Best Cities for Manicurists and Pedicuristss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where manicurists and pedicuristss 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	NebraskaState	1.74	$56,940	$62,230	22%
2	HawaiiState	1.55	$60,790	$55,264	47%
3	KentuckyState	1.43	$45,310	$51,198	25%
4	IowaState	1.42	$45,420	$50,919	25%
5	South DakotaState	1.40	$45,310	$49,901	25%
6	MaineState	1.36	$48,540	$48,637	32%
7	WashingtonState	1.30	$49,900	$46,505	46%
8	AlaskaState	1.28	$47,890	$45,916	34%
9	West VirginiaState	1.27	$38,260	$45,439	26%
10	OregonState	1.25	$46,080	$44,738	41%
11	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.24	$50,800	$44,444	52%
12	MississippiState	1.23	$37,300	$43,986	29%
13	MissouriState	1.23	$39,100	$44,131	32%
14	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.23	$47,280	$43,859	46%
15	NevadaState	1.17	$41,880	$41,796	42%
16	Columbus, OHMetro	1.13	$37,670	$40,289	41%
17	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.13	$36,810	$40,362	40%
18	IndianaState	1.12	$36,140	$39,934	35%
19	MichiganState	1.12	$36,890	$39,967	36%
20	WisconsinState	1.11	$36,680	$39,740	35%
21	OhioState	1.10	$35,590	$39,369	35%
22	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.09	$36,180	$38,987	43%
23	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.09	$38,330	$38,914	54%
24	IllinoisState	1.06	$37,050	$38,039	42%
25	TennesseeState	1.06	$34,810	$38,044	43%
26	FloridaState	1.04	$37,840	$37,281	55%
27	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.04	$42,040	$37,270	57%
28	MinnesotaState	1.03	$36,040	$36,776	43%
29	North CarolinaState	1.03	$34,740	$36,801	45%
30	South CarolinaState	1.03	$33,810	$36,750	45%
31	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.02	$34,950	$36,482	52%
32	IdahoState	1.01	$34,910	$36,176	41%
33	North DakotaState	1.01	$33,430	$36,102	35%
34	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.01	$35,920	$36,101	49%
35	TexasState	1.00	$34,040	$35,607	49%
36	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.00	$43,070	$35,832	88%
37	OklahomaState	0.99	$31,330	$35,401	37%
38	VirginiaState	0.99	$36,630	$35,391	52%
39	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.99	$37,590	$35,529	54%
40	ArizonaState	0.98	$35,290	$34,975	51%
41	ColoradoState	0.98	$37,110	$35,209	60%
42	MontanaState	0.98	$33,660	$34,917	40%
43	AlabamaState	0.97	$30,300	$34,788	38%
44	Rhode IslandState	0.97	$34,910	$34,736	52%
45	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.97	$33,800	$34,774	56%
46	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.97	$37,690	$34,737	65%
47	KansasState	0.96	$30,930	$34,367	40%
48	MarylandState	0.96	$37,300	$34,158	54%
49	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.95	$31,250	$33,967	50%
50	CaliforniaState	0.93	$36,630	$33,089	74%
51	New HampshireState	0.93	$35,100	$33,113	54%
52	New JerseyState	0.93	$36,370	$33,428	59%
53	MassachusettsState	0.91	$35,470	$32,691	76%
54	ArkansasState	0.90	$27,690	$32,086	38%
55	ConnecticutState	0.90	$34,720	$32,268	54%
56	District of ColumbiaState	0.90	$36,620	$32,038	69%
57	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.88	$36,570	$31,391	74%
58	LouisianaState	0.87	$28,170	$31,265	45%
59	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.87	$35,480	$31,260	86%
60	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.87	$28,790	$31,124	49%
61	DelawareState	0.86	$31,200	$30,891	52%
62	New YorkState	0.86	$34,660	$30,809	64%
63	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.84	$31,200	$30,145	61%
64	GeorgiaState	0.81	$26,910	$28,812	63%
65	PennsylvaniaState	0.81	$27,990	$28,856	56%
66	UtahState	0.80	$28,820	$28,762	62%
67	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.79	$27,190	$28,089	71%
68	New MexicoState	0.78	$25,720	$27,957	49%

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