The Best Place To Live on a $100,000 Salary in Every State

Are there any states in the land of opportunity where a $100,000 salary goes the distance? The answer is yes. There’s a city in every state where that much money allows for comfortable living.

GOBankingRates analyzed data from several sources, including AreaVibes, Sperling’s Best Places and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, to compile the best places to live on a $100,000 salary in each state. Factors assessed included each city’s livability score, median household incomes and the total annual cost of necessities.

Read on to find out which cities are best for a $100,000 salary in every state.

• Livability score: 81
• Median income: $47,048
• Total annual necessities cost: $35,114

• Livability score: 76
• Median income: $73,512
• Total annual necessities cost: $46,890

• Livability score: 80
• Median income: $56,360
• Total annual necessities cost: $40,720

• Livability score: 88
• Median income: $78,075
• Total annual necessities cost: $41,090

• Livability score: 82
• Median income: $108,527
• Total annual necessities cost: $78,190

• Livability score: 80
• Median income: $102,314
• Total annual necessities cost: $49,844

• Livability score: 85
• Median income: $45,723
• Total annual necessities cost: $39,731

• Livability score: 83
• Median income: $67,738
• Total annual necessities cost: $46,662

• Livability score: 89
• Median income: $69,417
• Total annual necessities cost: $47,217

• Livability score: 86
• Median income: $129,992
• Total annual necessities cost: $45,727

• Livability score: 72
• Median income: $91,703
• Total annual necessities cost: $66,420

• Livability score: 86
• Median income: $69,992
• Total annual necessities cost: $42,457

• Livability score: 90
• Median income: $87,094
• Total annual necessities cost: $41,312

• Livability score: 89
• Median income: $30,317
• Total annual necessities cost: $41,483

• Livability score: 89
• Median income: $86,025
• Total annual necessities cost: $37,640

• Livability score: 86
• Median income: $100,649
• Total annual necessities cost: $46,271

• Livability score: 92
• Median income: $66,741
• Total annual necessities cost: $38,625

• Livability score: 82
• Median income: $51,704
• Total annual necessities cost: $38,822

• Livability score: 88
• Median income: $66,696
• Total annual necessities cost: $48,473

• Livability score: 86
• Median income: $103,061
• Total annual necessities cost: $49,524

• Livability score: 83
• Median income: $67,329
• Total annual necessities cost: $44,478

• Livability score: 92
• Median income: $82,713
• Total annual necessities cost: $41,333

• Livability score: 92
• Median income: $83,973
• Total annual necessities cost: $41,596

• Livability score: 83
• Median income: $72,500
• Total annual necessities cost: $38,351

• Livability score: 86
• Median income: $118,647
• Total annual necessities cost: $47,705

• Livability score: 80
• Median income: $64,798
• Total annual necessities cost: $45,577

• Livability score: 87
• Median income: $58,375
• Total annual necessities cost: $35,129

• Livability score: 76
• Median income: $69,146
• Total annual necessities cost: $45,990

• Livability score: 88
• Median income: $90,844
• Total annual necessities cost: $48,878

• Livability score: 85
• Median income: $117,556
• Total annual necessities cost: $47,878

• Livability score: 81
• Median income: $130,342
• Total annual necessities cost: $43,171

• Livability score: 92
• Median income: $125,910
• Total annual necessities cost: $46,297

• Livability score: 85
• Median income: $75,310
• Total annual necessities cost: $48,757

• Livability score: 84
• Median income: $64,432
• Total annual necessities cost: $40,151

• Livability score: 94
• Median income: $119,408
• Total annual necessities cost: $49,424

• Livability score: 83
• Median income: $62,849
• Total annual necessities cost: $39,446

• Livability score: 90
• Median income: $79,731
• Total annual necessities cost: $47,244

• Livability score: 92
• Median income: $104,959
• Total annual necessities cost: $42,207

• Livability score: 85
• Median income: $83,123
• Total annual necessities cost: $48,783

• Livability score: 84
• Median income: $75,565
• Total annual necessities cost: $38,696

• Livability score: 87
• Median income: $101,747
• Total annual necessities cost: $44,268

• Livability score: 81
• Median income: $62,688
• Total annual necessities cost: $40,030

• Livability score: 84
• Median income: $73,074
• Total annual necessities cost: $36,817

• Livability score: 88
• Median income: $102,712
• Total annual necessities cost: $49,718

• Livability score: 84
• Median income: $76,143
• Total annual necessities cost: $46,457

• Livability score: 90
• Median income: $56,243
• Total annual necessities cost: $36,658

• Livability score: 86
• Median income: $41,479
• Total annual necessities cost: $44,698

• Livability score: 82
• Median income: $46,595
• Total annual necessities cost: $31,117

• Livability score: 90
• Median income: $59,259
• Total annual necessities cost: $35,036

• Livability score: 83
• Median income: $74,989
• Total annual necessities cost: $46,578

John Csiszar, Andrew Lisa and Heather Taylor contributed to the reporting for this article. 

Photo disclaimer: Photos are for illustrative purposes only. In many cases, the closest major city outside of the city/county mentioned it the article was used.

Methodology: To find the best place to live on a $100,000 salary in every state, GOBankingRates looked at the five cities in every state with the highest livability score from AreaVibes. In addition to each city’s livability score, GOBankingRates also found the median household income in every city according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, and the total annual cost of necessities for households with an annual income of $100,000 in each city, calculated by referencing the Bureau of Labor Statistic’s 2022 Consumer Expenditure Survey data on spending habits for consumers in the $100,000 to $149,999 income bracket and projecting annual spending in six necessity categories in every city using Sperling’s Best Places’ city-level cost of living index data. The five necessity categories considered include housing, groceries, utilities, healthcare, and transportation. Cities where annual necessity spending exceeded $50,000 were then removed from consideration, in order to ensure all cities in the final ranking would be affordable for those with a $100,000 salary following the 50/30/20 rule, which dictates that no more than 50% of income should be allocated to necessities. All remaining cities were then ranked against the others in their state on factors 1-3, with high livability scores, high median household income and low cost of necessities being scored more favorably, and the highest-scoring city in each state was identified as the best place to live on a $100,000 salary. AreaVibes’ livability scores take into consideration a variety of quality of life indicators, such as crime rates, school quality, employment, amenities, and more. Due to the high cost of living in the following states, consideration was expanded beyond the top five most livable cities: California, Colorado, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Washington. For California and Hawaii, since the cost of living is so high the 50/30/20 rule was lightened. All data was collected on and up to date as of May 10, 2024.