Best Cities for Ushers, Lobby Attendants, and Ticket Takerss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where ushers, lobby attendants, and ticket takerss 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	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.18	$44,250	$38,714	60%
2	WashingtonState	1.16	$41,010	$38,220	56%
3	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CAMetro	1.13	$44,760	$37,238	84%
4	ColoradoState	1.11	$38,380	$36,414	58%
5	MissouriState	1.11	$32,350	$36,512	38%
6	MaineState	1.09	$35,850	$35,922	43%
7	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.09	$32,840	$36,009	45%
8	IllinoisState	1.08	$34,560	$35,483	46%
9	MontanaState	1.08	$34,420	$35,705	39%
10	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.06	$32,480	$35,000	47%
11	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.05	$33,540	$34,649	58%
12	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.05	$34,250	$34,422	52%
13	CaliforniaState	1.04	$37,870	$34,210	72%
14	MinnesotaState	1.04	$33,480	$34,163	46%
15	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.04	$31,670	$34,238	45%
16	Rhode IslandState	1.03	$34,040	$33,871	53%
17	AlaskaState	1.01	$34,680	$33,250	47%
18	District of ColumbiaState	1.01	$37,930	$33,185	67%
19	MichiganState	1.01	$30,530	$33,077	44%
20	New JerseyState	1.01	$35,990	$33,079	60%
21	OregonState	1.01	$34,110	$33,117	56%
22	TennesseeState	1.01	$30,550	$33,388	49%
23	GeorgiaState	1.00	$30,820	$32,998	55%
24	New YorkState	1.00	$37,110	$32,987	60%
25	ArkansasState	0.99	$28,050	$32,503	38%
26	ConnecticutState	0.99	$34,940	$32,472	54%
27	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	0.99	$37,870	$32,506	72%
28	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.99	$35,150	$32,607	61%
29	ArizonaState	0.98	$32,510	$32,220	55%
30	South DakotaState	0.98	$29,430	$32,412	39%
31	New HampshireState	0.97	$33,970	$32,047	56%
32	North CarolinaState	0.97	$30,260	$32,055	52%
33	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	0.97	$33,700	$31,853	60%
34	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	0.97	$30,720	$32,067	59%
35	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	0.97	$30,590	$31,798	61%
36	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	0.97	$36,080	$31,986	66%
37	OhioState	0.96	$28,540	$31,571	44%
38	MarylandState	0.95	$34,020	$31,154	59%
39	MassachusettsState	0.95	$33,940	$31,281	80%
40	WisconsinState	0.95	$28,780	$31,181	45%
41	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	0.95	$32,220	$31,130	59%
42	DelawareState	0.94	$31,200	$30,891	52%
43	LouisianaState	0.94	$27,750	$30,799	45%
44	NebraskaState	0.94	$28,260	$30,885	44%
45	New MexicoState	0.93	$28,230	$30,685	45%
46	IdahoState	0.92	$29,360	$30,425	49%
47	IndianaState	0.92	$27,440	$30,320	46%
48	Columbus, OHMetro	0.92	$28,350	$30,321	55%
49	NevadaState	0.91	$30,110	$30,050	58%
50	North DakotaState	0.91	$27,840	$30,065	42%
51	PennsylvaniaState	0.91	$29,130	$30,031	53%
52	WyomingState	0.91	$27,800	$29,892	43%
53	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.91	$34,020	$29,974	90%
54	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	0.91	$29,380	$29,827	70%
55	KansasState	0.90	$26,690	$29,656	47%
56	OklahomaState	0.90	$26,260	$29,672	44%
57	KentuckyState	0.89	$25,930	$29,299	44%
58	IowaState	0.88	$25,720	$28,834	44%
59	FloridaState	0.87	$29,130	$28,700	71%
60	South CarolinaState	0.87	$26,490	$28,793	57%
61	HawaiiState	0.85	$30,640	$27,855	93%
62	TexasState	0.85	$26,610	$27,835	62%
63	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	0.85	$27,230	$28,014	70%
64	VirginiaState	0.84	$28,580	$27,614	66%
65	West VirginiaState	0.84	$23,400	$27,791	43%
66	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	0.84	$25,480	$27,696	61%
67	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.83	$29,750	$27,419	82%
68	UtahState	0.81	$26,650	$26,597	67%
69	AlabamaState	0.78	$22,360	$25,672	51%
70	MississippiState	0.77	$21,570	$25,436	50%

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