Best Cities for Social and Human Service Assistantss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where social and human service assistantss 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	District of ColumbiaState	1.13	$59,460	$52,021	42%
2	WisconsinState	1.12	$47,500	$51,463	27%
3	MinnesotaState	1.11	$49,940	$50,959	31%
4	WashingtonState	1.11	$54,770	$51,044	42%
5	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.11	$58,090	$50,822	45%
6	New MexicoState	1.10	$46,340	$50,370	27%
7	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.10	$60,650	$50,458	62%
8	North DakotaState	1.09	$46,260	$49,957	25%
9	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.09	$49,750	$50,000	36%
10	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.09	$45,970	$49,967	34%
11	OregonState	1.08	$51,230	$49,738	37%
12	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.08	$45,860	$49,418	34%
13	IdahoState	1.07	$47,540	$49,264	30%
14	IndianaState	1.07	$44,550	$49,227	28%
15	WyomingState	1.06	$45,290	$48,699	26%
16	IllinoisState	1.05	$46,950	$48,203	34%
17	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.05	$46,850	$48,200	41%
18	IowaState	1.04	$42,480	$47,623	27%
19	MaineState	1.04	$47,710	$47,806	33%
20	TexasState	1.04	$45,860	$47,971	36%
21	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.04	$51,710	$47,968	42%
22	KansasState	1.03	$42,570	$47,300	29%
23	MissouriState	1.03	$41,780	$47,156	30%
24	Rhode IslandState	1.03	$47,720	$47,483	38%
25	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.03	$43,970	$47,535	32%
26	West VirginiaState	1.02	$39,290	$46,663	26%
27	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.02	$42,600	$46,711	34%
28	CaliforniaState	1.00	$51,090	$46,152	53%
29	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.00	$48,420	$45,766	42%
30	AlaskaState	0.99	$47,360	$45,407	35%
31	ColoradoState	0.99	$47,690	$45,247	46%
32	North CarolinaState	0.99	$42,850	$45,392	36%
33	PennsylvaniaState	0.99	$44,050	$45,412	35%
34	VermontState	0.99	$46,640	$45,502	37%
35	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.99	$43,480	$45,386	41%
36	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.99	$43,860	$45,593	43%
37	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.99	$45,000	$45,685	46%
38	Columbus, OHMetro	0.98	$42,190	$45,123	37%
39	New JerseyState	0.97	$48,420	$44,504	45%
40	New HampshireState	0.96	$46,950	$44,292	41%
41	TennesseeState	0.96	$40,310	$44,055	37%
42	FloridaState	0.95	$44,410	$43,754	46%
43	MassachusettsState	0.95	$47,130	$43,438	57%
44	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.95	$45,370	$43,836	42%
45	MarylandState	0.94	$47,210	$43,233	43%
46	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.94	$50,330	$43,202	54%
47	ArkansasState	0.93	$36,770	$42,607	29%
48	NebraskaState	0.93	$38,940	$42,557	32%
49	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	0.93	$41,340	$42,707	47%
50	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.93	$48,370	$42,881	50%
51	GeorgiaState	0.92	$39,480	$42,270	43%
52	KentuckyState	0.92	$37,440	$42,305	31%
53	MichiganState	0.92	$39,160	$42,427	34%
54	OhioState	0.92	$38,390	$42,467	33%
55	South DakotaState	0.92	$38,350	$42,236	30%
56	ConnecticutState	0.91	$44,730	$41,571	42%
57	New YorkState	0.91	$47,190	$41,947	47%
58	South CarolinaState	0.91	$38,550	$41,902	39%
59	VirginiaState	0.91	$43,450	$41,981	43%
60	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.91	$47,530	$41,877	65%
61	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.91	$45,370	$41,816	54%
62	AlabamaState	0.90	$35,830	$41,137	32%
63	OklahomaState	0.90	$36,740	$41,514	32%
64	ArizonaState	0.88	$40,730	$40,367	44%
65	DelawareState	0.88	$40,710	$40,307	40%
66	MontanaState	0.87	$38,570	$40,010	35%
67	UtahState	0.87	$39,930	$39,850	45%
68	LouisianaState	0.86	$35,780	$39,711	35%
69	HawaiiState	0.84	$42,400	$38,545	68%
70	NevadaState	0.84	$38,570	$38,493	45%
71	MississippiState	0.80	$31,200	$36,792	34%

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