Best Cities for Statisticianss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where statisticianss 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	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.60	$202,840	$168,752	19%
2	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.25	$126,350	$131,889	14%
3	KentuckyState	1.20	$112,520	$127,141	10%
4	KansasState	1.18	$111,780	$124,200	11%
5	GeorgiaState	1.17	$115,150	$123,287	15%
6	ArkansasState	1.16	$105,720	$122,503	10%
7	CaliforniaState	1.16	$135,960	$122,818	20%
8	District of ColumbiaState	1.16	$140,670	$123,071	18%
9	IllinoisState	1.16	$119,760	$122,957	13%
10	North CarolinaState	1.16	$115,690	$122,553	13%
11	MarylandState	1.15	$132,620	$121,447	15%
12	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.15	$136,660	$121,152	18%
13	IndianaState	1.14	$109,300	$120,773	12%
14	New YorkState	1.14	$136,020	$120,907	16%
15	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.14	$111,780	$120,453	14%
16	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.13	$115,590	$119,411	17%
17	WisconsinState	1.10	$107,150	$116,089	12%
18	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.07	$122,430	$112,839	20%
19	MichiganState	1.05	$102,710	$111,278	13%
20	VirginiaState	1.05	$114,920	$111,034	16%
21	DelawareState	1.03	$109,570	$108,485	15%
22	New JerseyState	1.03	$118,280	$108,713	18%
23	OhioState	1.03	$98,190	$108,617	13%
24	TennesseeState	1.02	$98,230	$107,355	15%
25	TexasState	1.02	$102,960	$107,699	16%
26	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.02	$105,670	$107,279	20%
27	FloridaState	1.01	$108,040	$106,443	19%
28	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.01	$104,090	$107,088	18%
29	ColoradoState	0.98	$109,660	$104,042	20%
30	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.98	$95,320	$103,609	16%
31	Rhode IslandState	0.97	$102,620	$102,109	18%
32	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.97	$108,820	$102,854	19%
33	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.97	$105,820	$102,242	18%
34	OklahomaState	0.96	$89,540	$101,175	13%
35	West VirginiaState	0.95	$84,660	$100,546	12%
36	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.94	$116,200	$99,742	23%
37	WashingtonState	0.93	$105,650	$98,462	22%
38	PennsylvaniaState	0.92	$93,830	$96,732	17%
39	ConnecticutState	0.90	$102,860	$95,595	18%
40	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.88	$89,130	$92,651	21%
41	New MexicoState	0.87	$84,330	$91,663	15%
42	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	0.87	$105,650	$92,432	25%
43	NebraskaState	0.86	$83,480	$91,235	15%
44	New HampshireState	0.86	$96,080	$90,642	20%
45	OregonState	0.86	$93,620	$90,893	20%
46	IowaState	0.85	$80,150	$89,854	14%
47	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.85	$102,320	$90,150	30%
48	MassachusettsState	0.84	$96,710	$89,134	28%
49	UtahState	0.84	$88,610	$88,433	20%
50	AlabamaState	0.83	$76,400	$87,715	15%
51	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.82	$93,620	$86,846	23%
52	MaineState	0.81	$85,680	$85,852	18%
53	LouisianaState	0.80	$76,400	$84,795	16%
54	Columbus, OHMetro	0.79	$78,040	$83,465	20%
55	North DakotaState	0.78	$75,890	$81,955	15%
56	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	0.77	$75,230	$81,330	19%
57	VermontState	0.76	$82,210	$80,205	21%
58	ArizonaState	0.75	$79,640	$78,930	23%
59	NevadaState	0.75	$79,750	$79,591	22%
60	MississippiState	0.72	$64,670	$76,262	17%
61	MissouriState	0.71	$66,330	$74,865	19%
62	South CarolinaState	0.67	$65,450	$71,141	23%
63	HawaiiState	0.66	$76,780	$69,800	37%

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