Accounting
Which U.S. Cities are the Most and Least Educated?
In states with the least schooled workforces, the median wage is $15 an hour compared with $19 to $20 an hour in states where 40 percent or more of the working population holds at least a bachelor’s degree.
Aug. 18, 2015
They may not always be the brightest bulbs in the chandelier, but the college-educated third of Americans often have a leg up on their degree-less peers. With more schooling, they not only have access to better job opportunities and bigger salaries, but educated workers also fill their cities’ coffers with the most tax dollars over time, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
One way to strengthen an economy, the EPI suggests, is to attract well-paying employers “by investing in education and increasing the number of well-educated workers.” In states with the least schooled workforces, the median wage is $15 an hour compared with $19 to $20 an hour in states where 40 percent or more of the working population holds at least a bachelor’s degree. Local governments appear to be catching on and maximizing the appeal of their cities to college graduates.
As the fall semester commences, WalletHub determined where the most educated Americans are choosing to settle. In order to do so, we compared the 150 largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas across nine key metrics. Our data set ranges from the percentage of adults aged 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher to the attainment gap between women and men. You can find the complete ranking, additional expert commentary and a detailed methodology below.
Overall Rank |
MSA |
“Education Level” Rank |
“Quality of Education & Attainment Gap” Rank |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Ann Arbor, MI | 1 | 4 |
2 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 3 | 19 |
3 | Madison, WI | 2 | 51 |
4 | Provo-Orem, UT | 11 | 6 |
5 | Colorado Springs, CO | 4 | 47 |
6 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 6 | 31 |
7 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 5 | 63 |
8 | Lansing-East Lansing, MI | 15 | 1 |
9 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 7 | 59 |
10 | Raleigh, NC | 10 | 49 |
11 | Tallahassee, FL | 17 | 15 |
12 | Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 18 | 9 |
13 | Portland-South Portland, ME | 12 | 68 |
14 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 21 | 5 |
15 | Austin-Round Rock, TX | 21 | 11 |
T-16 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 9 | 119 |
T-16 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 13 | 66 |
18 | Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | 14 | 92 |
19 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 23 | 30 |
20 | San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 16 | 110 |
21 | Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | 8 | 149 |
22 | Manchester-Nashua, NH | 19 | 128 |
23 | Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | 20 | 116 |
24 | Honolulu, HI | 30 | 14 |
25 | Huntsville, AL | 25 | 99 |
26 | Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA | 27 | 102 |
27 | Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | 26 | 111 |
28 | Kansas City, MO-KS | 24 | 130 |
29 | Anchorage, AK | 33 | 33 |
30 | Eugene, OR | 39 | 9 |
31 | Lexington-Fayette, KY | 32 | 62 |
32 | Salt Lake City, UT | 35 | 24 |
33 | Rochester, NY | 28 | 138 |
34 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 37 | 32 |
35 | St. Louis, MO-IL | 29 | 126 |
36 | Columbus, OH | 34 | 106 |
37 | Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | 36 | 65 |
38 | San Diego-Carlsbad, CA | 42 | 29 |
39 | Trenton, NJ | 31 | 142 |
40 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 44 | 39 |
T-41 | Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA | 52 | 16 |
T-41 | Worcester, MA-CT | 41 | 89 |
43 | Santa Rosa, CA | 45 | 40 |
44 | New Haven-Milford, CT | 43 | 83 |
45 | Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC | 47 | 59 |
46 | Pittsburgh, PA | 48 | 42 |
47 | Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY | 37 | 124 |
48 | Albuquerque, NM | 51 | 36 |
49 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 40 | 135 |
50 | Boise City, ID | 49 | 72 |
51 | Tucson, AZ | 54 | 38 |
52 | Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 50 | 80 |
53 | Asheville, NC | 59 | 35 |
54 | Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA | 56 | 74 |
55 | Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | 64 | 7 |
56 | North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL | 52 | 115 |
57 | Ogden-Clearfield, UT | 46 | 145 |
