Best Cities for Purchasing Managerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where purchasing managerss 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	1.22	$156,450	$181,286	7%
2	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.21	$163,660	$179,452	9%
3	KansasState	1.20	$159,850	$177,611	8%
4	West VirginiaState	1.18	$147,220	$174,846	7%
5	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.18	$161,910	$174,472	10%
6	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.16	$165,910	$171,395	12%
7	GeorgiaState	1.12	$155,360	$166,338	11%
8	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.12	$198,980	$165,541	19%
9	ColoradoState	1.10	$171,250	$162,476	13%
10	New JerseyState	1.08	$174,520	$160,404	12%
11	VirginiaState	1.08	$166,230	$160,609	11%
12	IllinoisState	1.06	$153,370	$157,464	10%
13	MassachusettsState	1.06	$170,750	$157,373	16%
14	District of ColumbiaState	1.04	$175,720	$153,736	14%
15	MichiganState	1.04	$142,120	$153,976	9%
16	New HampshireState	1.04	$162,900	$153,679	12%
17	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	1.04	$174,640	$153,868	18%
18	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.04	$142,360	$153,903	10%
19	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.03	$172,150	$152,615	14%
20	WashingtonState	1.02	$162,730	$151,659	14%
21	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.02	$144,270	$150,595	12%
22	Columbus, OHMetro	1.02	$141,490	$151,326	11%
23	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.02	$149,990	$150,744	12%
24	AlabamaState	1.01	$130,710	$150,069	9%
25	MissouriState	1.01	$132,100	$149,097	9%
26	OhioState	1.01	$134,580	$148,872	9%
27	TennesseeState	1.01	$137,060	$149,792	11%
28	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.01	$155,500	$150,242	12%
29	MarylandState	1.00	$161,470	$147,866	12%
30	MinnesotaState	1.00	$144,810	$147,765	11%
31	New YorkState	1.00	$166,300	$147,822	13%
32	New MexicoState	0.99	$134,790	$146,511	9%
33	North CarolinaState	0.99	$138,710	$146,939	11%
34	PennsylvaniaState	0.99	$141,790	$146,175	11%
35	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.99	$140,410	$145,956	13%
36	CaliforniaState	0.98	$159,830	$144,381	17%
37	MississippiState	0.98	$122,940	$144,976	9%
38	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.98	$165,430	$144,733	16%
39	South CarolinaState	0.97	$131,720	$143,174	11%
40	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.97	$151,990	$143,658	13%
41	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.97	$131,660	$143,109	12%
42	IdahoState	0.96	$136,970	$141,938	10%
43	South DakotaState	0.96	$128,670	$141,707	9%
44	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.96	$137,820	$141,790	14%
45	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.96	$139,430	$141,553	15%
46	IndianaState	0.95	$126,880	$140,199	10%
47	KentuckyState	0.95	$124,350	$140,508	9%
48	North DakotaState	0.95	$130,110	$140,508	9%
49	TexasState	0.95	$134,670	$140,868	12%
50	ArizonaState	0.93	$138,940	$137,701	13%
51	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.93	$149,030	$138,247	14%
52	IowaState	0.92	$121,580	$136,300	9%
53	MaineState	0.92	$135,970	$136,242	11%
54	NebraskaState	0.92	$124,010	$135,530	10%
55	OklahomaState	0.91	$119,310	$134,814	10%
56	WisconsinState	0.91	$124,990	$135,417	10%
57	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.91	$156,400	$134,249	17%
58	OregonState	0.90	$137,190	$133,194	14%
59	Rhode IslandState	0.90	$134,560	$133,891	13%
60	WyomingState	0.90	$123,380	$132,667	10%
61	FloridaState	0.89	$133,410	$131,438	15%
62	VermontState	0.89	$135,720	$132,410	13%
63	ConnecticutState	0.87	$138,680	$128,885	14%
64	MontanaState	0.87	$123,480	$128,091	11%
65	UtahState	0.85	$125,940	$125,689	14%
66	LouisianaState	0.82	$109,630	$121,676	11%
67	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.82	$131,400	$121,106	19%
68	NevadaState	0.81	$120,270	$120,030	14%
69	AlaskaState	0.74	$114,650	$109,923	14%
70	HawaiiState	0.70	$113,490	$103,173	25%

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