Best Cities for Medical Records Specialistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where medical records 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	1.41	$86,890	$72,288	43%
2	WisconsinState	1.28	$60,280	$65,309	22%
3	Rhode IslandState	1.24	$63,960	$63,642	28%
4	District of ColumbiaState	1.23	$72,040	$63,027	35%
5	MinnesotaState	1.23	$61,530	$62,786	25%
6	New MexicoState	1.22	$57,470	$62,467	22%
7	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.22	$61,830	$62,141	29%
8	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.19	$58,950	$60,899	33%
9	OklahomaState	1.18	$53,460	$60,407	22%
10	AlaskaState	1.15	$61,090	$58,571	27%
11	South CarolinaState	1.15	$54,280	$59,000	28%
12	WyomingState	1.14	$54,210	$58,290	22%
13	IllinoisState	1.13	$56,440	$57,947	28%
14	WashingtonState	1.13	$62,270	$58,034	37%
15	HawaiiState	1.12	$63,180	$57,436	45%
16	MissouriState	1.12	$50,750	$57,280	24%
17	OregonState	1.12	$59,000	$57,282	32%
18	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.12	$61,890	$57,412	35%
19	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.12	$65,530	$57,332	40%
20	ConnecticutState	1.11	$60,940	$56,636	31%
21	IowaState	1.11	$50,640	$56,771	23%
22	South DakotaState	1.11	$51,610	$56,839	22%
23	NebraskaState	1.10	$51,670	$56,470	24%
24	OhioState	1.10	$50,990	$56,405	25%
25	VermontState	1.10	$57,560	$56,156	30%
26	West VirginiaState	1.10	$47,360	$56,247	21%
27	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.10	$59,390	$56,134	34%
28	CaliforniaState	1.09	$61,810	$55,836	44%
29	ColoradoState	1.09	$59,020	$55,996	38%
30	DelawareState	1.09	$56,060	$55,505	29%
31	MassachusettsState	1.09	$60,350	$55,622	45%
32	GeorgiaState	1.08	$51,550	$55,193	33%
33	IdahoState	1.08	$53,460	$55,399	27%
34	KentuckyState	1.07	$48,410	$54,701	24%
35	New YorkState	1.07	$61,720	$54,862	36%
36	Columbus, OHMetro	1.07	$51,230	$54,791	30%
37	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.06	$50,280	$54,181	31%
38	KansasState	1.05	$48,160	$53,511	26%
39	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.05	$52,140	$53,642	36%
40	TennesseeState	1.04	$48,780	$53,311	31%
41	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.04	$60,460	$53,269	51%
42	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.04	$51,110	$53,351	35%
43	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.04	$51,300	$53,326	36%
44	IndianaState	1.03	$47,670	$52,674	27%
45	North CarolinaState	1.03	$49,620	$52,564	31%
46	UtahState	1.03	$52,870	$52,764	34%
47	MaineState	1.02	$52,090	$52,194	30%
48	MichiganState	1.02	$48,120	$52,134	28%
49	MontanaState	1.02	$50,190	$52,064	27%
50	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.02	$58,810	$52,137	41%
51	VirginiaState	1.01	$53,290	$51,488	35%
52	TexasState	1.00	$48,860	$51,109	34%
53	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.00	$46,730	$51,239	31%
54	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.99	$59,110	$50,738	46%
55	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.99	$50,020	$50,782	41%
56	AlabamaState	0.98	$43,810	$50,299	26%
57	NevadaState	0.98	$50,300	$50,200	35%
58	North DakotaState	0.98	$46,280	$49,978	25%
59	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.98	$46,110	$50,120	34%
60	LouisianaState	0.97	$44,610	$49,512	28%
61	MarylandState	0.97	$54,220	$49,652	37%
62	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.97	$46,120	$49,859	31%
63	MississippiState	0.96	$41,500	$48,939	26%
64	ArkansasState	0.95	$41,740	$48,366	25%
65	PennsylvaniaState	0.94	$46,840	$48,289	33%
66	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.94	$49,700	$48,019	39%
67	ArizonaState	0.92	$47,630	$47,205	38%
68	New HampshireState	0.91	$49,210	$46,425	39%
69	New JerseyState	0.90	$50,240	$46,176	43%
70	FloridaState	0.88	$45,760	$45,084	45%
71	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.88	$49,010	$45,171	50%

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