Best Cities for Occupational Therapistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where occupational therapistss 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	ArkansasState	1.23	$106,360	$123,244	10%
2	OklahomaState	1.17	$104,300	$117,853	11%
3	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.17	$107,650	$117,011	15%
4	West VirginiaState	1.14	$96,190	$114,240	10%
5	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.13	$136,870	$113,869	28%
6	CaliforniaState	1.12	$124,510	$112,475	22%
7	MississippiState	1.12	$94,930	$111,946	11%
8	GeorgiaState	1.11	$104,010	$111,360	16%
9	TexasState	1.11	$106,140	$111,025	16%
10	KansasState	1.10	$99,170	$110,189	13%
11	KentuckyState	1.10	$97,650	$110,339	12%
12	NevadaState	1.10	$110,520	$110,299	16%
13	OhioState	1.10	$99,390	$109,945	13%
14	South CarolinaState	1.10	$101,130	$109,924	15%
15	LouisianaState	1.09	$98,490	$109,312	13%
16	MissouriState	1.09	$97,290	$109,808	13%
17	OregonState	1.09	$112,310	$109,039	17%
18	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.09	$106,160	$109,669	18%
19	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.09	$106,110	$109,167	18%
20	AlabamaState	1.08	$94,050	$107,979	12%
21	IndianaState	1.07	$97,020	$107,204	13%
22	New MexicoState	1.07	$99,170	$107,793	13%
23	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.07	$99,840	$107,586	15%
24	TennesseeState	1.06	$97,700	$106,776	15%
25	Columbus, OHMetro	1.05	$98,920	$105,797	16%
26	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.04	$122,040	$104,755	22%
27	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.04	$100,630	$104,605	19%
28	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.04	$112,100	$103,989	19%
29	ArizonaState	1.02	$103,660	$102,735	17%
30	IllinoisState	1.02	$99,700	$102,361	16%
31	NebraskaState	1.02	$93,740	$102,448	13%
32	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.02	$98,450	$102,766	18%
33	ColoradoState	1.01	$106,720	$101,252	21%
34	DelawareState	1.01	$102,130	$101,119	16%
35	IdahoState	1.01	$97,760	$101,306	15%
36	PennsylvaniaState	1.01	$98,440	$101,485	16%
37	IowaState	1.00	$89,910	$100,796	13%
38	WashingtonState	1.00	$107,670	$100,345	21%
39	WisconsinState	1.00	$92,390	$100,098	14%
40	AlaskaState	0.99	$103,680	$99,406	16%
41	Rhode IslandState	0.99	$100,040	$99,542	18%
42	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.99	$105,490	$99,707	19%
43	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.99	$103,140	$99,652	19%
44	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.99	$97,720	$99,208	21%
45	FloridaState	0.98	$99,360	$97,892	21%
46	MarylandState	0.98	$106,980	$97,967	19%
47	North CarolinaState	0.98	$92,940	$98,453	17%
48	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.98	$89,600	$98,246	16%
49	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.98	$90,860	$98,227	16%
50	MichiganState	0.97	$89,910	$97,411	15%
51	UtahState	0.97	$97,150	$96,956	18%
52	VirginiaState	0.97	$100,710	$97,304	19%
53	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.96	$109,860	$96,115	24%
54	ConnecticutState	0.95	$102,440	$95,204	18%
55	District of ColumbiaState	0.95	$109,170	$95,512	23%
56	MinnesotaState	0.95	$93,050	$94,949	17%
57	New JerseyState	0.95	$103,410	$95,046	21%
58	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.94	$93,600	$94,070	19%
59	HawaiiState	0.93	$102,870	$93,518	28%
60	MassachusettsState	0.93	$100,930	$93,023	27%
61	South DakotaState	0.93	$85,050	$93,667	14%
62	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.93	$101,480	$93,530	24%
63	MontanaState	0.92	$88,990	$92,313	15%
64	WyomingState	0.92	$86,170	$92,656	14%
65	VermontState	0.91	$93,340	$91,063	18%
66	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.91	$102,960	$91,277	23%
67	North DakotaState	0.90	$83,200	$89,849	14%
68	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.90	$101,940	$89,815	30%
69	New YorkState	0.85	$96,390	$85,680	23%
70	MaineState	0.84	$84,310	$84,479	18%
71	New HampshireState	0.79	$83,900	$79,151	23%

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