58 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 54 | 122 |
59 | Richmond, VA | 58 | 113 |
60 | Columbia, SC | 60 | 76 |
61 | Syracuse, NY | 56 | 125 |
62 | Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN | 72 | 13 |
63 | Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI | 61 | 104 |
64 | Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | 64 | 49 |
65 | Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | 63 | 88 |
66 | Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 62 | 106 |
67 | Savannah, GA | 64 | 95 |
68 | Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL | 73 | 82 |
69 | Reno, NV | 84 | 8 |
70 | Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 67 | 121 |
71 | Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL | 67 | 131 |
72 | Akron, OH | 70 | 132 |
73 | Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 77 | 74 |
74 | Wichita, KS | 67 | 139 |
75 | Dayton, OH | 75 | 120 |
76 | Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 78 | 86 |
77 | Springfield, MA | 80 | 73 |
78 | Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA | 74 | 137 |
79 | Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | 83 | 58 |
80 | Jacksonville, FL | 82 | 90 |
81 | Oklahoma City, OK | 86 | 17 |
82 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 80 | 111 |
83 | Cleveland-Elyria, OH | 71 | 150 |
84 | Jackson, MS | 78 | 134 |
85 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 88 | 25 |
86 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 97 | 3 |
87 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 87 | 37 |
88 | Peoria, IL | 76 | 148 |
89 | Springfield, MO | 93 | 27 |
90 | Birmingham-Hoover, AL | 90 | 71 |
91 | Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 89 | 97 |
92 | Vallejo-Fairfield, CA | 94 | 57 |
93 | Fort Wayne, IN | 95 | 54 |
94 | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | 91 | 91 |
95 | Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 85 | 147 |
96 | Fayetteville, NC | 98 | 56 |
97 | Knoxville, TN | 104 | 12 |
98 | Toledo, OH | 95 | 83 |
99 | Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | 99 | 77 |
100 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 102 | 69 |
101 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 100 | 94 |
102 | Tulsa, OK | 101 | 64 |
103 | Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL | 92 | 133 |
104 | Killeen-Temple, TX | 103 | 93 |
105 | Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO | 107 | 23 |
106 | New Orleans-Metairie, LA | 111 | 18 |
107 | Greensboro-High Point, NC | 107 | 34 |
108 | Baton Rouge, LA | 109 | 46 |
109 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 112 | 55 |
110 | Montgomery, AL | 105 | 118 |
111 | Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 110 | 87 |
112 | Canton-Massillon, OH | 117 | 27 |
113 | Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 106 | 140 |
114 | Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin, SC | 118 | 41 |
115 | Salisbury, MD-DE | 115 | 81 |
116 | Flint, MI | 116 | 108 |
117 | Port St. Lucie, FL | 114 | 126 |
118 | Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC-NC | 119 | 103 |
119 | Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL | 119 | 104 |
120 | Winston-Salem, NC | 124 | 2 |
121 | Salem, OR | 119 | 108 |
122 | York-Hanover, PA | 123 | 67 |
123 | Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, MS | 125 | 47 |
124 | Scranton–Wilkes-Barre–Hazleton, PA | 113 | 146 |
125 | Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | 130 | 20 |
126 | Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 122 | 129 |
127 | Shreveport-Bossier City, LA | 128 | 77 |
128 | Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA | 129 | 83 |
129 | Rockford, IL | 127 | 135 |
130 | Mobile, AL | 133 | 44 |
131 | Chattanooga, TN-GA | 125 | 143 |
132 | Salinas, CA | 132 | 96 |
133 | Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 134 | 100 |
134 | Lancaster, PA | 131 | 123 |
135 | El Paso, TX | 139 | 22 |
136 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 136 | 53 |
137 | Stockton-Lodi, CA | 141 | 26 |
138 | Corpus Christi, TX | 138 | 100 |
139 | Reading, PA | 135 | 144 |
140 | Ocala, FL | 137 | 117 |
141 | Fresno, CA | 141 | 70 |
142 | Lafayette, LA | 143 | 79 |
143 | Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC | 145 | 61 |
144 | Modesto, CA | 146 | 42 |
145 | Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 144 | 98 |
146 | Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX | 140 | 114 |
147 | McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX | 148 | 21 |
148 | Bakersfield, CA | 147 | 45 |
149 | Visalia-Porterville, CA | 149 | 51 |
150 | Brownsville-Harlingen, TX | 150 | 141 |