Best Cities for Recreational Therapistss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where recreational 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	CaliforniaState	1.43	$98,170	$88,681	28%
2	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.37	$101,670	$84,584	37%
3	District of ColumbiaState	1.35	$95,640	$83,675	26%
4	NevadaState	1.27	$78,730	$78,573	22%
5	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.27	$91,740	$78,747	30%
6	MinnesotaState	1.26	$76,360	$77,918	20%
7	New HampshireState	1.25	$82,280	$77,623	23%
8	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.20	$73,980	$74,352	24%
9	WashingtonState	1.17	$77,860	$72,563	29%
10	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.17	$82,660	$72,318	32%
11	NebraskaState	1.11	$62,980	$68,831	20%
12	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.11	$62,600	$68,640	23%
13	KentuckyState	1.08	$59,240	$66,938	19%
14	MichiganState	1.08	$61,700	$66,847	22%
15	OhioState	1.08	$60,770	$67,223	21%
16	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.08	$72,390	$67,152	30%
17	MissouriState	1.07	$58,620	$66,163	21%
18	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.07	$61,250	$66,216	23%
19	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.07	$60,750	$66,033	26%
20	AlabamaState	1.06	$57,360	$65,855	20%
21	TexasState	1.05	$62,490	$65,366	27%
22	Columbus, OHMetro	1.05	$60,590	$64,802	26%
23	OregonState	1.04	$66,530	$64,592	29%
24	WisconsinState	1.04	$59,350	$64,301	22%
25	ColoradoState	1.02	$66,580	$63,169	33%
26	IowaState	1.02	$56,140	$62,937	20%
27	North DakotaState	1.02	$58,370	$63,035	20%
28	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.02	$62,390	$63,340	33%
29	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.02	$71,050	$62,988	34%
30	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.01	$60,640	$62,645	32%
31	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.01	$61,000	$62,757	31%
32	ArizonaState	1.00	$62,610	$62,052	29%
33	VermontState	1.00	$63,380	$61,834	27%
34	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.99	$64,700	$61,153	31%
35	PennsylvaniaState	0.98	$58,940	$60,763	26%
36	IndianaState	0.96	$53,770	$59,414	24%
37	VirginiaState	0.96	$61,270	$59,198	31%
38	ConnecticutState	0.95	$63,240	$58,773	30%
39	HawaiiState	0.95	$64,500	$58,636	44%
40	MarylandState	0.95	$64,300	$58,883	31%
41	New YorkState	0.94	$65,520	$58,240	34%
42	West VirginiaState	0.94	$49,010	$58,207	21%
43	MaineState	0.93	$57,560	$57,675	27%
44	MassachusettsState	0.93	$62,820	$57,899	43%
45	FloridaState	0.92	$57,980	$57,123	36%
46	LouisianaState	0.92	$51,150	$56,770	25%
47	OklahomaState	0.92	$50,480	$57,040	23%
48	TennesseeState	0.92	$51,910	$56,732	29%
49	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.92	$58,970	$56,976	32%
50	IllinoisState	0.91	$54,910	$56,376	29%
51	UtahState	0.91	$56,640	$56,527	32%
52	GeorgiaState	0.90	$52,010	$55,685	33%
53	New JerseyState	0.90	$60,400	$55,515	36%
54	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.90	$63,390	$55,850	48%
55	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.90	$53,400	$55,509	35%
56	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.88	$52,170	$54,457	35%
57	North CarolinaState	0.87	$51,030	$54,057	31%
58	MontanaState	0.86	$51,110	$53,019	26%
59	New MexicoState	0.86	$49,210	$53,489	26%
60	South CarolinaState	0.86	$48,880	$53,130	31%
61	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.86	$58,110	$53,558	42%
62	IdahoState	0.83	$49,720	$51,523	29%
63	South DakotaState	0.83	$46,850	$51,597	25%
64	DelawareState	0.82	$51,110	$50,604	32%
65	ArkansasState	0.80	$42,670	$49,444	25%
66	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.79	$45,270	$48,782	34%
67	MississippiState	0.75	$39,560	$46,651	27%
68	KansasState	0.72	$40,010	$44,456	31%

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