Best cities for pay after cost of living in the Southwest
Key facts
- #1 Austin, TX: $166k
- #2 Addison, TX: $155k
- #3 Irving, TX: $137k
- 14 cities ranked in the Southwest
- Data as of November 2026
For comparison: $126k across the typical city in our data.
- 1Austin TX$166k
- 2Addison TX$155k
- 3Irving TX$137k
- 4Reno NV$132k
- 5Dallas TX$131k
- 6Plano TX$124k
- 7Tempe AZ$122k
- 8Oklahoma City OK$120k
- 9Houston TX$119k
- 10San Antonio TX$116k
What stands out
- The top ten is tightly packed: Austin leads on $166k, and #10 San Antonio is at $116k.
- Austin is the largest market in the top ten, with 997 openings with pay posted behind its figure.
- Cities with fewer than 100 openings with pay posted are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.
The top 25
- 1
Austin TX
$166k
- Median posted pay
- $163k
- Local prices vs US average
- −2%
- Openings with pay posted
- 997
Hiring most here: Amazon, Advanced Micro Devices, Cloudflare
Based on 997 openings with pay posted.
- 2
Addison TX
$155k
- Median posted pay
- $150k
- State prices vs US average
- −3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 77
Hiring most here: National Life Group, National Life Insurance Company, Bank of America
Based on 77 openings with pay posted.
- 3
Irving TX
$137k
- Median posted pay
- $133k
- State prices vs US average
- −3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 89
Hiring most here: CHRISTUS Health, 7-Eleven, Mckesson
Based on 89 openings with pay posted.
- 4
Reno NV
$132k
- Median posted pay
- $132k
- State prices vs US average
- +0%
- Openings with pay posted
- 54
Hiring most here: IGT, Amperesand, Caesars Entertainment
Based on 54 openings with pay posted.
- 5
Dallas TX
$131k
- Median posted pay
- $135k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 593
Hiring most here: Amazon, Shield AI, Texas Instruments
Based on 593 openings with pay posted.
- 6
Plano TX
$124k
- Median posted pay
- $120k
- State prices vs US average
- −3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 62
Hiring most here: NTT Data, Pepsico, JPMorgan Chase
Based on 62 openings with pay posted.
- 7
Tempe AZ
$122k
- Median posted pay
- $123k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 53
Hiring most here: Carvana, Amazon, Viasat
Based on 53 openings with pay posted.
- 8
Oklahoma City OK
$120k
- Median posted pay
- $105k
- State prices vs US average
- −12%
- Openings with pay posted
- 52
Hiring most here: Love's Travel Stops, CACI International, Northrop Grumman
Based on 52 openings with pay posted.
- 9
Houston TX
$119k
- Median posted pay
- $118k
- Local prices vs US average
- −1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 366
Hiring most here: Axiom Space, Trinzic, Fervo Energy
Based on 366 openings with pay posted.
- 10
San Antonio TX
$116k
- Median posted pay
- $110k
- Local prices vs US average
- −5%
- Openings with pay posted
- 113
Hiring most here: H-E-B, University Health San Antonio, UT Health San Antonio
Based on 113 openings with pay posted.
- 11
Scottsdale AZ
$114k
- Median posted pay
- $115k
- State prices vs US average
- +1%
- Openings with pay posted
- 86
Hiring most here: General Dynamics Mission Systems, Axon Enterprise, AMI Semiconductor
Based on 86 openings with pay posted.
- 12
Fort Worth TX
$112k
- Median posted pay
- $115k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 138
Hiring most here: Lockheed Martin, MP Materials, Alcon
Based on 138 openings with pay posted.
- 13
Phoenix AZ
$111k
- Median posted pay
- $115k
- Local prices vs US average
- +3%
- Openings with pay posted
- 279
Hiring most here: Honeywell Aerospace, State of Arizona, American Society for Microbiology
Based on 279 openings with pay posted.
- 14
Las Vegas NV
$106k
- Median posted pay
- $106k
- Local prices vs US average
- +0%
- Openings with pay posted
- 126
Hiring most here: Caesars Entertainment, Allegiant Travel Company, Jt4
Based on 126 openings with pay posted.
Full ranking
All 14 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.
| Rank | City | Score | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austin TX | $166k | 997 |
| 2 | Addison TX | $155k | 77 |
| 3 | Irving TX | $137k | 89 |
| 4 | Reno NV | $132k | 54 |
| 5 | Dallas TX | $131k | 593 |
| 6 | Plano TX | $124k | 62 |
| 7 | Tempe AZ | $122k | 53 |
| 8 | Oklahoma City OK | $120k | 52 |
| 9 | Houston TX | $119k | 366 |
| 10 | San Antonio TX | $116k | 113 |
| 11 | Scottsdale AZ | $114k | 86 |
| 12 | Fort Worth TX | $112k | 138 |
| 13 | Phoenix AZ | $111k | 279 |
| 14 | Las Vegas NV | $106k | 126 |
How this ranking works
The score is a city's median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) divided by its local price level, with the United States at 100.
Price levels are the Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities for the city's metro area, or its state where no metro figure exists. Only cities with at least 50 listings that post a salary are ranked.
A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.
Sample bar: cities with fewer than 100 openings with pay posted are not ranked.
Sources: NextChapter job data: posted annual salary ranges; Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024 (metro areas and states). Data as of November 2026.
Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.
Questions
- Which city ranks first: best cities for pay after cost of living in the southwest?
- Austin leads the Southwest for pay after the cost of living: its median posted salary buys what $166k buys at average US prices.
- How many cities are ranked?
- 14 cities have at least 100 openings with pay posted, so the list has 14 entries.
- How is the ranking calculated?
- The score is a city's median posted annual salary (the midpoint of each posted range) divided by its local price level, with the United States at 100. Price levels are the Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities for the city's metro area, or its state where no metro figure exists. Only cities with at least 50 listings that post a salary are ranked. A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.
- How often is it updated?
- Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.
More rankings
- Best cities for junior jobs in the Southwest
- Best cities for AI-skill jobs in the Southwest
- Fastest-growing job markets in the Southwest
- Best cities for software and engineering jobs in the Southwest
- Best cities for mid-career professionals in the Southwest
- Best cities for director and executive jobs in the Southwest
- Best cities for pay after cost of living
- Best cities for pay after cost of living in California
- Best cities for pay after cost of living in Texas
- Best cities for pay after cost of living in Virginia
- All rankings
Cite this ranking
NextChapter, “Best cities for pay after cost of living in the Southwest,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-pay-vs-cost-of-living-in-the-southwest
Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-cities-for-pay-vs-cost-of-living-in-the-southwest">Best cities for pay after cost of living in the Southwest (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>
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