Best Cities for School Bus Monitorss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where school bus monitorss 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	North DakotaState	1.18	$38,480	$41,555	30%
2	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.18	$47,170	$41,269	56%
3	OregonState	1.13	$40,900	$39,709	47%
4	WisconsinState	1.13	$36,640	$39,697	36%
5	WyomingState	1.13	$36,810	$39,581	32%
6	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.13	$36,240	$39,737	40%
7	MinnesotaState	1.12	$38,590	$39,378	40%
8	New MexicoState	1.12	$36,250	$39,402	35%
9	WashingtonState	1.12	$42,330	$39,450	54%
10	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.11	$38,670	$38,864	46%
11	MissouriState	1.10	$34,220	$38,623	36%
12	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.10	$41,490	$38,488	52%
13	MaineState	1.09	$38,060	$38,136	41%
14	NebraskaState	1.08	$34,750	$37,978	36%
15	South DakotaState	1.08	$34,380	$37,863	33%
16	UtahState	1.08	$38,020	$37,944	47%
17	VermontState	1.08	$39,020	$38,068	44%
18	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.08	$34,970	$37,805	40%
19	IndianaState	1.06	$33,590	$37,116	38%
20	IowaState	1.05	$32,740	$36,704	35%
21	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.05	$41,720	$36,986	57%
22	District of ColumbiaState	1.04	$41,720	$36,500	60%
23	HawaiiState	1.04	$40,250	$36,591	71%
24	PennsylvaniaState	1.04	$35,290	$36,381	44%
25	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.04	$38,590	$36,474	52%
26	DelawareState	1.03	$36,560	$36,198	44%
27	MontanaState	1.03	$34,740	$36,037	39%
28	Rhode IslandState	1.02	$35,910	$35,731	50%
29	MarylandState	1.01	$38,750	$35,485	52%
30	New HampshireState	1.01	$37,620	$35,491	51%
31	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.01	$34,120	$35,616	53%
32	MichiganState	1.00	$32,480	$35,190	41%
33	North CarolinaState	1.00	$32,970	$34,926	47%
34	VirginiaState	1.00	$36,510	$35,275	52%
35	Columbus, OHMetro	1.00	$32,830	$35,112	47%
36	CaliforniaState	0.99	$38,360	$34,652	71%
37	IllinoisState	0.99	$33,840	$34,743	46%
38	ArizonaState	0.98	$34,560	$34,252	52%
39	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.97	$38,470	$33,894	80%
40	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.97	$31,500	$33,944	49%
41	FloridaState	0.96	$34,110	$33,606	61%
42	IdahoState	0.95	$32,230	$33,399	45%
43	MassachusettsState	0.95	$36,020	$33,198	75%
44	New JerseyState	0.95	$36,100	$33,180	60%
45	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.95	$34,620	$33,449	55%
46	ConnecticutState	0.94	$35,350	$32,853	53%
47	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.94	$38,360	$32,927	71%
48	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.94	$32,330	$32,822	64%
49	AlaskaState	0.93	$33,990	$32,589	48%
50	ArkansasState	0.93	$28,260	$32,746	37%
51	KansasState	0.93	$29,420	$32,689	42%
52	New YorkState	0.93	$36,910	$32,809	60%
53	AlabamaState	0.92	$28,210	$32,388	41%
54	GeorgiaState	0.92	$30,130	$32,259	56%
55	ColoradoState	0.91	$33,540	$31,822	66%
56	KentuckyState	0.91	$28,220	$31,887	41%
57	OklahomaState	0.91	$28,130	$31,785	41%
58	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.91	$30,640	$31,850	61%
59	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.90	$34,440	$31,742	71%
60	OhioState	0.89	$28,110	$31,095	45%
61	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.89	$30,130	$31,126	64%
62	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.89	$28,840	$31,348	54%
63	TexasState	0.87	$29,300	$30,649	57%
64	TennesseeState	0.85	$27,250	$29,781	55%
65	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.84	$28,640	$29,465	66%
66	NevadaState	0.83	$29,230	$29,172	60%
67	South CarolinaState	0.81	$26,240	$28,522	57%
68	LouisianaState	0.80	$25,250	$28,024	50%
69	MississippiState	0.79	$23,500	$27,712	46%

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