Best Cities for Transportation Inspectorss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where transportation inspectorss 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	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.54	$140,880	$141,588	13%
2	IowaState	1.42	$116,850	$130,998	10%
3	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.41	$126,010	$129,640	15%
4	OklahomaState	1.36	$111,070	$125,503	10%
5	AlabamaState	1.35	$108,140	$124,156	11%
6	AlaskaState	1.28	$123,120	$118,044	13%
7	KansasState	1.25	$103,380	$114,867	12%
8	North DakotaState	1.25	$106,330	$114,827	11%
9	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.23	$129,480	$113,281	20%
10	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.21	$107,640	$111,198	18%
11	TexasState	1.15	$101,440	$106,109	16%
12	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.11	$100,420	$101,949	21%
13	GeorgiaState	1.10	$95,030	$101,745	18%
14	FloridaState	1.09	$101,470	$99,970	20%
15	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	1.09	$107,840	$100,037	20%
16	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.08	$91,620	$99,049	15%
17	ArkansasState	1.07	$85,130	$98,644	12%
18	HawaiiState	1.07	$108,270	$98,427	26%
19	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.06	$103,490	$97,817	19%
20	WashingtonState	1.05	$104,250	$97,158	22%
21	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.05	$89,230	$96,989	18%
22	KentuckyState	1.03	$83,970	$94,881	14%
23	MinnesotaState	1.03	$92,860	$94,755	17%
24	Columbus, OHMetro	1.02	$87,550	$93,636	18%
25	MarylandState	1.00	$100,700	$92,216	20%
26	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	1.00	$100,100	$92,258	24%
27	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.99	$103,360	$91,066	30%
28	North CarolinaState	0.97	$84,470	$89,481	18%
29	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.97	$85,650	$89,405	21%
30	IndianaState	0.96	$80,330	$88,762	16%
31	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.96	$85,360	$88,732	22%
32	South CarolinaState	0.95	$80,490	$87,489	19%
33	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.94	$101,040	$86,730	27%
34	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.94	$97,170	$86,144	25%
35	LouisianaState	0.93	$77,460	$85,971	16%
36	TennesseeState	0.93	$78,430	$85,716	19%
37	ConnecticutState	0.92	$91,520	$85,056	21%
38	OhioState	0.92	$77,010	$85,188	16%
39	PennsylvaniaState	0.91	$81,550	$84,072	19%
40	New YorkState	0.90	$93,420	$83,040	24%
41	WisconsinState	0.89	$75,260	$81,538	17%
42	District of ColumbiaState	0.85	$89,960	$78,705	28%
43	ColoradoState	0.84	$81,820	$77,628	27%
44	South DakotaState	0.84	$70,080	$77,181	16%
45	OregonState	0.82	$78,110	$75,835	24%
46	CaliforniaState	0.81	$83,000	$74,977	33%
47	MassachusettsState	0.80	$79,650	$73,410	34%
48	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	0.80	$68,460	$73,772	23%
49	MissouriState	0.79	$64,690	$73,014	19%
50	West VirginiaState	0.76	$58,670	$69,679	17%
51	New MexicoState	0.75	$63,690	$69,228	20%
52	VirginiaState	0.72	$68,610	$66,290	28%
53	MontanaState	0.71	$62,810	$65,156	22%
54	UtahState	0.70	$64,480	$64,351	28%
55	MaineState	0.69	$63,750	$63,878	24%
56	ArizonaState	0.67	$62,250	$61,695	29%
57	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	0.63	$52,760	$57,851	28%
58	IdahoState	0.61	$54,330	$56,301	26%
59	NevadaState	0.54	$50,060	$49,960	35%
60	IllinoisState	0.53	$47,990	$49,271	33%
61	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.52	$49,420	$47,749	39%
62	New JerseyState	0.49	$49,250	$45,267	44%
63	MichiganState	0.42	$35,890	$38,884	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).