissouriState	0.98	$29,260	$33,025	42%
26	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.98	$31,860	$32,913	61%
27	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.98	$37,180	$32,758	82%
28	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.98	$30,590	$32,963	50%
29	MinnesotaState	0.97	$31,870	$32,520	48%
30	New YorkState	0.97	$36,590	$32,524	61%
31	AlabamaState	0.96	$28,130	$32,296	41%
32	KentuckyState	0.96	$28,520	$32,226	40%
33	MichiganState	0.96	$29,760	$32,243	45%
34	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.96	$34,080	$32,212	59%
35	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.96	$29,540	$32,390	49%
36	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.96	$31,720	$32,203	65%
37	NebraskaState	0.95	$29,100	$31,803	43%
38	New JerseyState	0.95	$34,760	$31,949	62%
39	DelawareState	0.94	$31,930	$31,614	51%
40	IndianaState	0.94	$28,640	$31,646	44%
41	MarylandState	0.94	$34,520	$31,612	58%
42	ArkansasState	0.93	$27,000	$31,286	39%
43	New MexicoState	0.93	$28,590	$31,076	44%
44	WyomingState	0.93	$29,030	$31,215	41%
45	Columbus, OHMetro	0.93	$29,260	$31,294	53%
46	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.93	$32,220	$31,130	59%
47	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.93	$28,870	$31,380	54%
48	NevadaState	0.92	$30,830	$30,768	57%
49	TennesseeState	0.92	$28,200	$30,820	53%
50	TexasState	0.92	$29,450	$30,805	56%
51	WisconsinState	0.92	$28,570	$30,953	46%
52	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.92	$34,710	$30,771	69%
53	North DakotaState	0.91	$28,430	$30,702	41%
54	OhioState	0.91	$27,770	$30,719	45%
55	PennsylvaniaState	0.91	$29,480	$30,392	53%
56	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.91	$29,770	$30,628	64%
57	KansasState	0.90	$27,220	$30,244	46%
58	New HampshireState	0.90	$32,100	$30,283	59%
59	IdahoState	0.89	$28,770	$29,813	50%
60	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.89	$28,740	$30,000	63%
61	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.89	$27,640	$29,881	51%
62	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.88	$28,500	$29,626	66%
63	VirginiaState	0.87	$30,070	$29,053	63%
64	West VirginiaState	0.87	$24,670	$29,299	41%
65	MississippiState	0.86	$24,440	$28,821	44%
66	North CarolinaState	0.86	$27,310	$28,930	57%
67	IowaState	0.85	$25,460	$28,543	45%
68	OklahomaState	0.85	$25,250	$28,531	46%
69	South CarolinaState	0.85	$26,210	$28,489	57%
70	UtahState	0.85	$28,720	$28,663	62%
71	LouisianaState	0.74	$22,240	$24,684	57%

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