Best Cities for Log Graders and Scalerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where log graders and scalerss 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	IdahoState	1.29	$57,620	$59,710	25%
2	OregonState	1.26	$60,250	$58,495	32%
3	WashingtonState	1.24	$61,580	$57,390	37%
4	MississippiState	1.22	$48,010	$56,616	22%
5	MichiganState	1.21	$51,810	$56,132	26%
6	OhioState	1.19	$49,710	$54,989	25%
7	LouisianaState	1.14	$47,510	$52,730	26%
8	AlabamaState	1.11	$44,950	$51,607	26%
9	KentuckyState	1.11	$45,330	$51,220	25%
10	CaliforniaState	1.10	$56,670	$51,192	48%
11	IndianaState	1.10	$46,160	$51,006	27%
12	West VirginiaState	1.10	$43,040	$51,116	23%
13	MaineState	1.09	$50,180	$50,281	31%
14	WisconsinState	1.08	$46,150	$50,000	28%
15	ArkansasState	1.06	$42,340	$49,061	25%
16	South CarolinaState	1.04	$44,370	$48,228	34%
17	PennsylvaniaState	0.99	$44,550	$45,928	35%
18	New HampshireState	0.95	$46,530	$43,896	41%
19	GeorgiaState	0.92	$39,830	$42,645	43%
20	MissouriState	0.91	$37,440	$42,257	33%
21	TennesseeState	0.85	$35,920	$39,257	42%
22	North CarolinaState	0.84	$36,850	$39,036	42%
23	FloridaState	0.83	$39,040	$38,463	53%
24	TexasState	0.82	$36,100	$37,762	46%
25	VirginiaState	0.76	$36,220	$34,995	52%

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