Best Cities for Postmasters and Mail Superintendentss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where postmasters and mail superintendentss 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	West VirginiaState	1.18	$96,260	$114,323	10%
2	ArkansasState	1.17	$97,880	$113,418	11%
3	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.17	$111,170	$112,863	19%
4	MississippiState	1.16	$95,270	$112,347	11%
5	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.16	$102,690	$112,599	14%
6	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.16	$102,960	$111,913	15%
7	KentuckyState	1.15	$98,570	$111,379	12%
8	AlabamaState	1.14	$95,740	$109,920	12%
9	IndianaState	1.13	$98,680	$109,039	13%
10	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.13	$100,780	$108,951	14%
11	MissouriState	1.12	$95,680	$107,991	13%
12	OhioState	1.12	$97,680	$108,053	13%
13	OklahomaState	1.12	$96,080	$108,565	12%
14	TennesseeState	1.12	$99,170	$108,383	15%
15	LouisianaState	1.11	$96,550	$107,159	13%
16	South CarolinaState	1.11	$98,940	$107,543	15%
17	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.11	$102,840	$106,902	18%
18	MichiganState	1.10	$97,790	$105,948	14%
19	WisconsinState	1.09	$96,810	$104,886	13%
20	Columbus, OHMetro	1.09	$98,800	$105,668	16%
21	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.09	$102,610	$105,566	19%
22	IowaState	1.08	$93,160	$104,439	12%
23	GeorgiaState	1.07	$97,050	$103,908	17%
24	KansasState	1.07	$93,080	$103,422	13%
25	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.07	$96,030	$103,481	16%
26	NebraskaState	1.06	$94,040	$102,776	13%
27	North CarolinaState	1.06	$96,410	$102,129	16%
28	TexasState	1.06	$97,550	$102,040	17%
29	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.06	$97,880	$102,171	18%
30	FloridaState	1.05	$102,880	$101,360	20%
31	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.05	$98,570	$101,829	20%
32	PennsylvaniaState	1.04	$97,530	$100,546	16%
33	South DakotaState	1.04	$91,540	$100,815	13%
34	New MexicoState	1.03	$91,500	$99,457	14%
35	Rhode IslandState	1.03	$99,900	$99,403	18%
36	ArizonaState	1.02	$99,050	$98,167	18%
37	North DakotaState	1.02	$91,040	$98,315	13%
38	UtahState	1.02	$98,570	$98,373	18%
39	DelawareState	1.01	$98,550	$97,574	16%
40	IllinoisState	1.01	$94,970	$97,505	17%
41	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.01	$113,430	$97,365	24%
42	IdahoState	1.00	$92,820	$96,187	15%
43	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.00	$99,840	$96,464	19%
44	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	0.99	$94,830	$95,307	19%
45	MinnesotaState	0.98	$92,410	$94,296	17%
46	WyomingState	0.98	$88,040	$94,667	13%
47	MaineState	0.96	$93,000	$93,186	17%
48	New JerseyState	0.96	$101,100	$92,923	21%
49	CaliforniaState	0.95	$101,150	$91,373	27%
50	MontanaState	0.95	$88,920	$92,241	15%
51	VirginiaState	0.95	$94,790	$91,585	20%
52	ConnecticutState	0.94	$97,880	$90,967	19%
53	OregonState	0.94	$93,180	$90,466	21%
54	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.94	$97,750	$90,677	22%
55	HawaiiState	0.93	$99,070	$90,064	29%
56	NevadaState	0.93	$89,770	$89,591	19%
57	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.93	$95,430	$90,198	21%
58	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.93	$103,020	$90,131	26%
59	MassachusettsState	0.92	$96,870	$89,281	28%
60	WashingtonState	0.92	$95,430	$88,938	24%
61	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.92	$101,150	$89,119	30%
62	ColoradoState	0.91	$93,000	$88,235	24%
63	New HampshireState	0.91	$92,980	$87,717	20%
64	VermontState	0.91	$89,890	$87,698	19%
65	MarylandState	0.90	$94,890	$86,896	21%
66	New YorkState	0.90	$97,640	$86,791	23%
67	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.89	$97,240	$86,206	25%
68	AlaskaState	0.59	$59,340	$56,894	28%

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