Best Cities for Postsecondary Teachers, All Others

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where postsecondary teachers, all others 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	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.33	$95,630	$103,050	16%
2	DelawareState	1.29	$101,070	$100,069	16%
3	OklahomaState	1.23	$84,550	$95,537	14%
4	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.19	$100,080	$92,240	24%
5	CaliforniaState	1.17	$100,690	$90,958	27%
6	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.17	$103,340	$91,048	30%
7	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.17	$105,640	$90,678	26%
8	LouisianaState	1.13	$78,810	$87,469	16%
9	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.13	$99,240	$87,979	24%
10	MassachusettsState	1.12	$94,480	$87,078	29%
11	MinnesotaState	1.11	$84,280	$86,000	18%
12	New MexicoState	1.10	$78,840	$85,696	16%
13	WisconsinState	1.10	$79,120	$85,720	16%
14	IndianaState	1.09	$76,390	$84,409	17%
15	South CarolinaState	1.09	$77,940	$84,717	19%
16	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.09	$81,110	$84,314	23%
17	KansasState	1.08	$75,790	$84,211	16%
18	OhioState	1.08	$75,680	$83,717	17%
19	TennesseeState	1.08	$76,480	$83,585	20%
20	VirginiaState	1.05	$84,060	$81,217	22%
21	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.05	$78,350	$81,785	23%
22	IowaState	1.04	$71,680	$80,359	16%
23	MontanaState	1.04	$77,550	$80,446	17%
24	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.03	$77,570	$80,134	25%
25	Columbus, OHMetro	1.03	$74,940	$80,150	21%
26	ColoradoState	1.02	$83,210	$78,947	27%
27	New JerseyState	1.01	$85,260	$78,364	25%
28	North CarolinaState	1.01	$74,240	$78,644	21%
29	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.01	$94,690	$78,777	40%
30	West VirginiaState	1.00	$65,260	$77,506	15%
31	IdahoState	0.99	$74,180	$76,870	19%
32	KentuckyState	0.99	$67,690	$76,486	17%
33	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.99	$80,990	$76,550	25%
34	ArizonaState	0.98	$76,700	$76,016	23%
35	MarylandState	0.98	$82,850	$75,870	24%
36	MichiganState	0.98	$70,550	$76,436	19%
37	New HampshireState	0.97	$79,980	$75,453	24%
38	WashingtonState	0.95	$78,940	$73,569	29%
39	ConnecticutState	0.94	$78,220	$72,695	24%
40	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.93	$66,150	$72,533	22%
41	OregonState	0.91	$72,440	$70,330	26%
42	MissouriState	0.90	$61,860	$69,819	20%
43	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.90	$79,780	$69,799	33%
44	District of ColumbiaState	0.89	$78,890	$69,020	32%
45	GeorgiaState	0.89	$64,650	$69,218	26%
46	North DakotaState	0.88	$63,430	$68,499	19%
47	PennsylvaniaState	0.87	$65,400	$67,423	24%
48	TexasState	0.86	$64,110	$67,061	26%
49	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.86	$72,370	$67,134	30%
50	ArkansasState	0.82	$54,620	$63,291	19%
51	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.82	$59,060	$63,849	24%
52	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.81	$61,370	$63,138	31%
53	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.81	$61,620	$62,558	33%
54	FloridaState	0.80	$62,670	$61,744	33%
55	IllinoisState	0.79	$59,590	$61,181	26%
56	UtahState	0.79	$61,370	$61,248	29%
57	MaineState	0.77	$59,950	$60,070	26%
58	New YorkState	0.77	$67,640	$60,124	33%
59	Rhode IslandState	0.77	$60,390	$60,090	30%
60	AlabamaState	0.76	$51,060	$58,622	23%
61	NevadaState	0.76	$59,270	$59,152	29%
62	VermontState	0.74	$59,010	$57,571	29%
63	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.74	$52,640	$57,217	30%
64	NebraskaState	0.73	$52,210	$57,060	24%
65	WyomingState	0.65	$46,710	$50,226	25%
66	HawaiiState	0.58	$49,730	$45,209	58%

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