Best Cities for Veterinarianss

Cities ranked by purchasing power — where veterinarianss 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	1.23	$192,160	$159,867	20%
2	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WIMetro	1.22	$158,200	$158,995	11%
3	West VirginiaState	1.18	$128,990	$153,195	8%
4	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MDMetro	1.18	$162,930	$153,998	12%
5	ArizonaState	1.16	$152,020	$150,664	12%
6	MarylandState	1.15	$163,170	$149,423	12%
7	WashingtonState	1.15	$160,510	$149,590	14%
8	CaliforniaState	1.14	$163,920	$148,076	17%
9	New JerseyState	1.13	$160,140	$147,188	13%
10	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WAMetro	1.10	$163,810	$143,316	16%
11	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MIMetro	1.09	$129,730	$142,248	11%
12	New MexicoState	1.08	$129,390	$140,641	10%
13	IowaState	1.07	$124,610	$139,697	9%
14	Pittsburgh, PAMetro	1.07	$128,290	$138,692	11%
15	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TXMetro	1.07	$128,550	$139,728	12%
16	IndianaState	1.06	$124,530	$137,602	10%
17	LouisianaState	1.06	$124,370	$138,036	10%
18	OhioState	1.06	$125,060	$138,341	10%
19	PennsylvaniaState	1.06	$133,520	$137,649	12%
20	TexasState	1.06	$131,330	$137,374	13%
21	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TXMetro	1.06	$133,550	$137,397	14%
22	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CAMetro	1.06	$160,080	$137,408	17%
23	IllinoisState	1.05	$133,580	$137,146	12%
24	North CarolinaState	1.05	$129,240	$136,907	12%
25	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WVMetro	1.05	$154,350	$136,835	16%
26	GeorgiaState	1.04	$126,590	$135,535	13%
27	MichiganState	1.04	$125,390	$135,850	11%
28	MinnesotaState	1.04	$133,110	$135,827	12%
29	TennesseeState	1.04	$124,350	$135,902	12%
30	Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SCMetro	1.04	$129,080	$134,739	14%
31	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MDMetro	1.04	$139,810	$135,082	14%
32	South CarolinaState	1.02	$122,130	$132,750	12%
33	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GAMetro	1.02	$128,980	$133,244	15%
34	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FLMetro	1.02	$131,190	$133,188	16%
35	MaineState	1.01	$130,600	$130,862	12%
36	Columbus, OHMetro	1.01	$123,270	$131,840	13%
37	Kansas City, MO-KSMetro	1.01	$122,490	$131,994	13%
38	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TNMetro	1.01	$126,230	$131,216	15%
39	FloridaState	1.00	$131,660	$129,714	16%
40	MassachusettsState	0.99	$140,260	$129,272	19%
41	MissouriState	0.99	$114,660	$129,413	11%
42	VermontState	0.99	$131,820	$128,605	13%
43	Rhode IslandState	0.97	$126,570	$125,940	14%
44	ArkansasState	0.96	$107,710	$124,809	10%
45	MississippiState	0.96	$105,370	$124,257	10%
46	NevadaState	0.96	$125,550	$125,299	14%
47	OregonState	0.96	$128,880	$125,126	15%
48	ColoradoState	0.95	$130,840	$124,137	17%
49	UtahState	0.95	$123,990	$123,743	14%
50	VirginiaState	0.94	$126,730	$122,444	15%
51	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NHMetro	0.94	$138,900	$122,379	22%
52	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WAMetro	0.94	$131,720	$122,189	16%
53	AlabamaState	0.93	$105,630	$121,274	11%
54	IdahoState	0.93	$116,170	$120,383	12%
55	New HampshireState	0.93	$128,190	$120,934	15%
56	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FLMetro	0.92	$129,890	$119,714	19%
57	HawaiiState	0.91	$130,120	$118,291	22%
58	KansasState	0.91	$107,080	$118,978	12%
59	WisconsinState	0.91	$108,780	$117,855	12%
60	ConnecticutState	0.90	$126,190	$117,277	15%
61	District of ColumbiaState	0.90	$134,530	$117,699	19%
62	KentuckyState	0.90	$104,100	$117,627	11%
63	New YorkState	0.90	$131,830	$117,182	17%
64	NebraskaState	0.87	$103,500	$113,115	12%
65	North DakotaState	0.85	$102,180	$110,346	11%
66	OklahomaState	0.85	$98,090	$110,836	12%
67	WyomingState	0.80	$97,240	$104,559	12%
68	MontanaState	0.79	$99,390	$103,102	14%
69	South DakotaState	0.75	$88,650	$97,632	13%

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